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Vegetation is an assemblage of plant species and the ground cover they provide. It is a general term, without specific reference to particular taxa, life forms, structure, spatial extent, or any other specific botanical or geographic characteristics. It is broader than the term flora which refers to species composition. Perhaps the closest synonym is plant community, but vegetation can, and often does, refer to a wider range of spatial scales than that term does, including scales as large as the global.
Peat (piːt) is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient carbon sink on the planet, because peatland plants capture carbon dioxide (CO2) naturally released from the peat, maintaining an equilibrium.
Decomposition or rot is the process by which dead organic substances are broken down into simpler organic or inorganic matter such as carbon dioxide, water, simple sugars and mineral salts. The process is a part of the nutrient cycle and is essential for recycling the finite matter that occupies physical space in the biosphere. Bodies of living organisms begin to decompose shortly after death. Animals, such as worms, also help decompose the organic materials. Organisms that do this are known as decomposers or detritivores.
Eriophorum vaginatum is a characteristic species of northern peatlands and a keystone plant for cutover bog restoration. Understanding the factors affecting E. vaginatum seedling establishment (i.e. g
Peatlands represent massive global carbon (C) pools and sinks. Carbon accumulation depends on the ratio between net primary production and decomposition of organic matter, both of which can change und
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We measured the net ecosystem exchange (NEE) and respiration rates and modeled the photosynthesis and respiration dynamics in a cutover bog in the Swiss Jura Mountains during one growing season at thr