Pastoral value is influenced by many factors, one of them being the altitude. The purpose of this research is to highlight the influence of altitude on pastoral value in hill permanent grasslands.  The researches were developed during 2001-2004 on 3 permanent grasslands from Şiria (Arad County). The altitudinal interval analysed in this work is 100-500 m a.s.l., respectively 100m, 200m, 300m, 400m and 500m.The method used for vegetation analysis is quadrate point method that helped us to the calculation of pastoral value (VP). The statistical methods used are linear regression and correlation coefficient. At 100m vegetation cover has a low pastoral value (12-26) and it is still degrading until to the end of research. The situation at 200m the situation is similar, due to the important contribution of weeds and species without forager value. At 300m VP is still characteristic for low quality grassland but is getting better in comparison with the altitude levels mentioned previously. In the case of 400m and 500m altitude levels VP has the same evolution as was determined for 100m altitude level, this index getting degrading powerfully during the short period of the research. Degradation of the vegetation sward at all altitudinal levels considered in this research is due to the greatest contribution of weeds and species without forager value. Other decisional factor that is leading to the degradation of grassland vegetation is the lack of minimal maintenance works applied and the free grazing. Analysing the correlation coefficient between the altitude interval 100-500m and pastoral value, there wasn’t found any interrelation (r = 0.08). Thus, regarding the influence of altitude levels for the 100-500m interval we can conclude that the values of this index are heterogenous. This fact can be explained with the consistent presence of the species from other botanical families at all altitudinal levels studied here, this fact leading to low VP values situated in a broad interval independent by altitude.

hill grassland; pastoral value; altitude

Presentation: oral