Sites of Botanical Interest in Moravia

The Bílé Karpaty Mts.

Vladimír Antonín, Jan W. Jongepier and Vít Grulich

Contents

Geographic location
Geology and geomorphology
Climate
Soils
Landscape development
Vegetation
Flora
Macromycetes
Conservation
Meadow management and restoration
Meadow re-creation
Sites worth visiting:
Čertoryje
Zahrady pod Hájem
References

Fig. 1. National Nature Reserve Čertoryje, the Bílé Kapaty Mts. Section of the map "Slovácko. Bílé Karpaty. Turistická mapa 1 : 50 000" (Klub českých turistů Praha, 1992).
Fig. 2. Surroundings of the town of Velká nad Veličkou, the Bílé Kapaty Mts. Section of the map "Slovácko. Bílé Karpaty. Turistická mapa 1 : 50 000" (Klub českých turistů Praha, 1992).
Fig. 3. View of the National Nature Reserve Čertoryje in the Bílé Karpaty Mts. with species-rich meadows and scattered oaks. Photo M. Chytrý, 1996.
Fig. 4. A species rich meadow (Brachypodium pinnatum-Molinia arundinacea community) in the National Nature Reserve Čertoryje, Bílé Karpaty Mts. Photo M. Chytrý, 1996.

Geographic location

The Bílé Karpaty Mts. (White Carpathians) is a mountain range in the east of southern Moravia, but the southeasternst part of the mountains lies on Slovak territory. Before 1918, the range formed the border between the Austrian and the Hungarian part of Austro-Hungary.

Geology and Geomorphology

The area consists predominantly of flysh deposits from the Eocene period (Lower Tertiary). It is the White Carpathian unit, composed of alternating sandstone and claystone layers. The presence of calcareous deposits filling up the oldest fissures is quite common. The sandstone is usually cemented by lime, and only in the central part of the mountain range acidic sandstone cemented by silica is present. Among Quaternary covering deposits, loess and silty loams prevail in relatively large areas. In stream and river valleys alluvial deposits are widely distributed. Loamy to clayey slope deposits are encountered in some parts of the range with rugged terrain. In the vicinity of springs originating from flysh layers particularly rich in lime, calcareous tufa has developed at many sites.
From the geomorphologic point of view, the western part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. is a hilly country with gentle, rarely steep slopes and open and shallow valleys. The central part of the mountains consists of one or two parallel main ranges with, namely on the Slovak side, numerous side ranges projecting far from the main range. The central and northeastern part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. is more mountainous in character. The border range is divided into several massifs (e.g. Žalostiná, Javořina, and Lopeník). Landslides are a common feature on steep slopes, namely near springs, apparent by the many uneven slopes. Rock cliffs are present only on Slovak territory. The lowest point of the area is the margin of the floodplain of the Morava River near the village of Sudoměřice (166 m a.s.l.), the highest the summit of Mt. Javořina (970 m a.s.l.).

Climate

The climate of the southwestern part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. is warm and moderately humid. The mean annual temperature near the town of Strážnice is 9.4 °C, and the mean annual precipitation here amounts to almost 600 mm. The climate in the central and northeastern parts of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. is moderately warm, at higher altitudes cooler, but considerably warmer than in similar altitudes in northern and western Moravia. The village of Strání has 7,6 °C and 843 mm. The highest mountain tops have a mean annual temperature of less than 6 °C. Precipitation here is generally higher than in other parts of southern Moravia. The large and deep valleys, running across the main range, affect the air circulation and are the cause of a more humid mesoclimate. Dry winds from the southeast, blowing over the range of the Bílé Karpaty Mts., have also a profound influence on the climate of the western foothills. Particularly in spring they cause strong wind erosion.

Soils

In the southwestern part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts., gleyic chernozems and gleyic phaeozems cover large areas. These soils are heavy and dry out in summer. During periods of drought, deep and broad fissures often develop. Gleyic phaeozem is quite often found in depressions. Cambisols and chernozems developed on loess. Heavy, often gleyic to pellic cambisols, saturated with bases, are found at higher altitudes; unsaturated cambisols occur only rarely. On outcrops of calcareous flysch layers, calcaric regosols exist.

Vegetation

The Bílé Karpaty Mts. are partly situated in the region of thermophilous flora and partly in that of mesophilous flora, and include the colline and supracolline vegetation belts.
On convex slopes in the lower southwestern part of the area, thermophilous oak forests of the association Potentillo albae-Quercetum (Quercion petraeae) used to prevail in the natural vegetation cover. Perialpine thermophilous oak forests of the association Corno-Quercetum (Quercion pubescenti-petraeae) occurred only to a limited extent. North-facing, mainly concave slopes supported typical West-Carpathian oak-hornbeam forests of the association Carici pilosae-Carpinetum (Carpinion), locally also with European Beech (Fagus sylvatica) in the tree layer. Pannonian oak-hornbeam forests might have been developed only as rather small patches in contact with perialpine thermophilous oak forests.
Alluvial forests of the Pruno-Fraxinetum type (Alnion incanae) are confined to the valleys of streams and small rivers. Beech forests (Fagion) represent the potential natural vegetation of the ridge and the northeastern part of the mountains. The absence of Abies alba from these forests - except for the extreme north - is a remarkable phenomenon. Carici pilosae-Fagetum is the most common association. At higher altitudes it is replaced by Dentario enneaphylli-Fagetum at some places and by Luzulo-Fagetum on acidic sandstone. Steep slopes support ravine forests of the association Aceri-Carpinetum (Tilio-Acerion). The occurrence of ash-alder forests of the association Carici remotae-Fraxinetum (Alnion incanae) is limited to small spring areas on slopes. It is not clear whether there existed open spaces with treeless vegetation in the otherwise forested landscape. However, this possibility cannot be excluded as there were numerous landslides or small spring areas on slopes, and some slopes had a steppic character until the second half of the 20th century.
The semi-natural replacement vegetation is represented by dry meadows of the association Brachypodio-Molinietum (Bromion erecti), well known for their extraordinary species diversity. At higher altitudes, they are replaced by communities of the alliance Cynosurion, mainly belonging to the association Anthoxantho-Agrostietum. Meadows of the alliance Violion caninae occur only sporadically and cover small areas. Along small rivers, such as the Olšava, vegetation of the alliances Caricion gracilis a Oenanthion aquaticae has been recorded. The shrub communities belong mainly to the alliance Berberidion, while dwarf shrub stands at the alliance Prunion spinosae have almost disappeared and are only rarely encountered at the lowest altitudes. The forest fringe vegetation of higher altitudes can be classified as the alliance Trifolion medii. Characteristic calciphilous weed communities of the alliance Caucalidion lappulae are locally preserved on fallow and arable land at some places in the warmer part of the region.

Flora

The flora is very rich in species, comprising different phytogeographical elements. A considerable number of species reach the border of their distribution range or have isolated occurrences in the Bílé Karpaty Mts.
In the undergrowth of beech and oak-hornbeam forests Carex pilosa, C. pendula, Euphorbia amygdaloides, Hacquetia epipactis, Salvia glutinosa, and Symphytum tuberosum occur. This species group is characteristic of the herb layer of broad-leaved forests at lower altitudes of the whole western Carpathians. Several montane species, e.g. Aconitum variegatum, Cicerbita alpina, Geranium sylvaticum, Lunaria rediviva, and Silene dioica, occur at the highest altitudes of the mountain massifs of Javořina and Lopeník. Abies alba and Dentaria glandulosa reach only the northeastern part of the territory. Centaurea montana subsp. mollis and Potentilla aurea are completely absent from the Bílé Karpaty Mts. and grow in the Javorníky Mts. further in the east.
The contact with the Pannonian flora region is most pronounced in deforested parts at lower altitudes of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. Here, Cornus mas, Euonymus verrucosa, Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum, and Viburnum lantana are commonly encountered. The meadows and dry grasslands in the southwestern part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. support or supported numerous xerophilous species, e.g. Astragalus danicus, Echium russicum, Iris variegata, Linum flavum, Polygala major, Pseudolysimachion orchideum, P. spurium, Serratula lycopifolia, and Stipa tirsa. Some of the species listed have large Continental distribution ranges reaching far the east and exhibit no relationship to the Pannonicum.
Some species, confined to calcareous substrata in higher Central European mountain ranges, penetrate into the Bílé Karpaty Mts. only via the Váh River valley in Slovakia; Carex alba, C. ornithopoda, and Hippocrepis comosa belong to this group.
Danthonia alpina and Globularia punctata can be mentioned as examples of Submediterranean species. Laserpitium latifolium, Senecio umbrosus, and Stachys alpina are predominantly calciphilous species with distribution ranges surrounding the high central European mountain ranges. Several plant species, such as Allium victorialis, Aposeris foetida, Crocus albiflorus, Lathyrus pannonicus subsp. pannonicus, Pedicularis exaltata, Potentilla micrantha, the subendemic Tephroseris longifolia subsp. moravica, and also the now extinct Gentiana acaulis, have remarkable isolated occurrences in the Bílé Karpaty Mts.
Numerous members of the orchid family are quite common in the region. The Bílé Karpaty Mts. host, among other species, Anacamptis pyramidalis, Ophrys apifera, and O. fuciflora, which are rare or absent elsewhere in the Czech Republic.
Heavy soils rich in nutrients support subhalophilous species, such as Carex distans, C. hordeistichos, Lotus tenuis, and Tetragonolobus maritimus. Bupleurum tenuissimum and Plantago maritima, belonging to the same group, disappeared some time ago.

Macromycetes

Systematical field research into macromycetes has been organized since the second half of the 1990s both by V. Antonín and A. Vágner (Moravian Museum in Brno) and by J.W. Jongepier (Veselí nad Moravou). The research is focused on nature reserves. Both reserves visited belong to the more interesting ones. For the species lists see below.

Conservation

The nature of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. used to be very diverse, and the present state represent only a fraction of the past richness. Establishing nature reserves took a long time. Some of the proposals had to wait for 45 years to be implemented. In the meantime, many valuable habitats were partly or completely destroyed. For instance, the most xerophilous grasslands with Stipa tirsa were devastated during the 1960s and 1970s, so that only a few tussocks of this feather grass have survived.
The Czech Protected Landscape Area was established only in 1980, a year after the Slovak PLA was proclaimed. The Czech PLA covers a total area of 715 km² of land and was included in the world network of UNESCO Biosphere Reserves in 1996. Last year, i.e. 2000, it was awarded the European Diploma by the Council of Europe.
The total of species-rich meadow sites within the territory of the PLA Bílé Karpaty reaches 4,028 hectares (note that the aggregate area of similar communities remaining in the entire United Kingdom is less than 5,000 hectares). A number of meadow tracts located in the southwestern part of the PLA amount to hundreds of hectares each. The largest of these tracts are protected as nature reserves: Čertoryje (695 ha), Jazevčí (352 ha), Kútky (113 ha), Machová (243 ha), Porážky (421 ha), and Zahrady pod Hájem (162 ha).

Meadow management and restoration

The meadows were created or expanded by cutting the original vegetation of oak, hornbeam and beech forests. These clearings then turned into pastures and meadows by yearly grazing and mowing. Often a combination of cutting in summer and grazing the aftermath in autumn was applied. The grasslands were not fertilised, except for locally applied light fertilisation in the 20th century. After World War II the extent and diversity of the grasslands were seriously affected by intensification of agricultural practices like ploughing up, land reclamation, re-allotment, excessive fertilisation, elimination of hedges, trees and shrubs, and pasturing with high densities of cattle.
Some of the remaining meadows, mostly designated nature reserves, were however managed well by collective and state farms or private landowners until socio-economic changes in the 1990s caused farmers to sell cattle and sheep. Only subsidies from the Ministry of the Environment were able to secure mowing of the most valuable meadows. Fortunately, later also the Ministry of Agriculture started to support cutting and grazing with subsidies to livestock farming. Extra subsidy is provided to organic farms.
Today the meadows are managed by landowners, tenants or, where interest in their maintenance is lacking, also by non-governmental organisations and landtrusts. Large complexes are mown with tractors. On uneven, sloping meadows the grass is cut with small mowers or with scythes. The biomass is mostly used as fodder, a part is burnt or deposited elsewhere. In nature reserves in the southwest (where hay meadows predominate) extensive pasturing is allowed only exceptionally.
In the past two decades also over two hundred hectares of meadows abandoned in the 1960s and 1970s have been restored. These are particularly found on steep hills, in areas with rough terrain and in remote places, where mowing with average agricultural equipment is problematic. Such sites are encroached upon by scrub, mostly Crataegus sp., Prunus spinosa, and Rosa sp., some may eventually turn into woodland. Restoration of these sites includes cutting scrub with chain-saws, removing thick layers of grass, and subsequent burning of the biomass at the site, followed by regular mowing in the years after.
Botanical monitoring has shown, that on dry sites complete restoration takes only a few years. In one case four orchids - Anacamptis pyramidalis, Coeloglossum viride, Ophrys apifera, and O. fuciflora - were found to appear only three years after the scrub was eliminated. On sites overgrown by Molinia arundinacea the return to species-rich meadows takes much longer, at least two or three decades. The burning of biomass has not shown to cause excessive ruderalisation. Bonfire sites are soon covered by meadow grasses and forbs.

Meadow re-creation

In the past years the area of species-rich meadows has been enlarged not only by restoration of abandoned areas, but also by regrassing of arable fields. Many farmers have come to the conclusion that part of their arable land - created by ploughing up meadows in the past - cannot be farmed cost-effectively, and are therefore seeking to turn it into hay meadow or pasture. To fit their needs an innovative project was started in 1993 aimed at providing farmers with seed mixtures of local provenance and finding economically viable re-creation procedures. Mixtures consisting of a rich variety of local grass and forb species and genotypes adapted to local conditions are believed to be able to restore the original White Carpathian meadows, in contradiction to generally available seed mixtures (with only a few improved, productive and generally non-indigenous genotypes of grasses and Fabaceae species).
As the first step, volunteers manually collected seed of 100 grassland species (18 grasses, 82 forbs) in nature reserves. Each species was then cultivated in monocultures to study germination and productivity. Over half of the species (56) could be cultivated successfully by using common seed growing technologies and thus proved to be appropriate for application in seed mixtures.
After five different seed mixtures were tested from 1995 to 1998, and 30 species were further reproduced by fourteen farmers in the area, it was decided to compose the first local seed mixtures for regrassing arable land, improving cultural grassland and enriching poor commercial seed mixtures. By 1998 more than 250 kg of seed was available, with the grass Bromus erectus and the forbs Centaurea scabiosa and C. jacea being the chief components. A comparable amount is now produced each year by farmers in the area and used for meadow recreation. Thus far, more than 120 ha of arable land in the Bílé Karpaty Mts. has been turned into grassland by entirely or partially using local seed. This year, i.e. in 2001, seed will also be harvested on species-rich meadows by a combine harvester, because the seed production of grasses in relation to forbs has recently remained under expectation.
The last stage of the project concerns the monitoring of a three hectare large arable field experimentally regrassed in autumn 1999. This field was divided into four parts each with a different pattern of seeding. The entire plot is mown once a year. Besides cover of individual plant species also epigeon, pollinators and phytophagous insects are monitored. The experiment is expected to provide us with unique information on the way grassland can be created on arable land, but also on the feasibility of different methods of meadow re-creation.

Sites worth visiting

The most famous botanical sites are situated in the southwestern part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts. These are mainly large meadows, including a mosaic of subxeric and mesic species-rich grasslands and sloping spring fens with solitary growing oaks. The National Nature Reserve Čertoryje is a good example of this type of landscape. The vegetation is very rich in species: up to 100 species were registered in one phytosociological relevé of 16 m². In the past, these meadows were mown once a year. This usually happened quite late, and the meadows were then grazed in the late summer and autumn. After co-operative farms had been established, a part of the area was converted into arable land, another part was fertilised, causing expansion of nitrophilous species on the one hand and decline of less competitive, mainly mycorrhizal species on the other hand. Finally, parts of the meadow were abandoned and became overgrown with scrub. Since the late 1980s, these have been managed again.
The meadows are surrounded by stands of oak-hornbeam forests of the association Carici pilosae-Carpinetum and of thermophilous oak forests of the association Potentillo albae-Quercetum. The meadows of the reserve are highly representative of this part of the Bílé Karpaty Mts.

Predominant and remarkable vascular plants recorded in the NNR Čertoryje

Aconitum lycoctonum
Anacamptis pyramidalis
Anemone sylvestris
Aster amellus
Astragalus danicus
Brachypodium pinnatum
Bromus erectus
Bromus ramosus
Campanula cervicaria
Campanula glomerata
Carex distans
Carex pilosa
Carex paniculata
Centaurea triumfettii
Cephalanthera damasonium
Cephalanthera longifolia
Cirsium pannonicum
Cirsium rivulare
Clematis recta
Coeloglossum viride
Cornus mas
Cyperus fuscus
Cypripedium calceolus
Dactylorhiza incarnata
Dactylorhiza majalis
Danthonia alpina
Dorycnium germanicum
Dorycnium herbaceum
Epipactis palustris
Eriophorum angustifolium
Eriophorum latifolium
Erysimum odoratum
Euphorbia villosa
Festuca rupicola
Gentiana cruciata
Gentiana pneumonanthe
Geranium sanguineum
Geranium palustre
Gladiolus imbricatus
Gladiolus palustris
Gymnadenia conopsea
Gymnadenia densiflora
Hacquetia epipactis
Inula ensifolia
Inula hirta
Iris graminea
Iris sibirica
Iris variegata
Lilium bulbiferum
Lilium martagon
Linum flavum
Loranthus europaeus
Melampyrum cristatum
Melampyrum nemorosum
Melica picta
Melittis melissophyllum
Molinia coerulea agg.
Nepeta nuda
Ophioglossum vulgatum
Ophrys apifera
Ophrys fuciflora
Orchis mascula
Orchis militaris
Orchis morio
Orchis pallens
Orchis purpurea
Orchis ustulata
Ornithogalum brevistylum
Orobanche alba
Orobanche lutea
Platanthera bifolia
Platanthera chlorantha
Potentilla alba
Pseudolysimachion orchideum
Pseudolysimachion spurium
Quercus pubescens
Scorzonera hispanica
Scorzonera purpurea
Senecio jacobaea
Senecio umbrosus
Serratula lycopifolia
Taraxacum sp. e sect. Palustria
Traunsteinera globosa
Trifolium alpestre
Trifolium montanum
Trifolium rubens
Veronica teucrium

Remarkable macromycetes recorded in the NNR Čertoryje

More than 260 macromycetes taxa have been recorded here during the last years. Some of the less common and rare ones are listed below.

Agaricus macrosporus (F.H. Moller et Jul. Schäff.) Pilát
A. radicatus Vittad.
A. squamuliferus (F.H. Moller) F.H. Moller
Amanita aspera (Fr.) Gray
A. battarrae (Boud.) Bon
A. beckeri Huijsman
Armillaria cepistipes Velen.
Boletus depilatus Redeuilh
B. queletii Schulz
Ceriporia purpurea (Fr.) Donk
Chamaemyces fracidus (Fr.) Donk
Clitopilus hobsonii (Berk.) P.D. Orton
Coniophora arida (Fr.) P. Karst.
Coprinus friesii Quél.
Daleomyces phillipsii (Massee) Seaver; third locality in Moravia
Encoelia furfuracea (Roth) P. Karst.
Entoloma sinuatum (Bull.) P. Kumm.
Faerberia carbonaria (Alb. et Schwein.) Pouzar
Geastrum pectinatum Pers.
Hygrocybe ovina (Bull.) Kühner
H. psittacina (Schaeff.) Wünsche
Hygrophorus penarius Fr.
Hymenochaete tabacina (Sowerby) Lév.
Hyphodontia pilaecystidiata (Lundell) J. Erikss.; a rare fungus known from about five localities in the Czech Republic
Hypholoma subviride (Berk. et M.A. Curtis) Dennis
Inocybe corydalina Quél.
I. jurana (Pat.) Sacc.
Junghuhnia separabilima (Pouzar) Ryvarden
Lactarius azonites (Bull.) Fr.
L. fulvissimus Romagn.
L. pterosporus Romagn.
Oligoporus subcaesius (A. David) Ryvarden et Gilb.
Phellinus punctatus (P. Karst.) Pilát
Polyporus tuberaster Jacq.
Pseudocraterellus sinuosus (Fr.) D.A. Reid
Russula viscida Kudrna
Stropharia albonitens (Fr.) P. Karst.
Tomentellopsis bresadoliana (Sacc. et Trotter) Jülich et Stalpers
Tricholoma orirubens Quél.
Tubaria dispersa (Pers.) Singer
Xenasmatella vaga (Fr.) Stalpers
Xerocomus ripariellus (Redeuilh) Redeuilh
Xylaria oxyacanthae Tulasne; probably the first record published from the Czech Republic

The National Nature Reserve Zahrady pod Hájem includes species-rich dry meadows and extensively managed orchards. In its vicinity, small private arable fields with a remarkable weed flora still exist. The Administration of the PLA supported the establishment of a collection of traditional and local fruit varieties here.
About 100 macromycetes species have been recorded in the reserve untill now. Some less common and rare fungi are listed below.

Remarkable vascular plants recorded in the NNR Zahrady pod Hájem

Allium carinatum
Anacamptis pyramidalis
Anthericum ramosum
Astragalus danicus
Bifora radians
Bupleurum rotundifolium
Caucalis platycarpos
Cephalanthera longifolia
Clematis recta
Coeloglossum viride
Conringia orientalis
Cornus mas
Dactylorhiza incarnata
Dorycnium germanicum
Dorycnium herbaceum
Galium tricornutum
Gentiana cruciata
Gentiana pneumonanthe
Gymnadenia conopsea
Gymnadenia densiflora
Iris graminea
Iris variegata
Juncus sphaerocarpus
Lathyrus aphaca
Lilium martagon
Linum flavum
Lythrum hyssopifolia
Melampyrum arvense
Ophrys apifera
Ophrys fuciflora
Orchis mascula
Orchis militaris
Orchis pallens
Orchis purpurea
Orchis ustulata
Ornithogalum kochii
Ornithogalum boucheanum
Ornithogalum brevistylum
Platanthera bifolia
Platanthera chlorantha
Scilla bifolia s.l.
Scorzonera purpurea
Thymelaea passerina
Traunsteinera globosa

Remarkable macromycetes recorded in the NNR Zahrady pod Hájem

Agaricus macrocarpus (F.H. Moller) F.H. Moller
Amanita aspera (Fr.) Gray
Boletus fechtneri Velen.; species protected by law in the Czech Republic and included in the Red Data Book
Calocybe carnea (Bull.) Donk
Clavulinopsis corniculata (Schaeff.) Corner
C. helvola (Pers.) Corner
Clitopilus prunulus (Scop.) P. Kumm.
Hygrocybe psittacina (Schaeff.) Wünsche
H. quieta (Kühner) Singer
H. virginea (Wulfen) P.D. Orton et Watling
Hypholoma subviride (Berk. et M.A. Curtis) Dennis
Lactarius acerrimus Britzelm.
L. porninsis Roll.
L. sanguifluus (Paulet) Fr.
L. semisanguifluus Heim et Leclair
Nectria episphaeria (Tode) Fr.
Oligoporus subcaesius (A. David) Ryvarden et Gilb.
Psilocybe physaloides (Bull.) Quél.
Ramariopsis kunzei (Fr.) Corner
Sarcosphaera crassa (Santi) Pouzar; species proposed for inclusion in the Bern Convention Fungus List
Suillus fluryi Huijsman
Tricholoma orirubens Quél.
Tubaria dispersa (Pers.) Singer

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