The landscape of the heathland was brought about by man, and only he can maintain it. Then without his caring hand it will be overgrown by grasses, shrubs and eventually forests. Nutrient influences in the atmosphere will lead to the replacement of the common heather and the crossleaved heather by truegrasses such as the wavyhairgrass and “Pfeifengrass”

The maintenance measures principally serve the exposing of the heather and the withholding of the nutrients. These measures are:

• grazing
• “Entkusseln”
• “Schoppern”, “Plaggen” and mowing with machinery
• controlled burning also

 

 

Letting the German heath graze on the heathlands is probably the best known method for taking care of it. They ensure a young germination of the heather by keeping it trimmed back. The heather has to be kept at a length of 15cm. in order to ensure that it stays young and dense, and that it blossoms nicely. If the heather gets older or longer it becomes too wooden. Thorny plants like the juniper, the blackthorn and the broom don't get eaten.
 
An additional achievement of the German heath is: they break the spiders webs, so the bees don't get caught up in them. In recent times the German heath has gotten reinforcement in the herd from goats: goats eat the young birches and pines more so than the German heath.
 
In the long term however, only the intense grazing will prevent the soil from becoming enriched with nutrients. Such intense grazing however is not ecologically desirable, nor is it financially viable. So other methods are also used.

 

By “Entkusseln” young trees such as the pine and the birch are removed manually by using spades, saws and clippers. Every year lots of volunteer helpers are in action in the whole nature park, participating in the “Entkusseln”. Even the visitors to the region can participate, all help is welcome.

 

 

“Plaggen” is the most intensive way of caring for the heathland, and is then carried out when the heather has a humus layer more than 3 cm. and is sated with grass. With specially constructed maschines “Plaggmaschines”, the soil, with the humus is carried off, down to the layer of minerals.

The so called „Schoppern“  method is somewhat more economical. Whereas “Plagging” mixes mineral and humus elements together, by “Schoppern” mineralfree soil is won, because one doesn't go down as deep. This method can only be used on layers of rawhumus at a depth of 3cm. , and in areas where there is little grass.

The reaping is done with machines that go down quite deep and cause scars in the earth. The rejuvenation of the heather is carried by coppicing and with sprouts. The deep mowing results in an intensive removal of biomass from the area.

 

The deliberate burning of the commonheather is an old and trusted method to ensure its survival, in this way the old is rejuvenated and revitalised.

The burning is then carried out before the humus has grown too thick, and the amount of grasses is still at an acceptable level. After the fire the apparently vegetation free area is ready to sprout. Already in the following year, under certain circumstances, the first heather plants are growing out of the burned earth.

The underground parts of the commonheather can withstand a fire quite well, especially then when the soil protecting the underground plants and the seeds has stored enough moisture or is frozen. The commonheather is a typical firebud.