Plants need light to grow. However, due to excess nutrients and/or the absence of herbivores, less light can reach lower vegetation layers in grasslands. Consequently, a few fast-growing species dominate and plant diversity declines. So far, this relationship has been established indirectly through experiments, but never directly by means of experimentally adding light in the field.
Click here for original story, Study highlights the dominant role of light competition in grassland plant diversity
Source: Phys.org