Grassland Biomass and Climate Data from Russian Meadows

Three text files contain biomass and primary production data for two upland meadows in Russia from 1969 to 1973, alongside climate records from 1968-1973. Measurements include above- and below-ground live and dead biomass for sandy and loamy soil sites, with additional nutrient content data for nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur. The dataset was produced by the V.L. Komarov Botanical Institute and is maintained by NASA.

Use Cases

• Comparing above-ground net primary production (ANPP) between sandy (OTRS) and loamy (OTRL) meadow ecosystems.
• Analyzing temporal trends in live and dead biomass components from 1969 to 1973.
• Correlating monthly and annual climate data with biomass and production estimates.
• Studying the monthly nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur content in above-ground live biomass from 1969-1971.
• Modeling below-ground biomass dynamics in contrasting soil types over a multi-year period.

Strengths

• Provides a 5-year time series (1969-1973) of biomass measurements for two distinct soil types.
• Includes measured nutrient content (N, P, S) for above-ground live biomass over three years (1969-1971).
• Data files have been verified for accuracy against the original 1996 publication.

Limitations

• Exact row counts, column names, and dataset size are not provided by any source.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates: datagov lists 2026-03-12 (documentation update), while nasa_earthdata lists 1973-12-31 (data end date).
• License is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without explicit terms.

Provenance

Source

V.L. Komarov Botanical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Otradnoe research station.

Collection Method

Field measurements of above- and below-ground live and dead biomass, and laboratory analysis for nutrient content.

Time Range

1968-1973

Freshness

2026-03-12

Geography

Otradnoe research station on the Karelian peninsula, 100 km north of St. Petersburg, Russia.