Our team is conducting field sampling for the Horizon 2020 European research project WILDCARD, which aims to better understand rewilding and spontaneous regeneration processes in areas where land management has ceased, including pastures, meadows, and abandoned fields. As part of this effort, we conducted vegetation surveys in the Šumava Mountains (Czech Republic), covering both dry and wet habitat sites to collect detailed plant biodiversity data. Thanks to the dedication of our team, we gathered valuable data that will contribute to a better understanding of how landscapes recover naturally across Europe. We will continue contributing to this international initiative and look forward to sharing more as the project progresses.
During the last week of June, the students of the partner Agricultural College and Agricultural Secondary School Benešov participated in the first run of the advanced course focused on the establishment of the species-rich grasslands. The week-long event called "Greening Week" took place at the Agricultural College and Agricultural Secondary School Benešov. During the first days, the students learnt the theoretical principles of ecological restoration in the urban environment and methods of establishing species-rich meadows. They also worked on an assignment in which they mapped the urban grasslands in the city of Benešov and proposed methods for improvement of the species composition, and the creation of better connectivity across the urban area for insect species. The next two days were led by the Restoration Ecology Working Group from the University of South Bohemia and were purely practical. Students first tried out mapping of a donor site for collecting a regional seed mixture. They had an opportunity to collect seed mixture using a brush harvester, as well as collect individual species by hand. They looked closely at seeds in the brushed seed biomass using binocular lenses and evaluated the success of the restoration of a demonstration site established this spring. During a one-day excursion, they saw a large-scale restoration project of a landscape park partly using regional seed mixtures, the seed production fields where regional seeds are produced, and a green roof that was sown with species-rich regional seed biomass. We closed the excursion in the Bohemian Karst with a view of the largest limestone quarry in the Czech Republic. We believe that despite the very hot days, the students gained valuable information and experience from the program, and we look forward to seeing them in the next school year. All the girls are eager to participate in the exchange excursion to Norway and will be working hard on their student projects from September.
On Monday 19th May our two colleagues, Anička Müllerová and Kamča Vítovcová, successfully defended their dissertations and thus completed their PhD studies. Anička guided us through the world of succession of wetland and aquatic vegetation in post-mining sites, and Kamča shared her knowledge of the influence of environmental factors on vegetation succession at disturbed sites on broader spatial scales.
Last week, the Restoration Ecology Working Group at the Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, held a week-long intensive course that guided VET students from Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic, and Norway through the theoretical and practical aspects of the rapidly developing field of restoration ecology. Preparations for the exchange began in each country already in autumn. During this time, the students also developed their own projects, and the best ones came to present and defend them during the exchange. The aim of the meeting in the Czech Republic was to increase education in the field of ecological restoration among a group of students who are implementing a number of measures in practice. With the recent adoption of the European Nature Restoration Regulation, it is clear that knowledge transfer is key to high-quality habitat restoration.
In our TAČR project Restoration of springs - retention of water in the landscape directly at the source, we are also engaged in mapping springs and evaluating their condition in cooperation with the Administration of the Šumava National Park. This week, on Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th April, we visited several drained springs on the right bank of the Lipno Reservoir. Our student Šárka Sedláčková will map the springs in her bachelor thesis with the focus on the Horský Brook catchment area.
With the beginning of spring, we started to monitor green roofs - this time in the Bohemian Karst, Prague ZOO and the Vysočina (Humpolec, Zďár nad Sázavou). We surveyed vegetation and invertebrates that inhabit these specific habitats. In Humpolec, we also established a new experimental roof - in addition to native species of Sedum sp., we sowed a seed mixture from the regional seed production system. Another interesting finding was that the semi-parasitic plants sown in autumn on one of the Prague roofs had already germinated. If they can survive here for the long term, they could help with controlling the dense vegetation and reducing its biomass. 
With the arrival of spring, we headed to South Moravia again to continue with our monitoring of insects and vegetation on selected green roofs. Due to unstable weather last year, we missed spring sampling on several roofs in Brno and its surroundings. The spring sampling is thus now completed. In addition, we have expanded our monitoring to roofs in Zaječí and Hodonín, where we will observe vegetation development and invertebrate occurrence throughout the year.
Spring attracts us out to visit new locations suitable for sampling. This time we visited Southern Moravia, specifically Vypálenky near Moravský Písek. In cooperation with the Brno-based Envirop group, we are going to expand our grazing database with new locations. These are places that are often highly degraded, but thanks to the grazing of large herbivores, interesting biotopes could be created. The aim of the one-day trip was to harmonise methodology, establish permanent monitoring areas and consult on management. In the afternoon, we still managed to visit the Kosteliska Bird Park, where we had already worked last season. We added a few more samoling plots there and enjoyed the flocks of geese. We are already looking forward to sharing our discoveries with our colleagues from Brno.
