The survey deals with the position of the silver fir (Abies alba) within the mixed mountain forests of Upper Austria‘s Mühlviertel. With a focus at sea heights between 500 and 900 m, the Mühlviertel low mountain range is one of the core areas of the Central European fir area (cf. Dunzendorfer 1988, Wagner 1989). On the basis of an evaluation of existing plant-sociological recording material, supplemented by new recordings by the author, the sociological and local spectrum of the fir is worked out using a synthetic overview of the forest vegetation of the Mühlviertel and a systematic classification of the societies with the participation of Fir is made. It was possible to differentiate between six societies in which the fir tree appears, which can be assigned to three different syntaxonomic units at association level - the Fagion sylvaticae, the Dicrano-Pinion and the Abieti-Piceion. On the basis of characteristics of the structure of the stands as well as their distribution, it is shown that in addition to the natural and local conditions, a plenter-shaped management has a decisive influence on the occurrence of the fir. This is further investigated on the basis of a detailed study on farmed plenter forests, the so-called „Julbacher plenter forests“

Der Beitrag stellt ein Programm mit Unterrichtsmaterialien zur Klimabildung an Schulen für Kinder zwischen sechs und fünfzehn Jahren vor. Das im Rahmen eines Erasmus+ Projektes entwickelte Konzept nimmt Alltagslandschaften als Ausgangspunkte, um die Auswirkungen des Klimawandels zu thematisieren und mit den Schüler*innen an Optionen und Strategien zur Anpassung und Minderung zu arbeiten. Unter Bezugnahme auf konstruktivistische Lerntheorien und basierend auf den Konzepten des "situierten" und erfahrungsbasierten Lernens (Dewey 1986; Bybee et al. 2006) wurden landschaftsbezogene Didaktiken zur Klimabildung entwickelt. Sie verfolgen den Anspruch, das komplexe Phänomen des anthropogen verursachten Klimawandels altersgerecht in die Lebenswelt und Erfahrung der Lernenden zu integrieren, es zu verstehen und anschließend Handlungsoptionen zu eröffnen. Ausgehend von einer Erörterung didaktischer Herausforderungen bei der Vermittlung von "Klimakompetenz" wird das Konzept der Place-Based Education (PBE) als Ansatz zur Klimabildung vorgeschlagen und das darauf aufbauende landschaftsbasierte Lerndesign diskutiert.

Larch pastures are use-stabilized features of alpine cultural landscapes, which are characterized by a two-layer structure made of a loose screen of European larch (Larix decidua) with pastures underneath. As a product of rural alpine farming, larch pastures are widespread in the traditional use systems on both siliceous and carbonate subsoils in the high montane-subalpine altitudinal zone of the Alps (cf. Mayer 1974; 31f.). The combination of geology and cultivation shows a remarkable floristic diversity, especially in the case of formations over carbonate substrates. Rationalizations within alpine farming since the decades after the Second World War - and again accelerating within the past 20 years - promote dynamic changes within the vegetation composition of many larch pastures. The paper reconstructs the vegetation dynamics on larch pastures on carbonate under the influence of decline in use and abandonment using examples in Totes Gebirge, Dachstein massif and Osterhorn group. Via the tabular comparison of phytosociological vegetation recordings from eleven alpine pastures that are currently managed at various levels of intensity or were abandoned at different times, the directions and stages of dynamics are traced and the development of the number of species is examined.

Plant communities from the highlands of the Mühlviertel region of Upper Austria are described. These communities originated from grassland use and are currently subject to vegetation dynamics due to extensification. As a result of delayed mowing dates, a reduction in mowing frequency, and the partial retention of vegetation on the areas, the dynamics of species composition can be traced, with a tendency toward the promotion and dominance of individual species. In the medium term, largely homogenized species sets will emerge at the growth sites, resulting in significantly reduced floristic and sociological diversity. Based on the findings, a discussion on management practices is encouraged, also with regard to the effectiveness of the funding criteria of the current agri-environmental programs.