Introduction .................................................... 1
On this thesis ............................................... 1
Climate Change ............................................... 1
Extreme events ............................................ 3
Vegetation response to climate change ........................ 5
Challenges and options for research on the ecological
impacts of extreme weather events ........................... 10
Experiments - advantages and drawbacks ................... 12
Experiments on vegetation response to climate change ..... 13
Biodiversity experiments ................................. 15
The need to combine climate change experiments and
diversity experiments .................................... 16
Summary of the following manuscripts ........................ 19
Summarizing conclusions and emerging research challenges .... 21
Extremity of weather events .............................. 21
Community composition .................................... 22
Freeze-thaw cycles ....................................... 23
List of Manuscripts and declaration of own contribution ..... 26
Acknowledgements ............................................ 30
References from introduction ................................ 33
Manuscript 1: A new generation of climate change experiments:
events, not trends ............................... 41
Manuscript 2: Effects of extreme weather events on plant
productivity and tissue die-back are modified
by community composition ......................... 61
Manuscript 3: A single drought event of 100-year recurrence
enhances subsequent carbon uptake and changes
carbon allocation in experimental grassland
communities ...................................... 81
Manuscript 4: Soil biotic processes remain surprisingly
stable after 100-year extreme weather events
in experimental grassland and heath .............. 99
Manuscript 5: Beyond gradual warming - extreme weather
events alter flower phenology of European
grassland and heath species ..................... 121
Manuscript 6: Invasibility of grassland and heath
communities exposed to extreme weather
events - additive effects of biotic
resistance and fluctuating physical
environment ..................................... 139
Manuscript 7: Recurrent soil freeze-thaw cycles enhance
grassland productivity .......................... 161
Summary ....................................................... 177
Zusammenfassung ............................................... 179
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