In August 2015, the overall growth of grassland vegetation in China was the same as that of the previous year

The grassland Supervision Center of the Ministry of Agriculture monitored and analyzed the growth of grassland vegetation across the country in August this year by using the methods of satellite remote sensing and ground observation, combined with the meteorological monitoring information of the National Meteorological Center. the results show that in August, the spatial distribution of precipitation in the grasslands across the country is uneven, the drought in some grasslands has been alleviated, and the overall growth of grassland vegetation in the country is basically the same as that of the previous year.

In August, the precipitation in the grassland areas of the whole country is quite different, and the spatial distribution is uneven. Among them, the precipitation in the northeast of Inner Mongolia, the north-central part of Northeast China, the north and southwest of Xinjiang, the west and southeast of Xizang and most of the south are more than normal years, the drought in the northeast of Inner Mongolia has been alleviated, and the forage grass shows restorative growth. the precipitation in most of the central and western part of Inner Mongolia and most of North China is 30-80% less than that in normal years, and the growth of forage is affected. The precipitation in the central and western part of Inner Mongolia continues to be low, the drought continues to develop, and the growth of forage grass is poor.

Through the comparison and analysis of satellite remote sensing images, 26% of the grassland vegetation growth status is preferred, 45% of the grassland vegetation growth status is flat, and 29% of the grassland vegetation growth status is deviated. The preferred areas of vegetation growth are mainly distributed in most parts of Xinjiang and the eastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. The areas of vegetation growth deviation are mainly distributed in the central and western parts of Inner Mongolia, southern Qinghai, central Xizang and so on. From the perspective of the main pastoral areas, the grassland drought in the eastern part of Inner Mongolia has been alleviated, the forage grass in central grassland such as Xilingol League is growing well, and the grassland drought in the central and western regions such as Wulanchabu City, Ordos City and Bayannur City is developing continuously, and the forage grass is growing poorly. In Xinjiang, except for the grasslands of Tacheng and Aksu, the grasslands of other regions are growing well, and the forage yield in Xinjiang is expected to increase by more than 10% over the previous year. The overall growth of forage grass in Qinghai grassland is general, and the forage yield in the southern region decreases obviously. The grasslands in the southeast of Xizang are growing well, the drought in the western grasslands has been alleviated, and the vegetation coverage, height and grass yield in the central grasslands are lower than those in the same period last year. The overall vegetation growth of Sichuan grassland is basically the same as that of the previous year. The growth of grassland vegetation in Gansu is mainly flat, the growth of grassland vegetation in the west of Hexi Corridor, along the Qilian Mountains and the central part of Longzhong Loess Plateau is slightly better than that of the same period last year, while the growth of grassland vegetation in the central and eastern part of Hexi Corridor and the northern part of Longzhong Loess Plateau is slightly worse than that of the same period last year.

For a period of time in the future, the temperature in most grasslands across the country will be higher than usual, and the precipitation in the central and western parts of Inner Mongolia and the eastern part of Northwest China will be 20% less than that in the same period of the normal year, and the drought in some grasslands may continue to develop. the drought will also accelerate the withering and yellowing of forage grasses and raise the fire danger level of grasslands. All localities should, according to the current forage growth situation, graze reasonably and moderately, do a good job in the allocation of forage and the fencing of livestock, and earnestly strengthen the inspection of grassland fire prevention in northern grassland areas, strictly manage fire sources, and effectively eliminate fire hidden dangers.

Fig. 1 grassland vegetation growth in late August compared with the same period last year

Fig. 2 comparison of grassland vegetation growth in late August with that in the last ten years

Fig. 3 schematic diagram of grassland vegetation growth in August compared with the same period last year