VEMM: predicting the effects of agricultural management and environmental conditions on semi-natural vegetation

Abstract The Vegetation Environment Management Model (VEMM) is a decision support tool to assist field managers and landscape planners with the practical management of semi-natural vegetation. It is designed to allow the user to assess the impacts on vegetation of various agricultural management scenarios, such as grazing, cutting or fertiliser regimes, under different sets of environmental conditions. Predictions of the suitability of each scenario for particular assemblages of plants, within the framework of the British National Vegetation Classification, can be made, in addition to prediction of the abundance of individual plant species. The VEMM is implemented on a PC running Microsoft Windows.