1
The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature 
and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
Andreja BOREC
*
, Tina LEŠNIK, Tadeja KRANER ŠUMENJAK, Mateja MURŠEC
University of Maribor, Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Pivola 10, 2311 Hoče, Slovenia
ABSTRACT
This study sets out to examine the effects of hedgerow shading on soil physical properties, specifically soil gravimetric water 
content and soil temperature. Analyses of both soil parameters were conducted at two locations with different shade proportion. 
The aim of the study was to address the links between hedgerow shading and basic physical soil properties which could be 
significant both for agricultural production and for ecological processes in agroecosystems. At both locations, soil samples and 
measurements were taken at different distances from hedgerow and in different time intervals. Diurnal shading variation at 
certain distances from the hedgerow on Location 1 and 2 was calculated with the software toll for Arboriculturists. At Location 1 
shading is consistently high throughout the year, ranging from 76 to 100%. In contrast, shading at Location 2 varies from 1 to 25%. 
The results reveal that hedgerows at Location 1, do not have a statistically significant impact on gravimetric soil water content and 
soil temperature across the entire plot surface. Additionally, the percentage of shading is only marginally decreases with distance. 
Conversely, Location 2 exhibits an increase in soil temperature and a slight but (non-significant) decrease in soil gravimetric water 
content as the distance from the hedgerow increases., The total mean shading at Location 2 is considerably lower compared to 
Location 1, and the shading percentage declines more at the distance from the hedgerow increases. Overall, lower soil temperatures 
and higher gravimetric soil water content where observed at the more shaded Location 1. The research outcomes are helpful in 
agricultural production planning as well as in the evaluation of hedgerows for the needs of agricultural policy.
Keywords: soil water content, soil temperature, hedgerow, sunlight
Agricultura Scientia 20: No 2: 1-9(2023)
https://doi.org/10.18690/agricsci.20.2.1
*Correspondence to: 
E-mail: andreja.borec@um.si
INTRODUCTION
Hedgerows, or related structures such as rows of trees or shrubs 
are important landscape elements in the agroecosystems. 
Hedgerows are linear features composed of trees and/or shrubs 
of various species (Betbeder et al., 2014). According to Hannon 
and Sisk (2009) hedgerows play a crucial role in controlling 
physical, chemical and biological fluxes in landscapes and in 
conserving biodiversity (Baudry et al., 2000; Montgomery et al., 
2020; Vanneste et al., 2020; Borec et al., 2021). Numerous research 
studies have been conducted on these topics. However, fewer 
studies have focused on interception loss and shading effect 
from linear vegetation structures. 
Research on hedgerows and their effects on water 
balance (Plamboeck et al., 1999; Fleischbein et al., 2006; Sidle 
et al., 2007; Tromp-van Meerveldet et al., 2007; Ghazavi et 
al., 2008) provides some indications about the influence of 
linear vegetation structures, even more scientific evidences 
has been found about the impact of hedgerow on soil char-
acteristics (Merot, 1999). 
Studies in France (Carnet,1978; Caubel et al., 2003) and 
Australia (White et al., 2002) have reported about strong 
drying effect of hedgerows on soil in summer and the 
increase of their vertical drainage capacity with large reduc-
tions in nitrate concentration in the ground-water beneath 
a hedgerow. Another study has found that hedgerow can 
intercept up to 80% of precipitation from a rainfall event, 
however the impact of trees on rainfall interception differs 
for trees with and without leaves (David et al., 2006). Hedge-
rows therefore have a strong impact on soil properties, water 
availability and distribution. 
Not only does the hedgerow vegetation itself impact soil 
parameters, but also their shade effect can result in significant 
changes to various soil parameters. For example, shade reduces 
air and soil temperatures (Montgomery et al., 2020), and pre-
serves soil moisture next to the hedgerow (Raatz et al., 2019).

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The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
On the other hand, hedgerow removal could affect a 
range of factors including water loss (Kinama et al., 2007), 
precipitation, and light interception (Herbst et al., 2006), 
ultimately impacting on local microclimate. 
While numerous soil related studies have been conduct-
ed in Slovenia, there is a scarcity of scientific literature spe-
cifically focusing on hedgerow effect on soil quality param-
eters. For this reason, this study carries out a basic analysis 
of physical parameters assuming that gravimetric soil water 
content and soil temperature are primarily affected by the 
shade of hedgerows. Further, the different shade proportions 
play an important role in the soil physical properties and 
thus may affect the agricultural growth.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area
The study area is situated in the northern part of the 
municipality of Hajdina (46°45'29'' N, 15°81'18'' E), on the alluvial 
plain of the river Drava (Atlas okolja, 2023). The altitude is 232 
m above sea level and the prevailing wind direction is South-
Southwest. The area is intended for intensive agricultural 
production due to the favorable climate, flat relief, agricultural 
holding’s structure, and the size of farmlands. The soil type 
is characterized by Alluvial soils, Eutric, Calcaric (Vidic et al., 
2015; FAO, 2014; KIS/eTLA). The specific soil characteristics are 
the result of the deposition of Drava river sediments and are 
usually light and airy, which is favorable for most agricultural 
crops. The soils developed on alluvial sediments, larger gravel 
and sand predominate, soils are shallow (Glavan et al., 2015). 
The area is characterized by a continental to sub-conti-
nental climate, with lower precipitation and evapotranspira-
tion in winter-spring (January–April) and the highest in the 
summer (June–September) with significant storm rainfall 
and temperatures, respectively. At the nearest meteo data 
station Ptuj the average annual rainfall measured in the 
2022 was 841 mm. In general, the Ptuj station is character-
ized by a continental rainfall regime with an average annual 
rainfall up to 1300 mm (ARSO, 2023). Yearly mean tempera-
tures during vegetation period range from 17.0 in May to 22.6 
°C in July and mean highest monthly temperature varies 
from 20.8 (September) to 29.2 °C (July). 
Side Selection
The selected study sites are two neighboring field plots bordered 
by hedgerows (Figure 3). The study of hedgerows shading on 
the soil characteristics (gravimetric soil water content and 
soil temperature) was carried out on Location 1 (Figure 1) 
and Location 2 (Figure 2). Location 1 lies between two parallel 
hedgerows (in Figure 3 marked as H1 and H2) cultivated with 
Common wheat (T. aestivum) and has a size of 0.39 ha. Location 
2 borders on the hedgerow (H2) only on one side, cultivated 
with Maize (Zea mays) and has a size of 2.4 ha (Figure 3). Both 
hedgerows in the study area are 300 meters long and are 
running in north–south direction, with precise coordinates for 
H1 46°26'30" N 15°49'16" E and for H2 46°26'33" N 15°49'15" E.
Figure 1: Photo of Location 1 Figure 2: Photo of Location 2

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The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
Both hedgerows are well structured, preserved and in 
good condition. As the hedgerows H1 and H2 are only 18-20 m 
apart, their vegetation composition is almost identical. The 
average size of hedgerows trees is between 15 to 20 meters. 
The most frequent tree and shrub species are presented 
in Table 1. Species are listed in the approximate order of 
abundance. Vegetation is autochthonous, adapted to envi-
ronmental factors such as geological base, soil type, climatic 
conditions, relief and altitude. The hedgerows species are 
comparable to vegetation of the surrounding forest edges 
(Lešnik, 2018). Ulmus carpinifolia is the most frequent tree 
species followed by Alnus glutinosa, Euonymus europaeus, 
Prunus padus and Prunus avium. The hedgerow manage-
ment includes pruning for firewood, as well as the harvest-
ing of fruits and flowers.
Table 1: Most frequent hedgerows vegetation
Tree species Shrub /invasive species and climbers
Ulmus carpinifolia Phytolacca americana
Alnus glutinosa Humulus lupulus
Euonymus europaeus Clematis vitalba
Prunus padus Prunus spinosa
Prunus avium Solidago virgaurea L.
Sambucus nigra
Soil sampling and measuring
Soil samples were taken in the vegetation period between May 
and September 2022 and during the day between 7 a.m. and 
12 p.m. (Table 2).
Soil sampling was performed at six distances along three 
transects, with each transect consisting of six sampling po-
sitions at distances 0, 2, 5, 10, 15, and 17 m at Location 1 in 
the direction from H2 to H1 and at distances 0, 2, 5, 10, 20 
and 30 m at Location 2 in the opposite direction from H2 
(Figure 3). At each position, average soil sample as a mixture 
of ten subsamples were taken at a depth of 20 cm with a 
sing 2.5 cm internal diameter gouge auger. All soil samples 
were oven-dried at 105 °C for a minimum 24 h. In total, 216 
mixed soil samples were collected (2 locations, 6 distances/
sampling points, 3 blocks, 6 dates).
Table 2: Soil sampling dates in the vegetation period between 
May and September 2022
Location
Date
May June July Aug Aug Sept
1 21.5. 12.6. 8.7. 6.8. 30.8. 19.9.
2 21.5. 12.6. 7.7. 6.8. 30.8. 20.9.
On all the sampling points, soil temperature was 
measured by using a thermometer at a depth of 5 cm. The 
depth of 5 cm was specified according to Mungai (2000) who 
stated the shadow impact on soil temperature is recognized 
only above 7.5 cm depth.
Shade determination
ArborShadow R4 programme was used to determine the shade 
of hedgerows. The shading graphs were carried out separately 
for Location 1 and 2 (Figure 4 and 5). The programme input 
data were latitude and longitude, hedgerow orientation, field 
and hedgerow surface, specific date, and tree sizes, which 
were also the basic parameters to plot the shade proportion 
for each field side. The shading graphs were calculated daily 
between 2 a.m. and 10 p.m. with scan rate of 5 minutes and 
throughout the year, although it was necessary to consider 
particularly the vegetation period. The red colour represents 
shading between 76 and 100%, the blue colour a percentage of 
shading between 51 and 75%, the green colour a percentage of 
shading between 26 and 50%, and the orange colour between 
1 and 25%. The different shade proportions where expressed in 
H2
Location 2
2,40 ha
Location 1
0,39 ha
H1
Figure 3: Location of soil sampling points in the study area

4
The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
different percentage of shading on filed plots. It should not be 
overlooked that for the Location 1 the shading was calculated 
for H1 and H2. 
Statistical Analysis
Statistical analysis was performed using the software package 
R (version 4.2.2) and IBM SPSS Statistics 28. Group means, 
minimum (maximum) values, and standard deviations were 
calculated for the parameters of temperature, gravimetric 
soil water content and shade. A linear mixed effects model 
using the lmer function of the lme4 package (Bates et al., 
2022) was applied to test the null hypothesis that the mean of 
the measured parameters did not change depending on the 
different distances from the hedgerow. "Distance" was defined 
as a fixed factor, "date" and "block" and their interaction as 
random factors. Figure 5 shows that the design was divided 
into 3 blocks. Multiple comparisons were tested using the 
Tukey test in the emmeans package (Lenth et al., 2023). 
Correlations between observed variables were estimated using 
Pearson's correlation coefficient. 
RESULTS
Hedgerow shading
Hedgerow shading graphs are separately represented for 
Location 1 and 2. Figure 4 shows the percentage of shading for 
Location 1, for which must be emphasized that the shading 
graph covers shade effect for both hedgerows in the study 
area. Only for a short time in the morning, namely between 
8 a.m. to 10 a.m. shading for Location 1 varies from 1 to 75%. 
For most of the observed period, the shading percentage is 
between 76 to 100%.
Figure 4: Hedgerow shading Graph for Location 1
Figure 5 shows the percentage of shading for Location 2. 
The field plot is the most shaded in the morning time, where 
shading is between 76 and 100%. After 9 am in summer per-
centage of shading for Location 2 decreases to a max. 25%.
Figure 5: Hedgerow shading Graph for Location 2
Measurement data and basic statistics
The basic statistical analysis with three parameters (soil 
temperature, gravimetric water content and shade overlap) 
is presented in the Table 3 and 4 separately for each field plot 
(Location 1 and Location 2) according to different distances 
from the H2.
Findings for Location 1
According to Table 3 distance from the hedgerow did not 
significantly affect soil temperature during the growing 
season (P=0.272). The total T (°C) mean is 20.1 °C with mean 
standard deviation 2.5 °C. The highest mean soil temperature 
(21.5 °C) is noticed at 17 m distance, and the lower mean soil 
temperatures at 0 and 10 m (19.6 °C) and 5 m (19.5 °C) distances. 
According to the Table 3, there is a large variability of T (°C) 
data, where min. measured soil temperature is 13.9 °C, and 
max. 23.8 °C).
Soil gravimetric water content did not significantly differ 
among different distances from the hedgerow (P=0.3311). 
Focusing on the mean values, the lowest soil water content 
is noticed at 17 m distance (31.8%), while the highest at 15 m 
distance (34.7%). The total mean value is 32.7% with standard 
deviation 5.3%. The wide range between the min. (18.6%) and 
the max. (43.0%) values of gravimetric soil water content is 
detected.
For the shade it was found out, that the hedgerows sig-
nificantly impact shading (P=0.004). The total mean shade 
value at Location 1 is 78.6% with standard deviation 10.1%. 
According to mean values shading (%) only slightly decreases 
with distance from the hedgerow, from 80.9% at 0 m distance 
to 76.6% at 17 m distance (Table 3). The maximum percent-
age of calculated shading is noticed at the distance of 15 m 
from the hedgerow, where the area is shaded for 96.2% of 
the day, while the minimum calculated shading percentage 
is noticed at the distance of 10 m from the hedgerow with 
50.8% of shading.

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The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
Table 3: Mean, standard deviation (sd), minimum (min), and 
maximum (max) values of soil temperature, gravimetric soil 
water content and shading at individual distances (0, 2, 5, 
10, 15, 17 m) with Tukey post hoc test for Location 1 in the 
vegetation period (May to September)
Distance (m)
 
Soil  
temperature 
(°C)
Gravimetric 
soil water 
(%)
Shading 
(%)
0
mean 19.6
a
32.3
a
80.9
b
sd 2.3 5.7 10.6
min 14.6 19.0 59.6
max 22.8 42.3 92.9
2
mean 20.0
a
32.5
a
79.7
b
sd 2.6 5.9 11.2
min 14.7 19.0 53.3
max 23.6 39.2 92.5
5
mean 19.5
a
32.4
a
78.9
b
sd 2.6 5.9 10.5
min 14.1 18.6 51.7
max 23.6 40.2 92.1
10
mean 19.6
a
32.4
a
78.1
ab
sd 2.8 4.6 9.7
min 14.1 25.7 50.8
max 23.5 41.7 87.1
15
mean 20.4
a
34.7
a
77.5
ab
sd 2.4 4.2 10.4
min 13.9 27.3 51.7
max 23.1 43.0 96.2
17
mean 21.5
a
31.8
a
76.6
a
sd 1.8 5.5 8.6
min 17.1 22.9 53.3
max 23.8 40.9 85.4
Total
mean 20.1 32.7 78.6
sd 2.5 5.3 10.1
min 13.9 18.6 50.8
max 23.8 43.0 96.2
a, b Differences between means that share a letter in the same 
column are not statistically significant (Tukey, P≤0.05)
Table 4: Table 4: Mean, standard deviation (sd), minimum 
(min), and maximum (max) values of soil temperature, 
gravimetric soil water content and shading at individual 
distances (0, 2, 5, 10, 20, 30 m) with Tukey post hoc test for 
Location 2 in the vegetation period (May to September)
Distance (m)
 
Soil  
temperature 
(°C)
Gravimetric 
soil water 
(%)
Shading 
(%)
0
mean 19.5
abcd
29.5
a
23.3
d
sd 2.6 6.5 5.6
min 16.0 17.2 12.9
max 24.0 40.7 27.9
2
mean 20.5
a
28.4
a
22.4
d
sd 2.2 4.5 5.1
min 17.5 22.1 10.8
max 24.9 36.0 27.1
5
mean 19.9
a
28.7
a
18.9
cd
sd 1.8 4.4 5.9
min 16.9 18.6 3.8
max 23.9 37.1 26.3
10
mean 21.0
ab
26.7
a
14.5
bc
sd 2.1 5.1 7.4
min 17.4 17.6 0.0
max 24.8 33.7 25.0
20
mean 21.9
b
26.5
a
11.0
b
sd 1.6 4.9 7.7
min 19.7 18.9 0.0
max 24.8 35.3 19.2
30
mean 22.7
b
25.2
a
8.1
a
sd 1.7 5.3 6.3
min 19.8 18.0 0.0
max 25.8 34.5 17.1
Total
mean 20.9 27.5 16.4
sd 2.3 5.3 8.4
min 16.0 17.2 0.0
max 25.8 40.7 27.9
a, b, c, d Differences between means that share a letter in the same 
column are not statistically significant (Tukey, P≤0.05)
Different individual distances for Location 1 and 2 are 
considered since the total width for Location 1 is only 17 m 
and for Location 2 the plot is more than 30 m width.
Findings for Location 2
With the distance from the hedgerow, mean soil temperature 
increases from 19.5 °C (at 0 m) to 22.7 °C (30 m). The soil 
temperature values vary between 16.0 °C (min. total) at 0 
meters and 25.8 °C (max. total) at 30 m from the hedgerow. 
The study found significant differences in soil temperatures 
depending on the distance from the hedgerow (P<0.001). 
However, no statistical differences were found between the 
lower means at distances of 0, 5, 2, and 10 m, and the higher 
mean values at 10, 20, and 30 m did not differ significantly 
(Tukey, P≤0.05).

6
The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
The gravimetric soil water content W (%) on Location 2 
decreased slightly with distance, but the result is not statis-
tically significant (P=0.285). The overall mean W (%) is 27.5%, 
and the standard deviation is 5.3%. Interestingly, both the 
highest and lowest values 40.7 and 17.2 of gravimetric soil 
water content, occurred at 0 m from the hedgerow.
Regarding shading on Location 2 the P<0.001 was used 
to test the null hypothesis that all group means are equal. 
The total mean shading value is 16.4% with a standard devi-
ation of 8.4%. The individual shading measures ranged from 
a minimum shading level of 0.0% (at a distance of 15 m and 
17 m, where there was no shading throughout the day) to a 
maximum shading level of 27.9% at a distance of 0 m. Mean 
values of shading decrease with distance from 23.3% at 0 m 
and 8.1% at 30 m distance from hedgerow. 
Figure 6 illustrates how individual values in a data set 
deviate from the median based on the distance from the 
hedgerow, for both Location 1 and 2.
and shading and between soil temperature and soil water 
content.
Table 5: The Pearson correlation coefficient of values of the 
parameters of soil temperature, gravimetric soil water and 
shading throughout the vegetation period for Location 1 
(above the main diagonal) and Location 2 (below the main 
diagonal)
Pearson correlation coefficients
Gravimetric 
soil water (%) 
Shading 
(%) 
Soil Temperature 
(°C)
Gravimetric  
soil water (%) 
0.141 −0.038
Shading (%) 0.263
**
0.043
Soil  
temperature (°C) 
−0.277
**
−0.319
**
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed)
DISCUSSION
As expected, the study found that the shade of the hedgerow 
affects gravimetric soil water content and soil temperature. 
However, it is difficult to establish a direct comparison between 
Location 1 and 2 due to their different surroundings and field 
crops wheat and corn, respectively. It should also be noted 
that the soil samples were not taken at the same time of the 
day and as well over a period of few days. Additionally, the 
sampling period (May to September) also reflected different 
weather conditions such as air temperature, precipitation, 
and wind, which could affect (evaporative) transpiration, 
plant water uptake, and soil water distribution (ARSO, 2023). 
Nevertheless, the study results are in general compara-
ble to those of other studies, such as from Montgomery et al. 
(2020) and Raatz et al. (2019), which found that shade reduces 
soil temperatures and stabilize soil moisture next to the 
hedgerow. It was confirmed that Location 1, with high total 
percentage of shading and more uniform shading through-
out the day and the vegetation period, exhibited more 
stable gravimetric water content and soil temperature, with 
no significant differences among different distances from 
hedgerow. In comparison to Location 2, the study found 
lower total average soil temperature and higher total soil 
gravimetric water content.
A study by Ghazavi et al. (2008) about hedgerow impacts 
on soil water transfer due to rainfall interception indicated 
that the average percentage of intercepted rainfall was much 
higher in vegetation period compared to leafless period. 
Similarly, a study by Caubel et al. (2003) about the influence 
of a hedge surrounding bottomland on seasonal soil-water 
movement indicated that the hedgerow induced a high rate 
of soil drying due to the high evaporative capacity of the 
Figure 6: Distributions of soil temperature and gravimetric 
soil water content for Location 1 and Location 2 separately 
by distance
Table 5 shows the Pearson correlation coefficients 
between soil temperature, soil water content and shading for 
both locations separately. The results indicate that no sig-
nificant correlations were found for Location 1. In contrast, 
for Location 2, a positive and significant correlations where 
found between soil water content and shading, while 
negative correlations was found between soil temperature 

7
The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
trees. As the study for Location 1 and 2 was performed only 
during the vegetation period, the rainfall interception was 
not treated separately. 
Nevertheless, results for Location 2 indicate the lowest 
(17.2%) and the highest (40.7%) value for gravimetric soil 
water content at 0 m distance from hedgerow, which could 
be explained by heavy rainfall between August and Septem-
ber high rainfall interception due to corn in the plot and 
slight leaf fall noticed since the end of September. 
Although the study was influenced by external factors 
like different yields on the plots, different weather condi-
tions during the soil sampling period and the fact that it 
was a local scale study, the study results as: more stable 
shading conditions on a plot surrounded by two parallel 
hedgerows also result in more stable soil gravimetric water 
content and soil temperature (Location 1); shading impact 
on both soil parameters varies more when the shading con-
ditions change more daily and annually and the hedgerow 
impact is perceived only from one side (Location 2), are still 
in accordance with study results from Carnet (1978), Caubel 
et al. (2003) and White et al. (2002) who reported of hedgerow 
effects on soil vertical drainage capacity. 
Only for soil temperature at Location 2, a statistically sig-
nificant increase with distance from hedgerow was noticed, 
which could be explained with the fact, that soil tempera-
ture (measured at a depth of 5 cm) is changing rapidly with 
different shade proportion of hedgerow.
CONCLUSION
The study highlights the effect of hedgerow shading on 
gravimetric soil water content and soil temperature at 
different distances from hedgerow during the vegetation 
period and at different locations. Despite variability due to 
different yields at the examined locations, different weather 
conditions during the soil sampling period and the fact that 
it was a local scale study, it can be concluded that more stable 
shading conditions on a plot (Location 1 surrounded by two 
parallel hedgerows) also result in more stable soil gravimetric 
water content and soil temperature. The hedgerow shading 
impact on both soil parameters and varies more when the 
hedgerow is present only on one side of the plot. The study 
revealed no significant correlations between soil temperature, 
soil water content and shading for Location 1, while a positive 
significant correlation between soil water content and 
shading was found, and negative correlations where found 
between soil temperature and shading, as well between soil 
temperature and soil water content for Location 2. For a 
better understanding of the impact of hedgerow shading on 
soil quality, further studies are needed, including chemical 
and biological soil parameters such as stock of soil organic 
matter and some basic microbiological parameters. Further, 
for more detailed and precise results in the future, the 
shading overlap classes should be more narrow. Study results 
strengthened by additional studies on local and regional 
level will reinforced valuation of hedgerows and similar semi 
natural landscape elements and will better recognize their 
role for agroecosystems and food production.
Acknowledgements
The research was carried out under the framework of the 
EIP (European Innovation Partnerships) "Conservation and 
improvement of biodiversity in agriculturally intensive areas 
based on the characteristics of the ecosystem" which is part 
of the measure M16: Cooperation from the Rural Development 
Program 2014-2020 of the Republic of Slovenia, sub measure 
M16.5 Support for joint actions for climate change mitigation 
or adaptation and for joint approaches to environmental 
projects and sustainable environmental practices. Co-financed 
by the European Union from the European Agricultural Fund 
for Rural Development and the Rural Development Program 
2014-2022 of the Republic of Slovenia.
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9
The Effects of Hedgerows Shading on Soil Temperature and Gravimetric Soil Water Content
Učinki senčenja mejic na temperaturo tal in 
gravimetrično vsebnost vode v tleh
IZVLEČEK
Študija obravnava učinek zasenčenosti zaradi mejic na fizikalne lastnosti tal: gravimetrično vsebnost vode v tleh in temperaturo 
tal. Analiza obeh parametrov je bila izvedena na dveh lokacijah, pri čemer je bila lokacija 1 iz dveh strani obdana z mejico, 
lokacija 2 pa z mejico le na eni strani. Vzorci tal in meritve temperature tal so bili odvzeti na različnih razdaljah od mejice in 
v različnih časovnih intervalih na obeh lokacijah. Dnevno zasenčenost na različnih razdaljah od mejice na lokaciji 1 in 2 smo 
izračunali s programom ArborShadow R4. Na lokaciji 1 je zasenčenost zelo visoka in se giblje od 76 do 100% skozi vse leto, na 
lokaciji 2 pa nižja in se giblje med 1 do 25%. Na lokaciji 1 je bilo ugotovljeno, da mejice nimajo statistično pomembnega vpliva na 
gravimetrično vsebnost vode v tleh ter temperaturo tal po celotni površini parcele, medtem ko se odstotek senčenja z razdaljo 
le rahlo zmanjšuje. Na lokaciji 2 je bilo ugotovljeno povišanje temperature tal in rahlo zmanjšanje (statistično neznačilno) 
gravimetrične vsebnosti vode v tleh z naraščajočo oddaljenostjo od mejice, medtem ko je skupna povprečna zasenčenost glede 
na lokacijo 1 precej nižja. Poleg tega na lokaciji 2 odstotek zasenčnosti močneje upada z oddaljenostjo od mejice. Na splošno je 
mogoče opaziti nižje temperature tal in višjo gravimetrično vsebnost vode v tleh na bolj zasenčeni lokaciji 1.
Ključne besede: gravimetrični odstotek vode, temperatura tal, mejica, zasenčenost