Grasslands and Mowing
In this section you will find information about Grasslands and Mowing importance, but also, how to identify and differentiate mowed / not mowed / grazed areas, and when mowing may have occured.
Explanation
Explanation
Why grassland mowing data matters
Grasslands cover roughly a third of Europe's agricultural land and are among its most valuable habitats — for pollinators, for biodiversity, and for carbon storage. When and how often they are mown changes their ecological value dramatically.
Satellites can see that grass has changed, but they cannot always tell whether a field was mown, grazed, or simply dried out. Your on-the-ground observations close that gap: each quest you complete tells us what actually happened at a place and time, which trains and validates the Copernicus GRAME and GRAMD grassland-mowing maps.
This page explains the key terms you'll meet in the Geo-Quest app so your observations are consistent and easy to use.
Definitions
Definitions
Grasslands & pastures
Grassland size
For the MowingQuest, a grassland is any area where grass is the dominant vegetation. We only need areas large enough to be seen from space — as a rule of thumb, a continuous grass area larger than about 10 × 10 m.
Natural grassland areas
These can be unmanaged natural grasslands — such as those in national parks — as well as naturally occurring or planted managed pastures, where animals graze directly or the grass is mown and collected.
Fallow
Fallow is cultivated land left unseeded for one or more growing seasons — usually up to about five years. Fallow areas are often covered by grasses that will be cut or ploughed before the next crop is planted.
Grassland types
Meadows are mown to make hay or silage; pastures are grazed by livestock; other grasslands include roadside verges, amenity grassland and set-aside. In the app, pick the type that best matches what you see — when unsure, choose the closest option and add a note.
State of the grass
Record whether the grass is growing (tall, uncut), freshly mown (short, cuttings may still be lying on the ground), or cut and collected (short, cuttings removed). This is the single most useful observation for detecting a mowing event.
Mowing date
If you can tell roughly when the grass was last mown — today, within the last week, or longer ago — record it. Even an approximate date helps pin down when a mowing event happened, which is exactly what the Copernicus layers need.
Additional details
Note anything that might affect the data: obstructions blocking the view, whether the area was accessible, and any safety considerations. Always stay in public spaces, never enter private fields, and avoid capturing identifiable people, faces or number plates.