Determination of Pasture Comfort Climate Index between Forest and Open Grassland for Livestock Grazing

In the summer of 2019 digitally recorded climatic data of shelterbelts and open pastures were compared to create a database. Our aim was to clarify the extent to which the herding needs of free-range flocks in the pasture meet the climatic conditions of the shelterbelts. It is considered important to graze sheep in the grazing forest, as special attention needs to be paid during the daytime due to their low heat stress tolerance, which can increase the comfort zone of sheep, thus ensuring grassland sustainability and increasing grassland diversity. Based on our investigations, it can be concluded that the shelterbelts occupies a key position in the examined area in the daily rhythm of the flock's presence on the pasture. Our results showed that the soil surface temperature measured in the shelterbelt was lower on average 6.44 ° C (p-value: 1.36E-08 at 13:00 hrs.) and 5.18 ° C (p-value: 7.8E-07 at 15:00 hrs.) than in the control area. Our studies also showed that the temperature in the shelterbelt was lower in the early afternoon hours than in the control area (p-value: 0.001 at 13:00 hrs.; and p-value: 0.0007 at 15:00 hrs.). Furthermore, the protective role of the shelterbelt was demonstrated, with a lower wind speed (83% avg.), humidity (13% avg.) and temperature (4% avg.) values.