LANDSCAPE AESTHETICS AS AN INDICATOR FOR SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY OF CROP ROTATIONS

Summary

The goal of this study was to evaluate different crop rotations in terms of landscape aesthetics. Klostergut Scheyern has been used as an example, since its current crop rotation must be changed. Therefore, people living in the neighbourhood of Klostergut Scheyern have been shown photos of each crop at different periods of the year. Additionally, a questionnaire containing quantitative, as well as qualitative questions has been developed. Each crop has got a grade; the best one being 1 up to the worst one being 4. People have been allowed to justify their ranking. Also, the use of agricultural machines has been presented on photos. For each crop, participants could decide whether they liked or disliked the working steps.
In summary, all crops have been evaluated rather positively. The grades reach from 1.4 to 2.6. The use of machines has hardly ever influenced people’s opinions. Taking qualitative comments into consideration, the survey revealed the difficulty to separate purely visual aspects from moral attitudes towards a certain crop.