Urban grasslands (UGs) are among the most common types of green infrastructure

and, due to the reference to the ecosystem services delivered, UGs are considered more broadly, encompassing meadows and lawns in domestic gardens, parks, vacant land, remnants of rural landscapes, and areas along transportation corridors, including even non-grassy vegetation. To fulfil their functions, UGs need to be properly spatially arranged in a cityscape, have a high diversity of plant species, and be properly managed. Unfortunately, the UGs are usually managed as species-poor, short-cut lawns, and spontaneous plant migration, which can increase biodiversity, is limited. The urban environment, mostly because of high fragmentation, can lead to genetic drift within plant populations and result in biodiversity reduction. Furthermore, increasing and/or maintaining a relatively high level of plant species richness in an urban environment is limited by restricted plant dispersal.

In my PhD I examined the ecological characteristic of UG, considering Wrocław city as a model object, to improve UG management methods for increasing the ecosystem services of green infrastructure. I focused on: 1) the problem of connectivity between UG patches in the cityscape and 2) the effect of grassland type and proximity to the city center on the soil and vegetation characteristics. The practical implication of the study was to provide ideas to urban planners to enhance ecosystem services and to help improve the permeability of the city landscape to wildlife. I have tested the hypotheses: 1) the dispersal ability of grassland plant species is limited by the spatial structure of urban grasslands in the city, 2) the characteristics of urban grassland like soil properties and, plant species richness are influenced by grassland patch type and location.