Meadows and pastures (permanent grassland)

In the Czech land register, meadows and pastures are recorded as the land type permanent grassland (trvalý travní porost). Under the cadastral decree this is land used to grow grasses or other herbaceous forage that is not part of crop rotation; scattered trees and shrubs may grow there as long as grass prevails. Meadows are mown for hay or silage, pastures are grazed. They are part of the agricultural land fund.

Land register and LPIS

In the LPIS land use register, meadows and pastures have their own crop category, permanent grassland. Beware of a similar name: the LPIS category 'travní porost' (grassland) means temporarily grassed arable land. Under Government Regulation No. 307/2014 Coll., such grassland or fallow as a rule becomes permanent grassland after no more than 7 years outside crop rotation. The land register and LPIS may differ, because the register records the land type and LPIS the actual farming.

What it means for living nearby

Grassland around a house protects the soil from erosion better than fields; protective grassing is one of the erosion control measures listed in Decree No. 240/2021 Coll. Pastures, however, may mean animals by the fence, electric fencing and farm smells.

Watch out for

A plot registered as permanent grassland cannot simply be ploughed up into a field. Conversion to arable land requires consent from the agricultural land protection authority, which assesses the soil's properties and erosion risk. Decree No. 240/2021 Coll. treats, for example, soils with a profile up to 30 cm deep, or areas where erosion risk cannot be reduced sufficiently, as unsuitable for ploughing. For building, the same rules apply as for other farmland, i.e. removal from the agricultural land fund.

Is a meadow next to the house a building plot?

No. Whether it may be built on is decided by the zoning plan; even in a development area, consent to removal from the agricultural land fund is then required.