This data set contains measurements of plant height: vegetative height (heighest leaf) and regenerative height (heighest flower) in 2005 from the Main Experiment plots of a large grassland biodiversity experiment (the Jena Experiment; see further details below). In the Main Experiment, 82 grassland plots of 20 x 20 m were established from a pool of 60 species belonging to four functional groups (grasses, legumes, tall and small herbs). In May 2002, varying numbers of plant species from this species pool were sown into the plots to create a gradient of plant species richness (1, 2, 4, 8, 16 and 60 species) and functional richness (1, 2, 3, 4 functional groups). Plots were maintained by bi-annual weeding and mowing. In 2005, plant height was recorded twice a year just before biomass harvest (during peak standing biomass in late May and in late August). For target plant individuals at 10 points separated by 1 m each along a transect in the central area in the plots, vegetative height (heighest leaf) and regenerative height (heighest flower) were measured as standing height (without stretching the plant). Provided are the individual measurements and the mean over the measured plants.

There are two types of missing values contained in the dataset. Empty cells represent missing values that result from the design of the experiment when the respective value does not occur and could thus not be measured. For example, in the case of species-specific biomass cells are left blank, when the species was not sown into the respective plot. Missing values that resulted from methodological problems, sampling errors, or lost samples/data are marked with "-9999".This datasets is part of a collection of measurements of plant height in the Jena Experiment. Similar data from other experiments (e.g. Main Experiment, Dominance Experiment; see details above), other years, or other methods quantifying related data might be available (doi:10.1594/PANGAEA.855002).