Can we improve restoration success in the Great Basin? Elizabeth Leger University of Nevada, Reno
Feb 23, 2016
Can we improve restoration success in the Great Basin?
Elizabeth LegerUniversity of Nevada, Reno
Restoration in the Great Basin
How can we improve restoration success in the Great Basin?
Putting the pieces together
1. Reduce cheatgrass seed production and seed bank
2. Select the best seed mix3. Seed at the optimum time, with the best
technology4. Use the best post-restoration management
1. Reduce cheatgrass seed production
1. Reduce cheatgrass seed production
• Wild fire• Herbicides• Cheatgrass beer brewing• High intensity, short duration grazing• Biocontrol• Take advantage of cheatgrass die-offs
2. Reduce cheatgrass seed bank
1% of 40,000 is still a lot of seeds
Dr. Susan Meyer, USFSDr. Julie Beckstead, Gonzaga University
• BFOD, Pyrenophora semeniperda
3. Pick the best seed mix• Early seral species, best competitors• Local sources• Populations with the best suite of traits
Elymus elymoides, multisetus Poa secunda
Amsinckia sp. Ericameria nauseosa
AMTE BRTE AMIN MEVE DEPI BLSC0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
B. t
ecto
rum
veg
etat
ive
biom
ass
(g)
BCBC
A
C
AB
Annual forbs can suppress cheatgrass
Goergen, Leger, & Forbis; in review
AB
AMTE and BRTE
Where do our seeds come from?
What are good traits?
Seedling traits strongly affect survival
Seed weight
Growth rate
Leaf number
Leaf biomass
Leaf area
Root tipsRoot forks
Root:shoot
Average root diameter
Root length, by size class
Specific root area, lengthRoot branching
Coarse roots
Fine roots
Total root length
Emergence
4. Seed with the right technology
Single seedling Clustered seedlings
Seedlings do better with neighbors
Matt Madsen, USDA ARS, Burns, OR
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
FEID PSSP
Dens
ity (p
lant
s m
-2)
controlagglomerate
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.8
2.0
FEID PSSP
Biom
ass
(g m
-2)
controlagglomerate
b
c
a
b
a
b
c
d
Idaho fescue
Bluebunch wheatgrass
Bluebunch wheatgrass
Idaho fescuesingle seedling agglomeration
single seedling agglomeration
Higher densities of grouped seeds
Matt Madsen, USDA ARS, Burns, OR
5. Best post-fire management
Can we put the pieces together?
• Will require a coordinated efforts among researchers, seed centers, managers
– Multi-year effort, many investigators!
• May require changes in management practices– More expensive, but maybe more effective
– Seed smaller areas, seeding without fires