Treesearch

The summer-blooming annual forbs Cleome lutea and Cleome serrulata (Cleomaceae) are native across the US Intermountain West and Rocky Mountains, respectively. Their farmed seed is sought to help rehabilitate western rangelands in those regions. This study of the reproductive biologies and pollinator faunas of C. lutea and C. serrulata is the first for this cosmopolitan family, the sister family to the Brassicaceae. Unlike the S-allele self-incompatibility systems of some Brassicaceae, both species of Cleome were found to be self-fertile and capable of some autogamy. Compared with selfing,...

Astragalus filipes Torr. ex A. Gray (basalt milkvetch or threadstalk milkvetch) is a legume that is widely distributed in western North America andholds promise for revegetation and restoration programs in the western United States. Seed of 67 accessions was collected in 2003 from Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, California, and Washington. Field-collected forage samples from these accessions had nondetectable or low levels of selenium, swainsonine, and nitrotoxins. Accessions were evaluated at Providence and Millville in northern Utah in 2005 and 2006. At Providence accessions from north-centr...

Nearly a century after the pioneering American apple tree purveyor Johnny Appleseed traveled from town to town planting nurseries in the Midwestern United States, Frans Nicholas Meijer left his Netherlands home to pursue a similar vocation as an "agricultural explorer" for the US Department of Agriculture. Over the course of his career, Meijer, who changed his name to Frank Meyer after reaching the New World, helped introduce over 2,500 foreign plants from Europe, Russia, and China, including the lemon that would bear his name. Starting with his first expedition for Asian plants in 1905,...

A selected-class pre-variety germplasm of basalt milkvetch (Astragalus filipes Torr. ex A. Gray [Fabaceae]) has been released for reclamation, rehabilitation, and restoration of semiarid rangelands in the northern Great Basin Region of the western US.

Resource partitioning has been suggested as an important mechanism of invasion resistance. The relative importance of resource partitioning for invasion resistance, however, may depend on how species abundance is distributed in the plant community. This study had two objectives. First, we quantified the degree to which one resource, nitrogen (N), is partitioned by time, depth and chemical form among coexisting species from different functional groups by injecting 15N into soils around the study species three times during the growing season, at two soil depths and as two chemical forms. A...

A hedge trimmer (Garden Groom Pro) and a hand-held vacuum (Euro-Pro Shark) were tested to determine whether they might be more effective for collecting the seed of native plants than common hand methods. The common hand methods worked best.

The purpose of this technical note is to provide a step-by-step approach to calibrating the Truax Rough Rider range drill, a relatively new, state-of-the-art rangeland drill. To achieve the desired outcome of a seeding project, an important step following proper weed control and seedbed preparation is the calibration of the seeding equipment to ensure the recommended amount of seed is uniformly planted.

Basalt milkvetch (Astragalus nlipes) is a forb (non woody perennial) native to western North America. Basalt milkvetch is a legume forb species of interest for revegetating rangelands of the intermountain northwest; it can contribute high quality feed, valuable seed for wildlife, and nitrogen fixation to help maintain range productivity. Basalt milkvetch has a hard seed coat that makes the seed impermeable to water and difficult to germinate. Low seed germination can contribute to low plant stand when seed is used to plant areas for seed increase. This trial tested basalt milkvetch...

Native forb seed is needed to restore rangelands of the Intermountain West. Commercial seed production is necessary to provide the quantity of seed needed for restoration efforts. A major limitation to economically viable commercial production of native forb seed is stable and consistent seed productivity over years. Variations in spring rainfall and soil moisture result in highly unpredictable water stress at flowering, seed set, and seed development, which for other seed crops is known to compromise seed yield and quality.

Native forb seed is needed to restore rangelands of the Intermountain West. Commercial seed production is necessary to provide the quantity of seed needed for restoration efforts. A major limitation to economically viable commercial production of native forb seed is weed competition. Weeds are adapted to growing in disturbed soil, and native forbs are not competitive with these weeds. There is a considerable body of knowledge about the relative efficacy of different herbicides to control target weeds, but few trials have tested the tolerance of native forbs to commercial herbicides.