Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-lnqnp Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-28T02:16:26.713Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Soil Seed Bank Responses to Postfire Herbicide and Native Seeding Treatments Designed to Control Bromus tectorum in a Pinyon–Juniper Woodland at Zion National Park, USA

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Hondo Brisbin ,
Andrea Thode ,
Matt Brooks  and
Karen Weber
Hondo Brisbin*
Affiliation:
School of Forestry, P.O. Box 15018, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff AZ 86011
Andrea Thode
Affiliation:
School of Forestry, P.O. Box 15018, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff AZ 86011
Matt Brooks
Affiliation:
U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Yosemite Field Station, 40298 Junction Drive, Suite A, Oakhurst, CA 93644
Karen Weber
Affiliation:
School of Forestry, P.O. Box 15018, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff AZ 86011
*
Corresponding author's E-mail: hondo_brisbin@yahoo.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The continued threat of an invasive, annual brome (Bromus) species in the western United States has created the need for integrated approaches to postfire restoration. Additionally, the high germination rate, high seed production, and seed bank carryover of annual bromes points to the need to assay soil seed banks as part of monitoring programs. We sampled the soil seed bank to help assess the effectiveness of treatments utilizing the herbicide Plateau® (imazapic) and a perennial native seed mix to control annual Bromus species and enhance perennial native plant establishment following a wildfire in Zion National Park, Utah. This study is one of few that have monitored the effects of imazapic and native seeding on a soil seed bank community and the only one that we know of that has done so in a pinyon–juniper woodland. The study made use of untreated, replicated controls, which is not common for seed bank studies. One year posttreatment, Bromus was significantly reduced in plots sprayed with herbicide. By the second year posttreatment, the effects of imazapic were less evident and convergence with the controls was evident. Emergence of seeded species was low for the duration of the study. Dry conditions and possible interactions with imazapic probably contributed to the lack of emergence of seeded native species. The perennial grass sand dropseed outperformed the other species included in the seed mix. We also examined how the treatments affected the soil seed bank community as a whole. We found evidence that the herbicide was reducing several native annual forbs and one nonnative annual forb. However, overall effects on the community were not significant. The results of our study were similar to what others have found in that imazapic is effective in providing a short-term reduction in Bromus density, although it can impact emergence of nontarget species.

Keywords

Imazapic, brome, Bromus, sand dropseed, Sporobolus cryptandrus Torr.Plateau®fireNational Park Service
Type
Research
Information
Invasive Plant Science and Management , Volume 6 , Issue 1 , March 2013 , pp. 118 - 129
Copyright
Copyright © Weed Science Society of America 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Literature Cited

Anderson, M. J. 2001. A new method for non-parametric multivariate analysis of variance. Austal Ecol. 26 :32–46.Google Scholar
Baker, W. L., Garner, J., and Lyon, P. 2009. Effect of imazapic on cheatgrass and native plants in Wyoming big sagebrush restoration for Gunnison sage-grouse. Nat. Areas J. 29 :204–209.Google Scholar
Barclay, A. D., Betancourt, J. L., and Allen, C. D. 2004. Effects of seeding ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) on vegetation recovery following fire in a ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) forest. Int. J. Wildland Fire 13 :183–194.Google Scholar
Baskin, C. C. and Baskin, J. M. 2001. Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination. San Diego, CA : Academic.Google Scholar
Beckstead, J., Meyer, S. E., Molder, C. J., and Smith, C. 2007. A race for survival: can Bromus tectorum seeds escape Pyrenophora semeniperda-caused mortality by germinating quickly? Ann. Bot. 99 :907–914.Google Scholar
Bekedam, S. 2005. Establishment Tolerance of Six Native Sagebrush Steppe Species to Imazapic (PLATEAU®) Herbicide: Implications for Restoration and Recovery. M.S. thesis. Corvallis, OR : Oregon State University. 106 p.Google Scholar
Bell, D. T., Rokich, D. P., McChesney, C. J., and Plummer, J. A. 1995. Effects of temperature, light and gibberellic acid on the germination of seeds of 43 species native to Western Australia. J. Veg. Sci. 6 :797–806.Google Scholar
Belnap, J., Webb, R. H., Miller, M. E., Miller, D. M., DeFalco, L. A., Medica, P. A., Brooks, M. L., Esque, T. C., and Bedford, D. 2008. Monitoring ecosystem quality and function in arid settings of the Mojave Desert. Menlo Park, CA : U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigation Report 2008-5064. 119 p.Google Scholar
Bossuyt, B., Van Wichelen, J., and Hoffmann, M. 2007. Predicting future community composition from random soil seed bank sampling—evidence from a drained lake bottom. J. Veg. Sci. 18 :443–450.Google Scholar
Brooks, M. L. 2002. Peak fire temperatures and effects on annual plants in the Mojave Desert. Ecol. Appl. 12 :1088–1102.Google Scholar
Brooks, M. L. 2005. Effectiveness of postfire seeding to reduce cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) growth and reproduction in recently burned sagebrush steppe. Boise, ID : Final Report for Joint Fire Science Program Project Number 01C-3-3-13. Delivered to the Joint Fire Science Program, National Interagency Fire Center. 7 p.Google Scholar
Brooks, M. L. 2008. Plant invasions and fire regimes. Pages 33–46 in Zouhar, K., Kapler Smith, J., Sutherland, S., and Brooks, M. L., eds. Wildland Fire in Ecosystems: Fire and Nonnative Invasive Plants. Ogden, UT : U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station RMRS-GTR-42-volume 6. 355.Google Scholar
Brooks, M. L., D'Antonio, C. M., Richardson, D. M., Grace, J. B., Keeley, J. E., DiTomaso, J. M., Hobbs, R. J., Pellant, M., and Pyke, D. 2004. Effects of invasive alien plants on fire regimes. BioScience 54 :677–688.Google Scholar
Brown, C. S., Anderson, V. J., Claassen, V. P., Stannard, M. E., Wilson, L. M., Atkinson, S. Y., Bromberg, J. E., Grant, T. A. III, and Munis, M. D. 2008. Restoration ecology and invasive plants in the semiarid West. Invasive Plant Sci. Manag. 1 :399–413.Google Scholar
Canode, C. L., Robocker, W. C., and Muzik, T. J. 1962. Grass seed production as influenced by chemical control of downy brome. Weed Sci. 10 :216–219.Google Scholar
Coffin, D. P. and Lauenroth, W. K. 1989. Spatial and temporal variation in the seed bank of a semiarid grassland. Am. J. Bot. 76 :53–58.Google Scholar
D'Antonio, C. M. and Vitousek, P. M. 1992. Biological invasions by exotic grasses, the grass/fire cycle, and global change. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 23 :63–87.Google Scholar
Davison, J. and Smith, E. 2007. Imazapic provides 2-year control of weeded annuals in seeded Great Basin fuelbreak. J. Native Plants 8 :91–95.Google Scholar
Dela Cruz, M. P. 2008. Exotic brome control and revegetation trials in the xeric riparian corridor at Zion National Park. M.S. thesis. Flagstaff, AZ : Northern Arizona University. 83 p.Google Scholar
Elmendorf, S. C. and Moore, K. A. 2007. Plant competition varies with community composition in an edaphically complex landscape. Ecology 88 :2640–2650.Google Scholar
Evans, R. A., Holbo, H. R., Eckert, R. E. Jr, and Young, J. A. 1970. Functional environment of downy brome communities in relation to weed control and revegetation. Weed Sci. 18 :154–162.Google Scholar
Ferrandis, P., Herranz, J. M., and Martinez-Sanchez, J. J. 2001. Response to fire of a predominantly transient seed bank in a Mediterranean weedy pasture (eastern-central Spain). Ecoscience 8 :211–219.Google Scholar
Floyd, L. M., Hanna, D., Romme, W. H., and Crews, T. E. 2006. Predicting and mitigating weed invasions to restore natural post-fire succession in Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, USA. Int. J. Wildland Fire 15 :247–259.Google Scholar
Hulbert, L. C. 1955. Ecological studies of Bromus tectorum and other annual bromegrasses. Ecol. Monogr. 25 :181–213.Google Scholar
Humphrey, D. L. and Schupp, E. W. 2001. Seed banks of Bromus tectorum–dominated communities in the Great Basin. West. N. Am. Nat. 61 :85–92.Google Scholar
Humphrey, D. L. and Schupp, E. W. 2002. Seedling survival from locally and commercially obtained seeds on two semiarid sites. Restor. Ecol. 10 :88–95.Google Scholar
Humphrey, D. L. and Schupp, E. W. 2004. Competition as a barrier to establishment of a native perennial grass (Elymus elymoides) in alien annual grass (Bromus tectorum) communities. J. Arid Environ. 58 :405–422.Google Scholar
Jones, T. A. and Nielson, D. C. 1992. Germination of prechilled mechanically scarified and unscarified indian ricegrass seed. J. Range Manag. 45 :175–179.Google Scholar
Kemp, P. R. 1989. Seed banks and vegetation processes in deserts. Pages 257–282 in Leck, M. A., Parker, V. T., and Simpson, R. L., eds. Ecology of Soil Seed Banks. New York : Academic.Google Scholar
Kuenzi, A. M., Fule, P. Z., and Seig, C. H. 2008. Effects of fire severity and pre-fire stand treatment on plant community recovery after a large wildfire. For. Ecol. Manag. 255 :855–865.Google Scholar
Kyser, G. B., DiTomaso, J. M., Doran, M. P., Orloff, S. B., Wilson, R. G., Lancaster, D. L., Lile, D. F., and Porath, M. L. 2007. Control of medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae) and other annual grasses with imazapic. Weed Technol. 21 :66–75.Google Scholar
Leger, E. A. 2008. The adaptive value of remnant native plants in invaded communities: an example from the Great Basin. Ecol. Appl. 18 :1226–1235.Google Scholar
Mack, R. N. and Pyke, D. A. 1983. The demography of Bromus tectorum: variation in time and space. J. Ecol. 71 :69–93.Google Scholar
McCune, B. and Grace, J. B. 2002. Analysis of ecological communities. Gleneden Beach, Oregon : MjM Software.Google Scholar
Melgoza, G., Nowak, R. S., and Tausch, R. J. 1990. Soil water exploitation after fire: competition between Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass) and two native species. Oecologia 83 :7–13.Google Scholar
Meyer, S. E., Quinney, D., Nelson, D. L., and Weaver, J. 2007. Impact of the pathogen Pyrenophora semeniperda on Bromus tectorum seedbank dynamics in North American cold deserts. Weed Res. 47 :54–62.Google Scholar
Monaco, T. A., Osmond, T. M., and Dewey, S. A. 2005. Medusahead control with fall- and spring-applied herbicides on northern Utah foothills. Weed Technol. 19 :653–658.Google Scholar
Morris, C., Monaco, T. A., and Rigby, C. W. 2009. Variable impacts of imazapic rate on downy brome (Bromus tectorum) and seeded species in two rangeland communities. Invasive Plant Sci. Manag. 2 :110–119.Google Scholar
Mortensen, V. L., Carley, J. A., Crandall, G. C., Donaldson, K. M. Jr, and Leishman, G. W. 1977. Soil survey of Washington County area, Utah. Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington D.C. 140 p.Google Scholar
O'Neil, A. 2008. Treatments to reduce exotic brome grasses and encourage native species revegetation in Zion National Park, Utah. M.S. thesis. Ames, IA : Iowa State University. 32 p.Google Scholar
Price, M. V. and Reichman, O. J. 1987. Distribution of seeds in Sonoran Desert soils: implications for Heteromyid rodent foraging. Ecology 68 :1797–1811.Google Scholar
Shinn, S. L. and Thill, D. C. 2002. The response of yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis), annual grasses, and smooth brome (Bromus inermis) to imazapic and picloram. Weed Technol. 16 :366–370.Google Scholar
Shinn, S. L. and Thill, D. C. 2004. Tolerance of several perennial grasses to imazapic. Weed Technol. 18 :60–65.Google Scholar
Smith, D. C., Meyer, S. E., and Anderson, V. J. 2008. Factors affecting Bromus tectorum seed bank carryover in western Utah. Rangeland Ecol. Manag. 61 :430–436.Google Scholar
Stewart, G. and Hull, A. C. 1949. Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.)—an ecological intruder in southern Idaho. Ecology 30 :58–74.Google Scholar
Thill, D. C., Schirman, R. D., and Appleby, A. P. 1979. Influence of soil moisture, temperature and compaction on the germination and emergence of downy brome (Bromus tectorum). Weed Sci. 27 :625–630.Google Scholar
Tu, M., Hurd, C., and Randall, J. M. 2001. Weed Control Methods Handbook: Tool and Techniques for Use in Natural Areas. http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/handbook. html. Accessed: March 9, 2009.Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service. 2009. The PLANTS Database. Greensboro, NC : National Plant Data Team. http://plants.usda.gov/java/. Accessed: January 5 2009.Google Scholar
Vollmer, J. L., and Vollmer, J. G. 2006. Controlling cheatgrass in winter range to restore habitat and endemic fire. Pages 57–60 in Kitchen, S. G., Pendleton, R. L., Monaco, T. A., and Vernon, J., comps. Proceedings—Shrublands Under Fire: Disturbance and Recovery in a Changing World Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station Proc. RMRS-P-52.Google Scholar
Western Regional Climate Center. 2005. Historical Climate Information. http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?utzion. Accessed: September 2009.Google Scholar
Young, J. A. and Evans, R. A. 1978. Population dynamics after wildfires in sagebrush grasslands. J. Range Manag. 31 :283–289.Google Scholar
Young, J. A. and Evans, R. A. 1981. Demography and fire history of a western juniper stand. J. Range Manag. 34 :501–506.Google Scholar
Young, J. A., Evans, R. A., and Eckert, R. E. 1969. Population dynamics of downy brome. Weed Sci. 17 :20–26.Google Scholar
Zouhar, K., Kapler Smith, J., Sutherland, S., and Brooks, M. L., eds. 2008. Wildland Fire in Ecosystems: Fire and Nonnative Invasive Plants. Ogden, UT : U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station RMRS-GTR-42-volume 6. 355 p.Google Scholar