Integrated Restoration Strategies Towards Weed Control On Western Rangelands

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GBEM-Team Leader

   -Jeanne Chambers

EPR-Project Leader

   -Robin Tausch

The Book

   -Great Basin Riparian Ecosystems

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Although cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) has been widely distributed across western rangelands for >70 years, the full ecological and economic impacts of this non-native invasive plant have not yet occurred.  Competitiveness and prolific seed production allow cheatgrass to invade both disturbed and intact native communities and to dominate after wildfire.  Thus, efforts to control cheatgrass need to focus on these biological characteristics while simultaneously restoring native plants on Great Basin rangelands.  The overall goal of this project is to identify concepts and management strategies to control the spreading dominance of cheatgrass and other weeds on Great Basin rangelands and to restore native species and increase biodiversity.  Supporting objectives are:

1. Conduct a series of common experiments across the Great Basin that test management techniques for controlling cheatgrass and other weeds, establishing native plant communities, and restoring ecosystem structure and function while reducing the cost of restoration.

2. Provide an ecological understanding of why restoration techniques succeed or fail.

3. Develop conceptual and economic bases for choosing appropriate management techniques.

4. Use partnerships among governmental agencies, universities, cooperative extension, and land managers to convey knowledge to ranchers and other professionals.

5. Use partnerships with educators to increase student and public awareness of invasive species issues and to develop educational tools that convey solutions to invasive species and native plant restoration problems.

By combining expertise and sharing resources, this multi-state, interdisciplinary consortium of research, education, extension, and agency personnel is poised to identify ecological principles and fundamental knowledge needed to manage invasive weeds and facilitate native plant restoration on Great Basin rangelands.  It is implementing an active program to disseminate that knowledge to managers and users of Great Basin rangelands.  This project has been funded by the USDA, CSREES Program:  Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems.  The project duration is from October 1, 2001 through October 1, 2005.

Researchers:

Robert Nowak, Kim Allcock and Hudson Glimp-University of Nevada, Reno & Nevada Ag. Expt. Sta.

Paul Doescher and John Tanaka-Oregon State University

Gene Schupp, Alan Rasmussen, and Chris Call-Utah State University

Jeanne Chambers and Robin Tausch-USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station

Dave Pyke-USGS Forest and Range Ecosystem Science Center

Bob Blank-USDA ARS

Contact

Bob Nowak nowak@cabnr.unr.edu

775.784.1656