ARS | Publication request: Assessment and demonstration of ecologically-based medusahead and cheatgrass management in Jordan Valley, Oregon

Submitted to: Ecology and Management of Annual Rangelands Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: October 5, 2010
Publication Date: February 7, 2011
Citation: Vasquez, E., Chamberlain, A., Smith, B.S., Sheley, R.L. 2011. Assessment and demonstration of ecologically-based medusahead and cheatgrass management in Jordan Valley, Oregon.64th Ecology and Management of Annual Rangelands Proceedings, February 6-10, 2011, Billings, Montana. 64:247.

Technical Abstract: Medusahead was first noted in Jordan Valley, OR approximately 25-30 years ago. It has significantly expanded within the last 10-20 years. As part of the USDA-ARS Area-wide project for invasive annual grasses, landscape scale demonstration plots were established with five cooperating ranches in 2008 in with the objective to demonstrate the potential of using the single-entry (one-pass herbicide/seed application) strategy to rehabilitate annual-grass infested rangelands across large heterogeneous landscapes and determine those abiotic and biotic factors that are most important in influencing the success and/ or failure of the rehabilitation effort. Treatments included one-pass imazapic application and seeding, imazapic only, seeding only and a control. Imazapic was applied at 3.5 oz/ acre and the seeding mix was crested wheatgrass and sandberg bluegrass at 20 lbs/ acre. Seedling establishment was unsuccessful in 2008 and treatments were reapplied in fall of 2009. Initial data collected in June 2010 indicates that seedling establishment was more successful.