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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Albany, California » Western Regional Research Center » Invasive Species and Pollinator Health » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #134853
Title: GERMINATION OF SEEDS OF BIG AND BOTTLEBRUSH SQUIRRELTAIL

Author
item Young, James
item Clements, Darin - Charlie
item Jones, Thomas

Submitted to: Journal of Range Management
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/4/2002
Publication Date: 5/15/2003
Citation: YOUNG, J.A., CLEMENTS, D.D., JONES, T.A. GERMINATION OF SEEDS OF BIG AND BOTTLEBRUSH SQUIRRELTAIL. JOURNAL OF RANGE MANAGEMENT. 2003. p.277-281.

Interpretive Summary: The group of grasses known as squirreltail are not the most desirable forage species for livestock on rangelands. Their value lies in their ubiquitousness on western rangelands. They often are the first native perennial grass to invade disturbed areas on rangelands. With millions of acres of Intermountain Area rangelands being denuded by reoccurring wildfires, land managers would love to be able to establish plantings of squirreltail to suppress exotic weeds. This manuscript provides valuable information on the germination characteristics seeds of native bottlebrush and big squirreltail collections and for accessions of these grasses currently in plant breeding programs.

Technical Abstract: Bottlebrush squirreltail [Elymus elymoides (Raf.) Swezey] and big squirreltail [E. multisetus (J. G. Smith) Burtt Davy) are short lived perennial bunchgrasses found on rangelands from the Pacific Coast to the Great Plains and from Canada to Mexico. They are valuable native species seeded to suppress exotic annual weeds on rangelands. This manuscript reports on the germination characteristics of a number of collections of seeds of these species from native stands and on accessions of the species currently being used in breeding programs.