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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Burns, Oregon » Range and Meadow Forage Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #298765
Title: Seed and seedling ecology research as the foundation for enhancing restoration outcomes

Author
item JAMES, JEREMY - University Of California
item Boyd, Chad
item Svejcar, Anthony

Submitted to: Rangeland Ecology and Management
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/13/2013
Publication Date: 3/1/2013
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/59316
Citation: James, J.J., Boyd, C.S., Svejcar, A.J. 2013. Seed and seedling ecology research as the foundation for enhancing restoration outcomes. Rangeland Ecology and Management. 66(2):115-116.

Interpretive Summary: The success of restoration in arid and semiarid rangelands is severely limited by deficiencies in our understanding of seedling ecology and seedling recruitment. This is significant because rangelands provide sustenance for roughly one-third of the global population, and evolving challenges such as altered disturbance regimes associated with wildfire have created an urgent need for increased restoration success. We present the argument that improvements in rangeland restoration success are contingent on basic research on seed and seedling ecology. The end result of this research will be decisions which are more economically efficient and yield significant environmental benefits.

Technical Abstract: The success of restoration in arid and semiarid rangelands is severely limited by deficiencies in our understanding of seedling ecology and seedling recruitment. This is significant because rangelands provide sustenance for roughly one-third of the global population, and evolving challenges such as altered disturbance regimes associated with wildfire have created an urgent need for increased restoration success. We present the argument that improvements in rangeland restoration success are contingent on basic research on seed and seedling ecology. The end result of this research will be decisions which are more economically efficient and yield significant environmental benefits.