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ARS Home » Plains Area » Miles City, Montana » Livestock and Range Research Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #370832
Research Project: Development of Management Strategies for Livestock Grazing, Disturbance and Climate Variation for the Northern Plains

Location: Livestock and Range Research Laboratory

Title: Effects of defoliation, litter, and moss on Bromus arvensis in a northern mixed-grass prairie

Author
item Reinhart, Kurt
item WILLIAMS, AMANDA - Montana State University
item Vermeire, Lance

Submitted to: Rangeland Ecology and Management
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/20/2020
Publication Date: 8/2/2020
Citation: Reinhart, K.O., Williams, A., Vermeire, L.T. 2020. Effects of defoliation, litter, and moss on Bromus arvensis in a northern mixed-grass prairie. Rangeland Ecology and Management. 73(5):607-610. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2020.06.005.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rama.2020.06.005

Interpretive Summary: Problem- Invasive winter annual bromes are a major problem to rangelands throughout the western USA. Suppression techniques commonly used in an attempt to control these problematic plants include: herbicide, fire, and defoliation (i.e. hand pulling, mowing, targeted grazing). Accomplishment- We determined that mowing coupled with periodic removal of clippings appreciably reduced winter annual brome biomass while having no effects on the biomass of other grasses.

Technical Abstract: Invasive winter annual grasses (Bromus spp.) are a problem in North American rangelands. Defoliation, litter, and mosses are thought to regulate invasive Bromus spp. We conducted a field experiment that tested effects of mechanical mowing and fungicide applications on Bromus arvensis, other and total graminoid, forb, litter, and moss. Treatments caused litter biomass and moss cover to vary, which enabled testing effects of litter and mosses on B. arvensis. Two years after cessation of experimental treatments, mowing treatments caused persistent reductions in B. arvensis, total graminoid, and litter biomasses but had no effect on other graminoid and forb biomasses. We detected a positive relationship between litter and B. arvensis. Fungicide applications increased moss cover and other and total graminoid biomasses, thereby suggesting mosses and several graminoids were released from the suppressive effects of fungi (e.g. lichen, pathogenic fungi) susceptible to the fungicide. We found no appreciable relationship, however, between moss cover and B. arvensis. In temperate and semiarid ecosystems, sustained mowing coupled with periodic removal of clippings is likely to help control invasive bromes, and fungicide additions may increase grass production.