Managing Cheatgrass in Nevada: past and present

Authors: Harmon, Daniel - Dan; Clements, Darin - Charlie

Submitted to: The Progressive Rancher
Publication Type: Popular Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/20/2024
Publication Date: 7/8/2024
Citation: Harmon, D.N., Clements, D.D. 2024. Managing Cheatgrass in Nevada: past and present. The Progressive Rancher. 24(6):24-26.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The management of exotic annual grasses and their associated fuels and wildfire risk are one of the greatest challenges facing land mangers in the arid western United States. While cheatgrass can provide a useful forage source during its’ green period, that window of opportunity can be unpredictable and very short-lived. Even with many BLM grazing allotments utilizing cheatgrass during wet periods of the year and arguments being made that cheatgrass is better than nothing or that it is too difficult to control and maybe we should just mange the landscape as a cheatgrass landscape as Platt and Jackman stated in 1946, “The cheatgrass problem in Oregon” in which they point out “perennials buy good bonds, cheatgrass speculates” and “the owner of a cheat range who depends on summer feed from it keeps an agonized clutch on a rabbit foot”. The permittee is just one fire away from losing valuable forage as well as possible range closures. Since cheatgrass yield varies so much from year to year and the fact that cheatgrass produces a fine-textured early maturing fuel that increases the chance, rate, spread and season of wildfire, the best management practice to minimize the negative effects associated with cheatgrass, is to allow for perennial plants to dominate the system. From very early on researchers knew that perennial grasses were the best defense for sustained control of cheatgrass. In 1932 Pickford, “The Influence of Continued Heavy Grazing and of Promiscuous Burning of Spring-Fall Ranges in Utah” observed and wrote that once the perennial grasses were lost from the plant community cheatgrass would dominate, but if good perennial grass stands were present, cheatgrass would only be a minor component of the plant community. Presently, resource managers have pre-emergent herbicides available as a very effective tool to reduce cheatgrass seed banks and competition. Pre-emergent herbicides are not a long-term control method though and should be used in combination with seeding of perennial grasses and other desirable perennial species. The activity period for new seedling control for each pre-emergent herbicide can vary. Imazapic (Plateau) the most commonly used pre-emergent to control cheatgrass, Sulfometuron Methyl (SFM 75 or Oust XP) which has some rangeland use limitations like ground application only, or Rimsulfuron (Matrix SG) often used for medusahead control in heavy clay soils, have active control for about 1 growing season. Cheatgrass is here to stay, it will never be fully eradicated but it can be managed to be only a small component of a perennial plant dominated community. By using an integrated method with effective weed control and seeding reliable proven perennial grasses, ecosystem function can be restored and provide a productive natural resource that is sustainable and increases in diversity for multiple uses through succession processes. This is ultimately the goal of land management in Nevada and hopeful with all these available tools that we can make a positive difference for the future.