Changes in a California Annual Plant Community Induced By Manipulation of Natural Mulch

Invasion, competitive dominance, and resource use by exotic and native California grassland species

“…However, California grasslands are extremely varied, and it is plausible that the means by which exotic annuals maintain dominance vary geographically. For example, the elimination of grazing alone can result in a return to perennial dominance in coastal grasslands (50,51). In these areas, the precipitation and summer fog are ample for perennials to maintain green tissue year round (J. Corbin, personal communication), and this lengthened growing season may increase the competitive dominance of the native perennial species (38).…”

Canopy Analysis as a Technique to Characterize Defoliation Intensity on Sandhills Range

“…Also, Hyder (1954) pointed out that sources of variation in site factors and plant communities within rangeland pastures cause uneven grazing distribution and prevent a direct plant physiological interpretation of utilization percentages. Alternative approaches proposed for several rangeland types measured utilization based on herbage residue rather than herbage removed (Bentley and Talbot 1951, Heady 1956, Bement 1969, Schmutz 1971. A desirable compromise, par-…”

Rare Plant Monitoring and Restoration at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Experimental Test Site, Site 300, Project Progress Report 2007 through 2011

“…Although sites 1, 2, and 3 are very different from one another in terms of vegetation and slope, the microhabitats in which E. rhombipetala are found are similar among the sites: flowering E. rhombipetala plants are found more often when the vegetation is open, exposing bare ground, and when there is less thatch accumulation. Other California forbs have shown similar sensitivity to thatch accumulation, as shown by increased plant performance in thatch removal studies (Meyer and Schiffman, 1999;Heady, 1956). Exotic annual grasses tend to accumulate more thatch than native grasses and as such they may be particularly powerful inhibitors of native forbs.…”