Soil Water Withdrawal and Root Characteristics of Big Sagebrush

Big sagebrush: A sea fragmented into lakes, ponds, and puddles

“…In soils without restricting layers, root depths for basin big sagebrush (many of basin big sagebrush stands are probable Wyoming big sagebrush stands; McArthur and Sanderson 1999) have been recorded as deep as 10 feet (3 m) . For mountain and Wyoming big sagebrush, depths from 5 to 8 feet (1.5 to 2.5 m) have been reported (Daddy and others 1988;Manning and Groeneveld 1990;Sturges 1977b. The tap root of individual big sagebrush plants is not necessarily the deepest.…”

“…The tap root of individual big sagebrush plants is not necessarily the deepest. Often, the deepest roots are branches off of the tap root (Manning and Groeneveld 1990;Sturges 1977b). Not only does big sagebrush produce a deep root system, but just under the soil surface lateral roots branch off the tap root forming a vast root network; the majority of the root system occurs just 12 inches (30.48 cm) under the soil surface and under the canopy of big sagebrush plants (Daddy and others 1988;Flanagan and others 1992;Leffler and others 2004;Manning and Groeneveld 1990;Sturges 1977b.…”

A Process-Based Application of State-and-Transition Models: A Case Study of Western Juniper (Juniperus occidentalis) Encroachment

“…Plant community composition, structure, and productivity are all strongly coupled with the timing and amount of ecosystem water availability (Flerchinger et al, 1998(Flerchinger et al, , 2010Rodriguez-Iturbe, 2000;Ryel et al, 2010;Chauvin et al, 2011;Roundy et al, 2014b). Sagebrush and herbaceous productivity is strongly tied to soil water recharge deep in the soil profile (Cline et al, 1977;Sturges, 1977;Richards and Caldwell, 1987;Caldwell and Richards, 1989;Ryel et al, 2004;Schlaepfer et al, 2012). Sage grouse also require seasonal high-elevation wet meadows, riparian areas, springs, and the associated forbs for late brood rearing in late summer/early autumn seasons Hammersmark et al, 2008;Loheide et al, 2009;Loheide and Gorelick, 2007).…”

Prescribed Fire, Soil, and Plants: Burn Effects and Interactions in the Central Great Basin

“…Sagebrush and native herbaceous perennials have overlapping root systems, but sagebrush is able to draw a significant amount of resources from deeper in the soil profile, often exceeding 2 m, whereas many native herbaceous perennials obtain a majority of resources from the top 50 cm of soil (Sturges et al 1977;Dobrowlski et al 1990;Leffler and Ryel 2012). Chambers et al (2007) reported that removal of native perennial herbaceous species from shrub interspaces resulted in increased soil available water and NO 3 À with or without fire, which in turn facilitated growth and reproduction of cheatgrass.…”