Utah Division of Wildlife Resources

2. Terrain and soil type must be suitable to making the change selected.

After palatable forage becomes established on good sites with deep soil, game animals generally move there. Then, less favorable areas can improve naturally. Shallow, infertile soils generally produce too little forage to justify use of expensive restoration programs. Soil that contains more than 1 percent of soluble salts -- particularly sodium -- is not suitable for use of restoration measures. Some improvement may be possible and justifiable on severe sites, but similar effort expended on favorable tracts would be preferable because it would improve the stand of forage more quickly.

Of course, some poor sites may require restoration treatment because they need more vegetal cover to control erosion. Here the demand for forage is only a secondary consideration. The combined demand for soil protection and forage may give some steeper land higher priority for treatment than some level areas. A game range manager must look closely at the soil and terrain on all depleted areas to determine where appropriate treatment would produce the most forage for the game.

New chaining techniques have made it possible to restore to high productivity sites that formerly were regarded as unsuitable. This has occurred many times in the juniper-pinyon type, where steep slopes (as much 50 percent) are common. Many damaging floods originate in such areas; they cut and widen destructive channels through the desert shrub type. Adequate treatment of slopes is more costly than treatment of flat areas, but it is often necessary to treat hillsides to stabilize soil so that the sloping ground can hold water deposited by sudden storms. Slopes up to 50 percent have been successfully chained and stabilized in the juniper-pinyon type.

3. Precipitation must be adequate to assure establishment and survival of planted species.

Water is often the critical factor determining what vegetation will grow in a given area. Therefore, the manager of a big-game range area should check closely on the average annual precipitation received by an area before planning any restoration program that includes planting. Average annual precipitation usually should be more than 9 inches where artificial seeding is part of the restoration program. However, good improvement has resulted from some seedings made where precipitation has been slightly less than this amount.

The amount of precipitation, coupled with occurrence of indicator plants, is the most important guide to what species may be seeded successfully. Where precipitation is near the minimum limit, species that may be seeded successfully are usually limited to Russian wildrye, Fairway crested wheatgrass, Standard crested wheatgrass, bluestem wheatgrass, and range alfalfa. As precipitation increases, a greater variety of species may be successfully established.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that indicator plants are important. Presence of juniper and pinyon trees indicates availability of adequate moisture for several commonly used species. Again, if seepweed (pickleweed) and iodine bush are prevalent, the soil contains a high concentration of soluble salts. Presence of appreciable amounts of shrubs that grow in the mountain brush zone (including Gambel oak, true mountain-mahogany, big sagebrush, and mountain snowberry, especially on south or west exposures) indicates favorable moisture, where several species can be profitably planted. Complete absence of mountain brush species or of thrifty big sagebrush, plus a high prevalence of dwarfed salt-desert shrubs (e.g., shadscale salt-bush or Gardner saltbush) indicates a site too dry to justify use of artificial restoration measures.

4. Competition must be low enough to assure that the desired species can become firmly established.

This principle must be effectively applied for successful restoration of most ranges dominated by a prevailing competitive vegetation, particularly where seeding is necessary. Dense stands of juniper and pinyon trees, thick stands of big sagebrush, and some early spring-growing annuals (e.g., cheatgrass brome and cluster tarweed) must be considerably reduced to assure seedling establishment of desirable plants. The method used need not completely eliminate the competing plants, but should thin them enough to minimize direct competition for moisture.

Following are descriptions and evaluations of several reliable methods for removing unwanted vegetation.

Anchor chaining.--Anchor chaining is an effective, economical, and widely applicable method for eliminating competition from juniper, pinyon, and other conifers that have no commercial value. Anchor chaining is also useful for opening thicket growth of such shrubs as big sagebrush, Gambel oak, black chokecherry, blackbrush, and black greasewood. Two-hundred-foot chains with links weighing 25 to 90 pounds each, pulled between a pair of 45-horsepower crawler tractors, have been used. Chains with links heavier than 70 pounds eliminate the young flexible trees better than lighter chains, but the lighter chains do less damage to understory shrubs. Two tractors pulling a 200-foot chain can cover a swath 100 to 150 feet wide and can treat 5 to 15 acres per hour, depending on the nature of the terrain and the amount of resistance by trees and brush. Chains up to 500 feet in length, with links lighter than 50 pounds, have successfully eliminated juniper and pinyon trees in stands where the number of trees varied from 150 to 2,000 per acre. Even longer lengths have been used in types that are easier to treat.

Chaining is adapted to varied terrain and is particularly useful on areas too rocky and steeply sloping for use of other mechanical methods. It has been successfully used on slopes as steep as 50 percent. Chaining on the contour is preferable to chaining up or down slopes, but chaining down slopes has been successful. One tractor can work on a ridgetop and the other in a canyon bottom so that the chain is pulled across the slope. Where the slope is too long for this maneuver, a tractor with a bulldozer can cut a trail for the uphill track. Recent trials showed that welding 18-inch lengths of automobile axles or 40-pound rails onto the links of anchor chain considerably increased the chains92 efficiency, especially in reducing and opening brush stands. At the same time, the chaining treatment covers the seed and allows debris to remain on the ground as a protective mulch for both soil and seedlings.

Chaining efficiently thins and opens dense stands of big sagebrush, and it covers seed well. This allows establishment of perennial herbs or permits development of suppressed understory herbs, yet retains sufficient big sagebrush for use as a satisfactory browse component.

Cabling.--Steel cables 1bd inches in diameter and 200 to 600 feet long may be pulled by tractors in the same manner as anchor chains. Cabling is less effective than chaining for eliminating young, flexible juniper and pinyon trees, but is a reasonably satisfactory method and is more rapid. Cabling has the advantage of doing essentially no damage to the existing shrub understory; so it is a better procedure where it is desirable to retain some trees as cover for game and to keep the understory intact. Cabling is valueless for thinning or opening brush thickets.

Bulldozing.--Bulldozing is an efficient but slower method than chaining or cabling for clearing ranges of juniper and pinyon trees. The method excels in eliminating scattered patches of trees, or in thinning tree stands without damaging associated species of shrubs such as cliffrose. Bulldozing is valuable for opening conifer stands. The hula dozer, a modification of the standard blade to allow tilting, makes this operation more effective.

Harrowing.--A self-cleaning pipe harrow is a much smaller but more effective implement than anchor chains for thinning big sagebrush or opening thickets of other brush. It is simply a series of spiked iron pipes, usually 4 inches in diameter, trailing behind a spreader bar. The swiveling pipes readily rotate and thus clear themselves of debris.

The pipe harrow is especially useful on areas too small for using two crawler tractors and an anchor chain. The pipe harrow is well adapted for treating rocky areas, but it is not so well suited as the anchor chain for treating steep slopes. A 40- to 45-horsepower tractor and a 14-foot pipe harrow make a convenient unit. Width of the harrow can be adapted to use with smaller tractors. Green logs 6 to 10 inches in diameter can be substituted for pipes on the pipe harrow but are useful for only 1 year, or until the logs dry. Discarded drill steel or similar bar steel can be used for teeth. The bars are driven through holes of slightly smaller diameter bored in the logs.

Disking.--Treatment with heavy disks effectively eliminates brushy competition where soil is comparatively free of rocks. The brushland plow is particularly effective for reducing competition in rocky land. This plow can be regulated to eliminate as much or as little competing brush as may be desired. Like the pipe harrow, the brushland plow is useful on areas too small to justify transporting heavy crawler tractors and anchor chains to the sites. These heavy disks and plows are particularly effective for eliminating such herbaceous competition as saltgrass, Baltic rush, and other low-value herbs on meadows. Where sod is especially tough, moldboard plowing may be necessary to eliminate competition effectively.

Undercutting.--Several types of undercutters or root cutters (also called planes, blades, and grubbers) are available in varied sizes. Such cutters have been widely used for clearing brushland and eliminating undesirable herbs. Usually, blades can be raised or lowered by a lever or a hydraulic lift and set to cut at fairly uniform depth. Undercutting sometimes gives nearly a complete kill of the competing vegetation. A light undercutter eliminates annual and perennial weeds in the subalpine zone, and has performed well in eliminating cluster tarweed and mountain sagebrush.

Undercutters are most useful on comparatively level, rock-free areas that have deep soils and where there is a heavy clay subsoil. They loosen the surface soil but do not turn up the heavy subsoil as plowing and disking sometimes do.

Burning.--Burning is highly successful for reducing competition of woody vegetation where fire can be appropriately used and satisfactorily controlled. Except in dense growth, presence of a dry under-story fuel is required to carry the fire. Igniting the foliage of trees with flame throwers and weed burners has proved useful for eliminating scattered trees, particularly those with small crowns. Burning is especially effective where cheatgrass brome is a competitive understory in big sagebrush and grows as nearly a pure type. Burning effectively controls reproduction of cheatgrass or big sagebrush if done before the seeds drop. Fire must be confined to the area to be seeded or improved. Accidental burns are excellent areas on which to gain improvement at minimum cost, and game range managers should take advantage of them. Accidental burns should be treated immediately, not only to restore soil stability but to return wild lands to high productivity by seeding desired plants while competition is low.

Chemical treatments.--The granules were scattered beneath the crown. Poisoning is useful for eliminating scattered trees, and it leaves a better cover for game than burning or knocking trees down; but extreme care must be exercised in dispersing poisons. Dybar did not damage the more shallowly rooted perennial grasses such as bottlebrush squirrel-tail, and Indian ricegrass. Such chemicals as 2,4-D or 2,4,5-T can also be used effectively to control big sagebrush and numerous other shrubs and forbs. One or 2 pounds acid equivalent per acre effectively kills most species. Current and up to date information can be obtained from county agricultural agents.

Interseeding.--Interseeding (seeding directly into established vegetation usually with only partial reduction of competition) is a widely successful means of improving vegetal cover for game and livestock. Using drills provided with 6- to 24-inch-wide scalpers that effectively eliminate cheatgrass and cluster tarweed is a satisfactory means of seeding shrubs and perennial herbs in competitive annual types. Interseeding is also effective in establishing shrubs and forbs in perennial grass stands. Wider scalping (12 to 24 inches) is preferred when seeding shrubs, but spacing's of 6 to 12 inches are satisfactory for herbaceous perennials. Planting shrub seeds in three or four spots on 2 1/2-foot-square surfaces from which 1/2 to 1 inch of topsoil has been scraped away has sufficiently reduced competition to allow shrub seedlings to become established. These scalps also provide desirable spots for transplanting seedlings, nursery stock, and wildings. Interseeding is especially useful on steep slopes where it is desirable to establish shrubs in predominantly herbaceous cover.

Some stands of woody plants also can be successfully inter-seeded with desirable forage species. Seeds of adapted plants can be drilled into stands of salt-desert shrubs, particularly black grease-wood and shadscale saltbush, if the annual precipitation is adequate and if salt concentration in the soil is not excessive. However, before interseeding in black greasewood, one must first break down the tops by disking, pipe harrowing, or cabling. On foothill ranges, seeds of adapted herbs can be successfully planted among established plants to induce game animals to remain on ranges instead of roaming to agricultural lands. Mountain rye and small burnet, which are short-lived perennials, and yellow sweetclover, a biennial, are useful for this purpose. Seeding a small amount of annual winter rye may achieve the same goal. Inclusion of these rapidly developing species of rubber rabbitbrush without material reduction of its stands. In fact, production of established crested wheatgrass and smooth brome has increased when growing in association with this shrub.

Stands of adapted herbs have often become established from broadcasting seeds into depleted Gambel oak, black chokecherry, and aspen before leaf fall. Many herbs consistently produce more forage in association with Gambel oak and aspen than without this association; but the association notably reduces production of the woody over-story species. We believe that new plants can be established in these long-standing associations because there is so little competition for surface moisture at the time seedlings are becoming established.

5. Only species and strains of plants adapted to the area should be planted.

Species to be used for seeding must be able to establish and maintain themselves on the proposed sites. We have found it desirable to include some rapidly developing but short-lived species to provide needed forage during the first 2 or 3 years of rehabilitation slightly increases cost, but the expenditure is more than offset by resulting benefits. Planting rates for these short-lived species should be low enough to avoid their creating serious competition with the more desirable and persistent species. Usually 1 to 2 pounds per acre is adequate for seeding temporary perennials and sweetclover, and 25 pounds of the larger seeds of winter rye.

Some rapidly developing shrubs should be planted to pro needed browse in the early period of stand development. Big sagebrush, rubber rabbitbrush, and black sagebrush develop faster I other shrubs and supply substantial forage within 3 years. Unfortunately, their small seedlings are highly susceptible to frost kill, but usually enough seedlings survive to provide required br for game. Fourwing saltbush develops nearly as rapidly as these other brush species, but initial establishment is weaker; also, rabbits rodents prefer its seedlings and destroy many of them. However, in Daggett and Duchesne Counties, we obtained good stands of all these shrubs on 5,000 acres by aerial broadcast seeding in winters when cycle of rabbit population was low. All these species and winterfat have become well established from aerial seeding through a wide elevational variation on chained juniper-pinyon range.

Slower developing but more persistent plants (e.g., antelope bitterbrush, desert bitterbrush, Stansbury cliffrose, true mountain mahogany, arrowleaf balsamroot, Utah sweetvetch, and perennial grasses) should also be included in range seedings. They gradually gain their appropriate place in the stand, add to the total value of the forage, and extend the period of succulent forage.

Besides selecting appropriate species, one must make sure that only adapted sources or strains are used. Ordinarily, seed from sources having greatly different soils or very different climate is much less likely to produce good stands than seed from sites similar to those where it will be planted. Species from cooler climates can adapt themselves to warmer climates more successfully than the reverse. Whenever possible, one should plant seed from sources whose environments approximate conditions where it is to be established.

Adaptability is especially important for shrubs. Upper branches are exposed to air temperatures throughout the year and therefore are affected much more by extremes of climate than herbs. Herbs usually are dormant in winter, and their meristematic bases are insulated by snow. Even though herbs may be less affected by extremes of climate than shrubs or trees, it is important that their seeds come from sources that have environment similar to that of the sites on which they are to be used.

Differences between strains of several species have been observed. For example, seed of antelope bitterbrush collected from acid, granitic soils has produced chlorotic, unhealthy plants in basic soils originating from limestone or shale. Seedlings from fourwing saltbush seed collected in the warmer blackbrush type in southwestern Utah failed to survive when moved only 50 miles into a higher mountain brush type. Good stands of Indian ricegrass from salt-desert shrubland have completely died out in the climates of nearby mountain brush and upper juniper-pinyon. This native grass has particular localization of strains. Plants from seed of Indian ricegrass from cool, moist areas can survive in warmer areas, but not the reverse. Fourwing saltbush, antelope bitterbrush, big sagebrush, rubber rabbitbrush, and winterfat vary greatly in the characteristics noted above.

Results of our studies show that much can be done to improve the amplitude of adaptation, establishment, productivity, and palatability of shrubs through selection and breeding. This work will be emphasized increasingly.

6. Mixtures of plant types rather than single species should be planted.

In any comprehensive project of game range restoration that includes seeding--and most restoration treatments do--it is advantageous to seed mixtures rather than single species. Mixtures provide four major advantages.

First, they are better suited to the extremely varied terrain and climatic conditions that occur typically on foothill and mountain rangelands. In these areas, site characteristics change radically, often within a few feet. Seeding several species in mixture takes advantage of this diversity, and eventually the best adapted species excel.

Second, mixtures provide variety in nourishment that is desirable for both game animals and livestock. Nutritional needs must be considered on a year-round basis. Browse is essential on winter game range to sustain game while the ground is covered by snow. In such areas, shrubs that retain some green leaves (e.g., fourwing saltbush, Stansbury cliffrose, and big sagebrush) are especially desirable and should be included in mixtures where the plants are adapted.

A third, and related, advantage of seeding mixtures is that they considerably prolong the season when succulent forage is available. This is assured when shrubs, forbs, and grasses having different periods of maximum succulence are established.

A fourth major advantage in use of mixtures is that they produce better overall ground cover than single species, especially where shrubs and herbs grow together. In one 21-year-old planting at the lower edge of the juniper-pinyon type, pure crested wheatgrass was providing 50-percent ground cover; a mixed half-and-half crested and intermediate wheatgrass stand was providing ground cover of 72 percent; but with the presence of rubber rabbitbrush, the ground cover increased to 95 percent. On these experimental areas, there was no appreciable difference in production of herbaceous cover (about 900 pounds per acre) for only two species. But when production of the rabbitbrush overstory was included, the yield increased by more than one-third to about 1,300 pounds per acre.

A few unusual circumstances dictate certain cautions in using plant mixtures. Occasionally we encounter an area where the environment is suitable for establishing only a single species. Also, some shrubs grow more slowly than herbs and consequently are vulnerable to natural competition for moisture. Whenever possible, seeds of slow-growing shrubs should be segregated from seeds of herbs in order to reduce competition. This can be accomplished by drilling shrubs and herbaceous species in alternate rows.

Broadcasting seeds of shrubs and certain forbs, which are in short supply, into pits or other more favorable areas left after chaining juniper and pinyon trees permits better establishment than including them in the mixture that is broadcast over the whole range.

When some species (e.g., smooth brome and orchardgrass) are known to be suited only to north slopes of an extensive area, they should be seeded only on these sites. However, the feasibility of separating species for localized areas to which they are known to be best suited depends on the size of the area and type of equipment available. Helicopters and drills are more versatile for seeding small areas than fixed-wing aircraft, but often do not justify incurring the added costs.

7. Sufficient seed of acceptable purity and viability should be planted to insure getting a stand.

Too heavy seeding makes range restoration needlessly expensive. On the other hand, skimpy seeding may jeopardize establishment of good stands, and this is not economy when considerable money has been spent to prepare the site. Usually 8 to 20 pounds per acre of a total mixture is suggested for seeding game ranges; actual volume depends on the individual sites and on whether seeds are drilled or broadcast. When drilling, usually 8 to 10 pounds per acre is adequate; for broadcasting, 12 to 20 pounds is advised. The rate of seeding depends on the species being planted and on the quality of the seeds. The nearly uniform placement of seed by drilling usually permits lighter seeding rates than are required for broadcasting. However, because of rough terrain and obstacles to drilling, such as fallen trees and large boulders, broadcasting must be used extensively. Where costly seeds of certain shrubs are being used, they should be planted only where they have the best opportunity to grow. This may require a separate seeding operation.

Special attention should be given to assuring that seeds are of quality good enough to make plantings worthwhile. Information can usually be obtained by submitting representative samples to a seed laboratory for determinations of viability and purity. However, seeds of several shrubs, forbs, and certain grasses have a dormancy that makes germination difficult. Also, laboratories may not be able to make the analyses when needed. Consequently, to make fairly certain of the value of seeds from recent harvests, their fill and purity should be ascertained.

Good fill of recently collected seed is a fairly adequate criterion of good seed and can be substituted for percent germination in the formula for determining pure live seed (pls) . Fill is readily observed by cutting through a representative sample of seeds. Seed of many species can be cut with a sharp pocketknife, heavy scissors, or good fingernail clippers; the clippers are the best and quickest instrument for determining fill of many species. Seeds with especially hard or stony seedcoats, such as black chokecherry, can be cracked with a hammer or similar tool.

Seeding rates should be increased when a source of seed shows low germination and purity. Viability of seed older than 3 years should always be checked. Seed of herbaceous species and most shrubs should usually have a purity of at least 90 percent and a germination of 85 percent, with a pure live seed index (pls) of not less than 75 percent. Because of the difficulty and expense of cleaning, seed of several shrubs and some forbs must be accepted at much lower standards of purity than others. Important among these are big sagebrush, rubber rabbitbrush, yellowbrush, black sagebrush and winterfat. Purities of 8 to 10 percent of the first four are regarded as satisfactory. Purity of filled utricles of winterfat is usually acceptable when it attains 25 to 50 percent. Collections of utricles of winterfat are accepted as received, but stems and larger inert materials must be extracted.

Utricles of fourwing and other saltbush species should usually be dewinged in a hammermill, then fanned; purities of filled and dewinged utricles after cleaning usually range from 35 to 50 percent.

Dormancy of most seeds is broken by stratification -- subjecting them to temperatures between 32 and 400 F. for a period of 6 to 20 weeks in moist sand, peat moss, or moist newspaper. Subjecting seeds to outside wintertime temperatures for similar periods also overcomes dormancy. Of course, fall and winter plantings take advantage of the cool temperatures and thus break dormancy naturally. Treatment of seeds of antelope bitterbrush for 3 to 15 minutes with a 3-percent solution of thiourea breaks dormancy, so that good sprouting can be obtained from spring planting. Thiourea has also helped in breaking seed dormancy of several closely related shrubs.

For many species, scarification by sulphuric acid treatment or mechanical rubbing helps overcome dormancy for determining germination and for preparing seeds for planting. Approximate intensity of these treatments varies with species and seed source, and depends largely on the thickness and hardness of the seedcoat. Seeds of some species require both scarification and stratification, especially when both a seedcoat and an embryo dormancy are involved.

8. Seed must be covered sufficiently.

Seeds must have a light covering of soil--usually one-fourth to one-half inch. Very, small seeds (e.g., rubber rabbitbrush, big sagebrush, and sand dropseed) need no more than one-fourth inch of cover. Chaining and pipe harrowing are not likely to cover broadcast seed too deeply, and bolting depth rings to the disks prevents too deep covering in drilling. Covering seeds by more than one-half inch of soil generally reduces emergence. Deep planting is seldom desirable. Likewise, leaving seed uncovered after broadcasting is unsatisfactory except when moisture at planting time is unusually abundant.

When slopes are too steep for use of heavy machinery, planting must be done by hand. On such areas, corn planters or specially built Schussler bitterbrush planters can be used advantageously to gage the depth and number of seeds planted of most species. Other similarly designed planters are available and can speed up hand-seeding on slopes.

Some compaction helps to improve stands, especially when seeds are planted in the spring. Packer wheels that follow the planting units on drills are particularly useful. Culti-packing or compaction by similar implements improves stands on soils that dry rapidly. The area where soil-packing equipment can be used to advantage is small, but it is worthwhile to use it when needed.

Large disturbed areas left by crawler tractors are favorable for planting shrub seeds of browse species. The compressed cleat marks left by tractor treads are exceptionally good places for dropping seeds. A deck-mounted seed dribbler drops seeds into these cleat marks. This device is especially useful for placing scarce seeds of shrubs and herbs in spots favorable for establishment. From such places plants can spread to other parts of the range.

9. Planting should be done in a season that gives promise of optimum conditions for establishment.

Planting for range restoration may be either seeding or transplanting. Seeding is the usual means of establishing grasses, forbs, and a few shrubs; some shrubs can be propagated more satisfactorily by transplanting, and best success has come from transplanting in the spring.

Direct seeding in late fall and throughout the winter (mid October through mid-February) gives good stands of most species. Although spring seeding of a few species (notably alfalfa, small burnet, fourwing saltbush, and winterfat) has sometimes been successful, it cannot be generally recommended. Winter seeding (late January and early February) on 5,000 acres of Daggett and Duchesne Counties successfully established alfalfa and fourwing saltbush. Wherever climate permits, winter seeding is preferred because it avoids the inherent dangers of precocious germination resulting from unseasonably warm temperatures for short periods in the fall.

Four major advantages of fall or winter seeding over spring seeding are: