Restoration and native plants
Description: Post-fire seeding has long been used to control erosion and suppress problematic invasive annuals like cheatgrass in dryland areas of the Great Basin. It is also a potential tool for restoring pre-fire vegetation by assisting successional processes. Non-native perennial plants have been widely seeded on account of their establishment ability, competitiveness and forage value, but may pose barriers to natural vegetation recovery. Seeding native species is a more sensible choice if restoration is a long-term objective, but there is a question of both cost and whether native species will be as effective as non-natives in outcompeting invasive annuals.
Presenters: Francis Kilkenny and Jeff Ott, RMRS research biologists