Loamy Bottomland 26-33" PZ
Scenario model
Current ecosystem state
Select a state
Management practices/drivers
Select a transition or restoration pathway
- Transition T1A More details
- Restoration pathway R2A More details
- Transition T2A More details
- Transition T2B More details
- Restoration pathway R3A More details
- Transition T3A More details
-
No transition or restoration pathway between the selected states has been described
Target ecosystem state
Select a state
State 1
Savanna State - Reference
Description
The reference plant community for the Loamy Bottomland ecological site is a Tallgrass/Hardwood Savanna Community. In pristine conditions, the site is dominated by warm-season perennial tallgrasses. Warm-season midgrasses are also abundant. The Loamy Bottomland site historically has a significant amount of trees, shrubs, and vines. The shaded and moist environment enables cool-season and shade tolerant perennial grasses and grass-like plants to occupy the site. Bushy bluestem, cattail, and mare’s tail are frequently present on the edges of the wetter areas on this site. Annual production ranges from 3800 to 9000 pounds per acre.
In the Mid/Tallgrass Hardwood Savannah, tallgrasses begin to decline. Although the general plant type composition is similar to the original plant community, obvious shifts in plant species and structure of the plant community begin to occur. As they begin to disappear, tallgrasses are replaced by a significant increase in warm-season perennial midgrasses, forbs, and annual grasses. Woody species canopy gradually begins to increase. This is especially true of the midstory shrubs and vines. Invasion of unwanted brush species such as mesquite and juniper from adjacent sites occurs. Annual production ranges from 3000 to 7500 pounds per acre.
Submodel
Description
In the Savanna/Woodland Community, the vegetation community no longer has a sufficient seed source of the tallgrasses and woody encroachment has reached a point that natural recovery to the reference plant community is no longer possible. Only remnant tallgrasses remain in isolated and protected areas. Midgrasses continues to dominate the site. Trees, shrubs, and vines increase further in density and woody canopy. Mesquite, juniper, pricklypear, tasajillo, and a number of other shrubs invade the area from adjacent sites. In this phase, woody canopy is greater than 25% but less than 50%, allowing herbaceous plants to continue to produce fairly well and provide good ground cover. Cool-season and shade tolerant grasses and forbs increase significantly. Annual production ranges from 2700 to 5600 pounds per acre.
Submodel
State 3
Woodland State
Description
In the Shade-Tolerant Grass Woodland Community, the plant community is dominated by an overstory of hardwood trees including many species of elms, oaks, hackberry, and western soapberry. Vines such as greenbriar, grape, Virginia creeper, and ivy treebine increase significantly. Midstory shrubs begin to form dense thickets. Woody canopy is from 50% to 80% and warm-season perennial grasses begin to disappear from the site. Shade-tolerant and cool-season grasses and forbs become a major part of the plant community. Annual production ranges from 2400 to 4500 pounds per acre.
When the overstory and midstory canopy become greater than 80%, warm-season grasses and forbs exist only as remnants, leading to a new plant community, the Dense Woodland Community. This community generally consists of widely scattered individual plants in low vigor. Shade-tolerant forbs, grasses, and grass-like plants dominate the sparse understory vegetation. Annual production ranges from 1400 to 2800 pounds per acre.
Submodel
Description
Because of their inherent fertility and the fact that these sites receive extra water, many bottomlands have been converted to other uses which give rise to the Converted Land Community. In the past, thousands of acres of Loamy Bottomland were cleared, plowed and planted to annual crops such as cotton and corn. Row crops are still being planted on many of these cultivated acres. Some of the acres converted to cropland are planted to wheat and oats for grazing today.
Recently many acres that were once cultivated has been seeded or planted to introduced grasses. Additionally, thousands of bottomland acres have been cleared and converted from native rangeland to intensively managed pasturelands and haylands planted to monocultures of introduced species such as bermudagrass, Kleingrass, and Old World bluestems. Some degraded native bottomlands have been reseeded to monocultures or mixtures of commercially available native grasses. It is highly unlikely that abandoned cropland, pastureland, or seeded areas can ever return to the reference plant community within a reasonable time. Annual production ranges from 4000 to 9000 pounds per acre.
Abandoned croplands and reseeded areas tend to revert back to a more natural state through the process of secondary succession. This community is known as the Abandoned Land Community. This is a very slow process that takes decades or centuries dependent on the status of the area at the time it is abandoned. If managed properly, some of these abandoned areas may eventually begin to approximate the diversity and complexity of the native Loamy Bottomland ecosystem. However, but is highly unlikely that abandoned lands can ever return to climax vegetation within a reasonable period of time. Annual production ranges from 1000 to 4000 pounds per acre.
Submodel
Mechanism
With abusive grazing, flooding, no fires, and no brush management program, the Savanna State will transition into the Savanna/Woodland Transition State.
Mechanism
With the use of various conservation practices such as Prescribed Grazing, Prescribed Burning, and Brush Management, the Savanna/Woodland Transition State can be restored to the Savanna State.
Relevant conservation practices
| Practice | External resources |
|---|---|
|
Brush Management |
|
|
Prescribed Burning |
|
|
Prescribed Grazing |
|
|
Range Planting |
Mechanism
With continued abusive grazing pressure, no fires and no brush management, the Savanna/Woodland Transition State will transition into the Woodland State.
Mechanism
With the implementation of Brush Management, Crop Cultivation, Pasture Planting, Range Planting, Tree Planting, Nutrient Management, and Pest Management conservation practices, the Savanna/Woodland Transition State will transition into the Converted Land State.
Mechanism
With Prescribed Grazing, Prescribed Burning, and Brush Management practices, the Woodland State can be restored to the Savanna/Woodland Transition State.
Relevant conservation practices
| Practice | External resources |
|---|---|
|
Brush Management |
|
|
Prescribed Burning |
|
|
Prescribed Grazing |
|
|
Range Planting |
Mechanism
The transition from the Woodland State to the Converted Land State occurs when land clearing, crop cultivation, pasture planting, range planting, tree planting, nutrient management and pest management conservation practices are implemented.
Model keys
Briefcase
Add ecological sites and Major Land Resource Areas to your briefcase by clicking on the briefcase (
) icon wherever it occurs. Drag and drop items to reorder. Cookies are used to store briefcase items between browsing sessions. Because of this, the number of items that can be added to your briefcase is limited, and briefcase items added on one device and browser cannot be accessed from another device or browser. Users who do not wish to place cookies on their devices should not use the briefcase tool. Briefcase cookies serve no other purpose than described here and are deleted whenever browsing history is cleared.
Ecological sites
Major Land Resource Areas
The Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool is an information system framework developed by the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and New Mexico State University.