Sandy 37-43 PZ

Description

This is the reference state for the Sandy ecological site. It represents the historic range of variability in the plant communities with the periodic disturbance of fire and grazing. It is a mosaic of herbaceous plants, oak species and woody understory vines and shrubs.

The dominant trees are post oak and black jack oak with a mixture of tall and midgrasses, forbs and shrubs in the understory and canopy interspaces. Dominant herbaceous plants include little bluestem, big bluestem, Indiangrass, switchgrass, beaked panicum, purpletop tridens, sand lovegrass, and wildryes. Other grasses include dropseeds, sedges, and Scribner’s panicum. Forbs include Sunflowers, Englemann daisy, tickclover, lespedezas, wildbeans, yellow Neptune, echinacea, and guara. Other woody plants include elms, greenbriar, plums, grapes, hawthorn, American beautyberry, coralberry, and Carolina snailseed. These woody species will increase in ground cover in the absence of fire.

These sites are similar in species composition to Sand Loam sites, however, they tend to be less productive and more sensitive to drought conditions.

Woody canopy in the reference state is complex with some areas having dense oak canopy mixed with multiple prairie openings. For planning and management purposes, the average woody canopy in reference condition can be described as less than 40%.

The Sandy Loam site is estimated to produce between 2,000 – 4,500 pounds of vegetative production per year in reference condition.

Tallgrasses = Midgrasses Trees Forbs Shrubs

Submodel

Description

This state represents the shift to a woody dominated plant community with woody canopy exceeding 60 percent. Trees and shrubs dominate the ecological processes on the site and the herbaceous grasses and forbs are limited to shade tolerant species. There is an abundance of leaf litter build up which further limits herbaceous plant germination and production.

Description

This state represents a change in land use from rangeland to pastureland. The soil structure and biology has been altered and the site is dominated by introduced species. Management of introduced forages requires more inputs than native grasses. Careful consideration should be taken prior to planting to ensure the result meets the desired use. Ratings for forage yields can be found under the non-irrigated crop yield section in web soil survey. As with any fertility management program, current soil tests should be taken before planting and subsequent fertilization of introduced pastures.

The most common forage species on these sites include bermudagrass and Old World bluestems(eg. KR bluestem).

Without brush management, woody species such as mesquite, juniper, elm, or honey locust may invade these sites.

There may be opportunities to plant native grass species on these sites to restore the reference plant communities. The success of this type of restoration is highly variable and depends on the remaining soil resources and past management. This type of endeavor often requires site specific planning and evaluation. However, the species described in the reference state are a good resource for initial planning of any restoration project.

Description

Cultivation of these sites may lead to severe erosion. Depending on slope and farming practices, a significant amount of the A horizon may be eroded from the soil profile. This soil loss results in the transition to the Severely Eroded State.