Fire Effects Information System (FEIS) Solidago missouriensis, Missouri goldenrod 2020 Figure 1—Missouri goldenrod colony. Photo by Peter M. Dziuk ©2014. Citation: Zouhar, Kris; Masin, Eva. 2020. Solidago missouriensis, Missouri goldenrod. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/solmis/all.html 1 ABSTRACT Missouri goldenrod occurs in grasslands, shrub-steppe, and open and early successional woodland and forest throughout the Great Plains and the West. It is a perennial, clonal forb that spreads and regenerates from rhizomes that typically occur at depths of about 0.4 to 3 inches (1–8 cm) in the mineral soil, where they are likely insulated from the heat of fast-moving grassland fires. Missouri goldenrod is adapted to survive fire by sprouting from rhizomes and root crowns after top-kill. Smoldering fires in areas with high surface fuel loads may damage rhizomes and root crowns, although this is not described in the literature. It may establish from wind-dispersed seed or from seed in the soil seed bank after fire; however, seedling establishment seems rare. Most of the available literature that provides data and observations on Missouri goldenrod response to fire are studies conducted in tallgrass prairie communities, with additional studies from fescue grasslands, oak and pine woodland and savanna, ponderosa pine communities, Oregon white oak ecosystems, and southern Arizona mountain shrubland. Much of the information on Missouri goldenrod response to fire is anecdotal. Missouri goldenrod persists in plant communities with frequent—even annual—fires in most seasons. Many of the historical fire regimes in ecosystems where it is most common were characterized by frequent fires that occurred mostly during the growing season, but also in the dormant season. Differences in frequency, season, and severity of fire may affect postfire abundance of Missouri goldenrod, and these effects are likely to vary among plant communities, depending on the composition of associated species and their response to fire, as well as the frequency and intensity of grazing by wildlife and livestock. Some prairies and plains grasslands have a history of management with frequent prescribed fire, typically in spring, although precise timing and frequency vary, as does postfire plant community composition. Common objectives of prescribed burning in grasslands include increasing forage for livestock, reducing abundance of nonnative invasive plants, preventing establishment and spread of woody plants, reducing cover of woody plants, and increasing or restoring native plant diversity on the small, fragmented parcels that remain of these communities. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................................... 2 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................. 6 FEIS ABBREVIATION .................................................................................................................................. 6 COMMON NAME....................................................................................................................................... 6 TAXONOMY ............................................................................................................................................... 6 SYNONYMS ................................................................................................................................................ 6 LIFE FORM ................................................................................................................................................. 6 DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE ................................................................................................................ 7 GENERAL DISTRIBUTION ........................................................................................................................... 7 SITE CHARACTERISTICS.............................................................................................................................. 7 PLANT COMMUNITIES............................................................................................................................... 9 Grassland and Savanna ....................................................................................................................... 10 Shrub-steppe, Woodland, and Forest ................................................................................................. 11 Riparian ............................................................................................................................................... 11 BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS ...................................................................................... 12 BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION ....................................................................................................................... 12 Aboveground description ................................................................................................................... 12 Belowground description .................................................................................................................... 13 Clone structure and life span .............................................................................................................. 14 SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT ...................................................................................................................... 14 REGENERATION PROCESSES ................................................................................................................... 15 Vegetative Regeneration .................................................................................................................... 15 Pollination and Breeding System ........................................................................................................ 16 Seed Production and Dispersal ........................................................................................................... 16 Seed Banking ....................................................................................................................................... 17 Germination and Seedling Establishment ........................................................................................... 18 Plant Growth ....................................................................................................................................... 19 SUCCESSIONAL STATUS ........................................................................................................................... 19 Grassland and Savanna ....................................................................................................................... 20 Woodland and Forest.......................................................................................................................... 20 Old Field Succession ............................................................................................................................ 20 FIRE ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT ........................................................................................................... 22 FIRE EFFECTS ........................................................................................................................................... 22 3 Immediate Fire Effects on Plant .......................................................................................................... 22 Postfire Regeneration Strategy ........................................................................................................... 22 Fire Adaptations .................................................................................................................................. 22 Plant Response to Fire ........................................................................................................................ 22 HISTORICAL FIRE REGIMES AND FUEL CHARACTERISTICS ...................................................................... 26 Historical Fire Regimes in the Great Plains ......................................................................................... 26 FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS .................................................................................................. 27 OTHER MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS.................................................................................................. 28 FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS .......................................................................................................................... 28 OTHER STATUS ........................................................................................................................................ 28 IMPORTANCE TO WILDLIFE AND LIVESTOCK .......................................................................................... 28 Palatability and Nutritional Value ....................................................................................................... 28 Cover Value ......................................................................................................................................... 28 VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES ...............................................................................