Plant Materials Center Bismarck, North Dakota Technical Report, 2010 Part 1 of 2: Grasses, Forbs, and Legumes Sand bluestem Andropogon hallii USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. 3 vols. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. Vol. 1: 119. "The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or a part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer." United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Bismarck Plant Materials Center Technical Report Part I (Grasses, Forbs, and Legumes) 2010 Plant Materials Center Advisory Committee Paul J. Sweeney, North Dakota Janet L. Oertly, State Conservationist, South Dakota Don A. Baloun, State Conservationist, Minnesota State Resource Conservationists Todd A. Schwagler, North Dakota Shaun T. Vickers, South Dakota Paul A. Flynn, Minnesota Plant Materials Specialist Dwight A. Tober, Bismarck, North Dakota Plant Materials Center Personnel Wayne L. Duckwitz, Manager Michael J. Knudson, Forester Nancy K. Jensen, Agronomist Earl G. Aune, Biological Technician (Foreman) Michael D. Bellon, Biological Technician Rachel H. Bergsagel, Biological Technician Leslie A. Glass, Secretary Sasha Bergsagel, Seasonal Biological Science Aid Dennis DeVault, Seasonal Biological Science Aid Chandra Heglund, Seasonal Biological Science Aid Kyle Wolf, Seasonal Biological Science Aid i PART I TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 1 Plant Materials Priorities and Needs ....................................................................................................... 2 Objectives and Functions........................................................................................................................ 2 Long Range Plan .................................................................................................................................... 3 Location/Physical Facilities and Evaluation Sites .................................................................................. 6 Soils ........................................................................................................................................................ 6 Climatological Information and Weather Summary ............................................................................... 6 REGIONAL DESCRIPTION ....................................................................................................................... 8 Major Land Resource Areas ................................................................................................................... 9 Potential Natural Vegetation .................................................................................................................. 9 Climate and Species Adaptation ............................................................................................................. 9 MAPS ............................................................................................................................................................ 10 Off-Center Evaluation Sites .................................................................................................................. 11 Plant Materials Center .......................................................................................................................... 12 Land Use Maps ..................................................................................................................................... 13 ACTIVE STUDIES ..................................................................................................................................... 15 Overview of Active Herbaceous Studies ............................................................................................. 16 NDPMC-P-0003-OT Evaluation of culturally significant plants White sage Artemesia ludoviciana ................................................................................................. 17 NDPMC-P-0104-RA Prairie dropseed Sporobolus heterolepis ............................................................ 21 NDPMC-P-0401-RA Prairie sandreed seed increase Calamovilfa longifolia ....................................... 30 NDPMC-P-0402-RA Sand bluestem seed increase Andropogon hallii ................................................ 38 NDPMC-P-0404-RA Evaluation and increase of Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutans ............................. 45 NDPMC-P-0604-RA Evaluation of prairie junegrass Koeleria macrantha .......................................... 55 NDPMC-P-0601-RA Fourwing saltbush Atriplex canescens ............................................................... 83 NDPMC-P-0801-RA Virginia wildrye Elymus virginicus .................................................................... 87 NDPMC-S-0704-CR Theodore Roosevelt National Park ................................................................... 110 NDPMC-S-0705-CR Badlands National Park .................................................................................... 119 NDPMC-S-1004-CR Grand Teton National Park ............................................................................... 127 NDPMC-T-0902-WL Big sage Artemesia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis source development .......... 129 NDPMC-T-1002-CP Evaluation of Cow Pea Sources for Cover Crops ............................................. 137 NDPMC-T-0105-CP Plant Materials for Saline Sites ......................................................................... 149 CONSERVATION FIELD TRIALS........................................................................................................ 141 SDPMC-F-0703-PA Grass/Legume/Forb Demonstration, Wessington Springs, South Dakota ........ 142 NDPMC-F-0701-PA Grass/Legume/Forb Demonstration, Bison, South Dakota .............................. 146 NDPMC-F-0902-WL Grass/Legume/Forb Demonstration, Wing, North Dakota .............................. 150 NDPMC-T-1101-BF Bioenergy Study, Staples, Minnesota ............................................................... 152 SEED PRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 153 Seed Production Records (alphabetical by genus) .............................................................................. 154 STAFFING ................................................................................................................................................. 178 INFORMATION ....................................................................................................................................... 180 Publications ........................................................................................................................................ 181 ii INTRODUCTION 1 INTRODUCTION: TECHNICAL REPORT – 2010 Plant Materials Priorities and Needs The USDA, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Plant Materials Center (PMC), Bismarck, North Dakota, primarily serves the States of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Activities are directed toward meeting the needs and priorities set forth in the three States' long range programs. Objectives and Functions 1. Identify, select, and improve plants to meet the resource conservation needs of the three States. 2. Determine cultural techniques for successful propagation and establishment of these plants. 3. Assemble and comparatively evaluate materials on and off the PMC. 4. Make comparative field plantings for final testing of promising plants and techniques with conservation districts and cooperators. 5. Work with universities, experiment stations, and other State and Federal agencies to cooperatively release improved conservation plants. 6. Produce limited quantities of foundation or foundation quality seed, which is made available to commercial seed growers for establishing seed increase fields. 7. Encourage conservation districts, commercial seed growers, and commercial and State nurseries to produce adapted plant materials and named cultivars. 8. Promote improved conservation plant materials in conservation programs. 2 Long Range Plan 2006-2010 3 4 5 Location The Bismarck Plant Materials Center is located in south central North Dakota, near the center of the North American landmass. It is on the east bank of the Missouri River in a shallow basin 7 miles wide and 11 miles long. Elevation is 1,647 feet, latitude 46º46'N and longitude 100º45'W. Physical Facilities and Evaluation Sites The PMC does not own land but manages a total of approximately 60 acres