Versatile Native Grasses and a Turf-Alternative Groundcover for the Arid Southwest United States

Water use limitations offers new opportunities for utilization of low-input native grasses and groundcovers for the landscapes of southwest USA. Two field studies were conducted with eleven plant species for two years in Scottsdale and Sun City West, AZ to evaluate rate of emergence, ground surface coverage, plant height, and overall plant quality. In the laboratory, Eragrostis tef at 86% and Eragrostis intermedia at 85% were showing higher percentage of germination compared to other species. Within eight weeks, ten species exhibited an average of 81% emergence at Scottsdale while nine species showed only 58% emergence at Sun City West. Sporobolus cryptandrus grew to greater than 76 cm (30 in) in height while kurapia (Lippia nodiflora) grew to about 5 cm (2 in). The performances of the groundcover kurapia and the native grasses tested demonstrated excellent potential in the low desert southwest U.S., with low rates of water use, applying fertilizer only at planting, and less frequent mowing requirements. Lippia nodiflora, Sporobolus airoides, Bouteloua gracilis, Eragrostis intermedia, and Muhlenbergia asperifolia remained green throughout the year when mowed twice a year. Lippia nodiflora, Hilaria rigida, and Bouteloua gracilis exhibited the highest ground surface coverage and uniformity in growth. Index words: groundcover, landscape, low input, native grasses, plant species. Species used in this study: Blue grama, Bouteloua gracilis (Kunth) Lag. ex Griffiths; bufflograss, Buchloe dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm.; plains lovegrass, Eragrostis intermedia A.S. Hitchc.; teff, Eragrostis tef (Zucc) Trotter; big galleta, Hilaria rigida (Thurb); Kurapia, Lippia nodiflora (L.) Greene; alkali muhly, Muhlenbergia asperifolia (Nees & Meyen ex Trin.) Parodi; alkali sacaton, Sporobolus airoides (Torr.) Torr.; spike dropseed, Sporobolus contractus A.S. Hitchc.; sand dropseed, Sporobolus cryptandrus (Torr.) A. Gray; and desert zinnia, Zinnia acerosa (DC.) A. Gray.

Sand dropseed (Sporobolus cryptandrus) – A new pest in Eurasian sand areas?

For the effective control of an invasive species, gathering as much information as possible on its ecology, establishment and persistence in the subjected communities is of utmost importance. We aimed to review the current distribution and characteristics of Sporobolus cryptandrus (sand dropseed), an invasive C4 grass species of North American origin recently discovered in Hungary. We aimed to provide information on (i) its current distribution paying special attention to its invasion in Eurasia; (ii) the characteristics of the invaded habitats in Central Europe; (iii) seed bank formation and germination characteristics, crucial factors in early establishment; and (iv) the effects of its increasing cover on vegetation composition. Finally, we aimed to (v) point out further research directions that could enable us to understand the invasion success of this potential invasive species. Field surveys uncovered large stands of the species in Central and Eastern Hungary with most of the locations in the former, especially the Kiskunsag region. The species invaded disturbed stands of dry and open sand grasslands, closed dune slack grasslands and it also penetrates into natural open sand grasslands from neighbouring disturbed habitats. Increasing cover of Sporobolus cryptandrus caused a decline in species richness and abundance of subordinate species both in the vegetation and seed banks, but a low density of Sporobolus cryptandrus can even have a weak positive effect on these characteristics. Viable seeds of Sporobolus were detected from all soil layers (2.5 cm layers measured from the surface to 10 cm in depth), which indicates that the species is able to form a persistent seed bank (1,114 to 3,077 seeds/m2 with increasing scores towards higher abundance of the species in vegetation). Germination of Sporobolus cryptandrus was negatively affected by both litter cover and 1 cm deep soil burial. To sum up, Sporobolus cryptandrus can be considered as a transformer invasive species, whose spread forms a high risk for dry sand and steppe grasslands in Eurasia. We can conclude that for the effective suppression of the species it is necessary: (i) to clarify the origin of the detected populations; (ii) to assess its competitive ability including its potential allelopathic effects; (iii) to assess its seed bank formation potential in habitats with different abiotic conditions; and (iv) to assess the possibility of its suppression by natural enemies and management techniques such as mowing or livestock grazing.

Az Oenothera pycnocarpa Atk. & Bartl. Magyarországon, és kiegészítések néhány idegenhonos faj hazai elterjedéséhez

A tanulmány 19 neofita faj 153 új elterjedési adatát tartalmazza Magyarország területéről az elmúlt néhány évből. Először sikerült kimutatni Magyarországról az Oenothera pycnocarpa-t, mely Tápiószecső határában, ugaron telepedett meg. Megadjuk a talált növények részletes morfológiai leírását, fotókkal illusztrálva. Európai példák alapján lassú terjedése várható, mely nem fenyegeti a természetes élőhelyeket átalakítással. Bemutatunk 3 átalakító fajt, melyek közül a Sporobolus cryptandrus homoki gyepeket veszélyeztet a Kiskunságban, a Prunus serotina a Bakonyalján tölgyes felújítások során jelent fokozódó problémát, míg a Panicum dichotomiflorum (elsősorban az Északi-középhegységben) gyorsuló ütemben alakítja át a mezőgazdasági területek gyomvegetációját és a mezsgyék, útszélek növényzetét. Részben átalakító fajok közül kettőt ismertetünk. Az Alföld kivételével, az ország nagy részén már igen elterjedt Impatiens parviflora alföldperemi, szigetszerű erdőfoltban való megjelenéséről számolunk be, valamint számos helyről mutatjuk ki az alulkutatott Oenothera depressa-t, mely az egyik leggyakoribb ligetszépe taxon a Kiskunságban, és főleg homoki parlagokon, meddőhányókon és törmelékdombokon, esetenként homoki gyepekben és kultúrerdők nyílt homokfelszínein él. Az Oenothera pycnocarpa-n kívül 10 további terjedő, de (még) nem átalakító fajról is közlünk adatokat. A Commelina communis jellegzetes városi előfordulásai mellett vasúti sínek között és erdei szemétkupacon is megjelent. A Cymbalaria muralis nagyobb városokon kívül már kisebb falvak kőfalain is megtalálható. Az Euphorbia maculata, E. prostrata és az Eleusine indica jellemző városi populációin kívül ma már falvakban és műutak, földutak településektől távoli pontjain is élnek. Az Iva xanthiifolia trágyadombon, szántóparlagon és vadszórókon került elő, lassan terjedő faj. A Lepidium densiflorum megjelenése földutakon és vasútállomásokon jellegzetes. A dísznövényként ültetett Oenothera glazioviana szubspontán állományai elsősorban faluszéli árokpartokon, szemétdombokon, ritkábban homoki parlagokon bukkannak fel és élnek túl. A Phytolacca esculenta gyorsuló invázióját zöldhulladék-dombi, árokparti és városi parki adatokkal dokumentáljuk. A Trigonella caerulea egykori takarmánynövény, mely homoki szántóparlagokon önfenntartó állományokat hozott létre Fülöpszállás határában. Végül bemutatunk 3 alkalmi kivadulót. Az Euphorbia lathyris és az Impatiens balfourii terjesztésében nagy szerepet játszanak az illegális zöldhulladék-dombok, a lerakott nyesedék. A világszerte is csak ritkán kivaduló Goniolimon tataricum szubspontán előfordulását a Balaton-felvidéken útrézsűkön, Kunszentmiklóson temetőben figyeltük meg.

Community Sporobolus Cryptandrus (Torr.) A. Gray in the Northern Part of Volga-Akhtuba Floodplain

On the territory of the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain, plant communities including Sporobolus cryptandrus are found. This is an adventitious species from North America that came to Europe in the early 20th century. In Russia, Sporobolus cryptandrus was first discovered in 1998 on the territory of the Volgograd region. Currently, Sporobolus cryptandrus is actively distributed throughout the Volgograd regions. Probably, Sporobolus cryptandrus was introduced together with imported grain and mixed fodders. This species was originally built into the plant communities of sandy steppes. In this paper, we describe the S. cryptandrus communities that we found in the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain. The descriptions were carried out at two sites in the northern part of the floodplain. Geobotanical sites are located on the nearbed sand banks along the river bed. Akhtuba. Completed 19 geobotanical descriptions. All descriptions were accumulated in an electronic database based on the TURBOVEG program. Communities of Sporobolus cryptandrus are characterized by poor floristic composition, low overall projective cover. Habitats of communities are subject to short-term flooding in the spring-summer period, as well as cattle grazing. In communities dominated: Sporobolus cryptandrus, Secale sylvestre, Artemisia marschalliana. We assume that these phytocenoses can be classified as cl. Artemisietea tchernievianae Golub 1994. Sporobolus cryptandrus has shown itself as an agriophyte and a transformer species that can completely replace the dominant cereal species in sand steppe communities or be introduced to pioneer communities at an early stage of overgrowth. Settling of this adventive species can lead to the loss of the natural appearance of the vegetation of sandy substrates. Propagation processes need further observation and analysis.

Afrina sporoboliae sp. n. (Nematoda: Anguinidae) Associated with Sporobolus cryptandrus from Idaho, United States: Phylogenetic Relationships and Population Structure

The dropseed gall-forming nematode, Afrina sporoboliae sp. n., is described from seed galls of Sporobolus cryptandrus (Poaceae: Chloridoideae: Sporobolinae) collected in Idaho, USA. This is the third report of an Afrina species in North America and the first report of this genus in a natural plant population on this continent. Morphological, morphometric, and molecular analyses placed this nematode in genus Afrina and demonstrated that it differs from Afrina hyparrheniae and Afrina spermophaga by having longer body and stylet lengths for females and males, and from Afrina wevelli by the absence of tip irregularities on the tails of female and presence of lips noticeably protruding beyond the body contour. The new species has several characters that overlap with Afrina tumefaciens, but differs from this species by inducing seed galls, whereas Afrina tumefaciens induces ovoid galls on stems, leaves, and in flower heads. Evolutionary relationships of Afrina sporoboliae sp. n. with other representatives of the family Anguinidae are presented based on analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS)1-5.8S-ITS2 rRNA and the D2-D3 regions of the rRNA genes. Analysis of 270 sequences of the cox1 gene from 25 populations of Afrina sporoboliae sp. n. revealed seven haplotypes with sequence divergence up to 5%. This study did not demonstrate a significant positive relationship between genetic difference and geographic distance. Seed gall nematodes are important quarantine pests in many countries. The association of this and other seed gall nematodes with Rathayibacter species and their ability to serve as vectors, especially of R. toxicus, is of concern for U.S. agriculture.

Seed Preferences in Sparrow Species of the Monte Desert, Argentina: Implications for Seed-Granivore Interactions

We assessed seed preference in four species of sparrows that are common to the central Monte desert of Argentina. Our hypotheses are that (1) sparrows always prefer grass over forb seeds and (2) different species of sparrows show the same preferences when consuming seeds. We presented seeds from eight species of plants (four grasses and four forbs) in both choice and nonchoice experiments. In general, sparrow species preferred grass over forb seeds, though one of them (Rufous-collared Sparrow [Zonotrichia capensis]) included one forb species (Parthenium hysterophorus) among its preferred seed items. Among grass seeds, sparrows avoided or showed less preference for the tiny seeds of Sporobolus cryptandrus, which suggests that seed weight may affect seed choice among grasses. Avoidance of most forb species, by contrast, could not be associated with seed size, probably because of the presence of unpalatable or toxic compounds in forb seeds. Experimental evidence suggests that the main feeding pressure of sparrows is clearly directed to grass seeds, which coincides with reported information on bird diet. Results support assertions that sparrows can cause a negative effect on the composition and abundance of grass seeds in the soil seed-bank, a necessary condition for birds in playing a significant role on grass population dynamics in the central Monte desert of Argentina. Preferencias por Semillas de los Emberízidos del Desierto del Monte, Argentina: Implicancias para la Interacción Semillas-granívoros

Control of Big Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) with Pelleted Tebuthiuron

Ground applications of pelleted tebuthiuron {N-[5-(1,1-dimethylethyl)-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl]-N,N′-dimethylurea} at 0.6 kg ai/ha (20% formulation) reduced big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentataNutt. # ARTTR) density by an average of 84 and 92% after 28 months, whereas 1.1 kg/ha killed 94 and 97% of the plants when applied in January or May, respectively. Total standing crop of grasses was unaffected 4 months after tebuthiuron applications. Significant increases in grass production occurred during the second and third growing seasons following tebuthiuron treatment. Desirable forage grasses such as galleta [Hilaria jamesii(Torr.) Benth.], blue grama [Bouteloua gracilis(Wild. ex H.B.K.) Lag. ex Griffiths], and crested wheatgrass [Agropyron cristatum(L.) Gaertn.] generally increased in tebuthiuron-treated plots, whereas sand dropseed [Sporobolus cryptandrus(Torr.) Gray # SPECR] and ring muhly [Mulenbergia torreyii(Kunth.) Hitchc. & Chase] production remained unchanged in comparison with untreated areas.