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#           Soil surface treatments and precipitation timing determine seedling development across southwestern US restoration sites              

      March 2, 2023    

Restoration in dryland ecosystems often has poor success due to low and variable water availability, degraded soil conditions, and slow plant community recovery rates. Restoration treatments can mitigate these constraints but, because treatments and subsequent monitoring are typically limited in space and time, our understanding of their applicability across broader environmental gradients remains limited. To address this limitation, we implemented and monitored a standardized set of seeding and soil surface treatments (pits, mulch, and ConMod artificial nurse plants) designed to enhance soil moisture and seedling establishment across RestoreNet, a growing network of 21 diverse dryland restoration sites in the southwestern USA over 3 years. Generally, we found that the timing of precipitation relative to seeding and the use of soil surface treatments were more important in determining seeded species emergence, survival, and growth than site-specific characteristics. Using soil surface treatments in tandem with seeding promoted up to 3× greater seedling emergence densities compared with seeding alone. The positive effect of soil surface treatments became more prominent with increased cumulative precipitation since seeding. The seed mix type with species currently found within or near a site and adapted to the historical climate promoted greater seedling emergence densities compared with the seed mix type with species from warmer, drier conditions expected to perform well under climate change. Seed mix and soil surface treatments had a diminishing effect as plants developed beyond the first season of establishment. However, we found strong effects of the initial period seeded and of the precipitation leading up to each monitoring date on seedling survival over time, especially for annual and perennial forbs. The presence of exotic species exerted a negative influence on seedling survival and growth, but not initial emergence. Our findings suggest that seeded species recruitment across drylands can generally be promoted, regardless of location, by (1) incorporation of soil surface treatments, (2) employment of near-term seasonal climate forecasts, (3) suppression of exotic species, and (4) seeding at multiple times. Taken together, these results point to a multifaceted approach to ameliorate harsh environmental conditions for improved seeding success in drylands, both now and under expected aridification.

## Citation Information

## Related Content

                  -              Data           
                  -              Connect           

November 7, 2022

####                 RestoreNet subplot data for 21 sites within major dryland ecoregions throughout the southwestern United States, 2018 - 2021              

Southwest Biological Science Center

####             Hannah Farrell, Ph.D. (Former Employee)          

##### RAMPS Post-doc – RestoreNet Project Manager

Southwest Biological Science Center

#### Seth Munson, Ph.D.

##### Research Ecologist

Southwest Biological Science Center

smunson@usgs.gov

928-556-7301

#### Mike Duniway, Ph.D.

##### Research Ecologist & Soil Scientist

Southwest Biological Science Center

mduniway@usgs.gov

928-556-7530

#### Sasha C Reed, Ph.D.

##### Research Ecologist

Southwest Biological Science Center

screed@usgs.gov

928-556-7534

####             Katie Laushman (Former Employee)          

##### RAMPS Field Manager - RestoreNet Project

Southwest Biological Science Center

## Related Content

                  - Science   
                  - Data  LabelNovember 7, 2022                RestoreNet subplot data for 21 sites within major dryland ecoregions throughout the southwestern United States, 2018 - 2021              These data were compiled for a networked field-trial restoration experiment (RestoreNet) that spans the southwestern US, including 21 distributed field sites. The objective of our study was to understand the environmental factors and restoration practices (including seed mixes and soil manipulation) that increase plant establishment and survival to ultimate improve restoration outcomes in drylandBySouthwest Biological Science Center 
                  - Connect              Hannah Farrell, Ph.D. (Former Employee)          RAMPS Post-doc – RestoreNet Project ManagerSouthwest Biological Science CenterSeth Munson, Ph.D.Research EcologistSouthwest Biological Science CenterEmailsmunson@usgs.govPhone928-556-7301Mike Duniway, Ph.D.Research Ecologist & Soil ScientistSouthwest Biological Science CenterEmailmduniway@usgs.govPhone928-556-7530Sasha C Reed, Ph.D.Research EcologistSouthwest Biological Science CenterEmailscreed@usgs.govPhone928-556-7534            Katie Laushman (Former Employee)          RAMPS Field Manager - RestoreNet ProjectSouthwest Biological Science Center 

### Contact

####               Southwest Biological Science Center - Flagstaff, AZ, Headquarters          

2255 N. Gemini DriveFlagstaff, AZ86001United States

928-556-7094

928-556-7092

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