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small amount of Yucca and Frickly Fear Cactus, but primarily a few grasses including StiQa tomato and Blue Grama (Bouteloua gracilis). A • few other species can also be found but they are uncommon. It appears that this field is an excellent indicator of what can he expected from the revegetation of these sails. Weeds may well be a problem in that they will have large numbers, but the weed areas will undoubtedly be invaded by the usual natives as well as support those species that will be planted. In navy cases, such abundant weed growth would not be desirable and would indicate a need to implement various control measures. However, in the case of these sandy soils which tend to erode rather readily when exposed to wind, the weed growth will be highly desirable even though it might retard the growth of the desirable species to some degree. If planted properly, even the stronger weeds will eventually give way to the desirable species. 1n effect, the abundance of weeds is a natural means to protect the soil from wind erosion. It might be advisable to implement various eulch techniques which would control wind erosion, but such measures are very expensive and in the case of windy sites any organic mulch would need to be tacked down with a net to be very effective. Because such nets are especially useful on small areas but tend to become far too expensive to use on large areas, then the weed protection method becomes both effective and economical. On the other hand, because weeds can excessively retard the growth of desirable species, if the weeds are too abundant, it is recommended that the revegetation project be monitored closely. If the weeds do became a significant hinderance to the desirable species then a mild weed control program should be implemented to reduce the weed population • but not eliminate it. F'AGE 5 OF 6 - EXHIBIT ~