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<br />The test plots indicate that Kentucky bluegrass (a recent addition to the <br />mixture) just barely survives for the first few years, then slowly becomes <br />more vigorous to the point that it does as well as some other species in the <br />mixture. <br />The foxtails are vigorous, but the seed is expensive and sometimes not <br />available. Timothy does well on more protected sites. Orchard grass <br />generally requires moist conditions and crested wheatgrass does well on dry <br />sites at lower elevations. The fescues and redtop are shorter grasses and <br />fill the lower vertical dimension of herbaceous cover. <br />Legumes are important to disturbed mountain soils because in addition to <br />nutrient deficiency, the rocky soils have very low nutrient retention <br />capacities. However, among the legumes, white clover was the quickest to <br />establish and maintain itself, but even its success rate is low. Like <br />Kentucky bluegrass, it thrives well after barely surviving during the first <br />few years. <br />The biennial sweetclover does not reseed itself at elevations greater than <br />2,895 m (9,500 ft). To aid in the establishment of viable communities, <br />legumes in the mixture were inoculated with the proper nitrogen-fixing <br />bacterium by the "adhesive method", which ensures the long-lasting <br />effectiveness of the inoculation because the inoculum is glued to the seed. <br />Annual rye grass which requires two growing seasons to reach maturity at <br />high elevations, was planted as a "nurse crop" for the perennials. By the <br />end of the second growing season, it was 4 feet tall, providing protection <br />to the slower-growing perennials, thereby allowing them to better establish <br />themselves. Rye does not produce viable seed even in two growing seasons, <br />but its dead stalks provide some protection into the third season. <br />The test plots are evaluated continuously for annual modifications to the <br />seed mixture. <br />23 <br />