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23 <br />Saltgrass-Alkali.Sacaton Meadow Association Reference Area <br />A Reference Area for the meadow association was located <br />in section 31 near the windmill. The northeast corner of <br />the 100 by 100-foot area was placed 45 feet west of the main <br />road and 65 feet south of the windmill road. We sampled <br />this Reference area on 11 July 1978, to determine the fre- <br />quencies of occurrence of all species (Table 3). Alkali <br />sacaton, western wheatgrass, and blue grama were co-dominant <br />species. Saltgrass, baltic rush, and needle-and-thread were <br />sub-dominants. Slimleaf goosefoot was the only common <br />annual species. This Reference Area, relative to other <br />alkali-sacaton types of the meadow association, is a little <br />drier and slightly less productive than average, apparently <br />due to a heavy accumulation of lime in the soil at a depth <br />of about 10 inches. The lime layer may restrict root pene- <br />tration from above and water movement upward from the water <br />table below. <br />Section 31 remained ungrazed in 1978. If grazing <br />continues to be alternated annually between sections 31 <br />and 36, this Reference Area can be sampled far plant covez <br />and yield for comparison with rehabilitated areas in even- <br />numbered years. <br /> <br />i . <br />