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26 <br />• Germination and initial seedling establishment was <br />assured by sprinkling with about 0.25 inch of water daily <br />from 6-23 June. <br />After seedling establishment major irrigation appli- <br />cations were about 1 inch applied on 17-16 July and on <br />11 August. Two inches of water were applied over the <br />period 22-25 August to insure adventitious rooting of the <br />warm-season grasses. A final one inch application was <br />made on 6 September. <br />Without irrigation only a sparse plant cover was esta- <br />blished on the mulched plots (Table 4). With irrigation a <br />good vegetation cover was established. Our present concept <br />is to irrigate for establishment only during the first <br />growing season. The primary reason for the timing and <br />amounts of water applied was to insure germination and <br />adequate adventitous rooting of the native warm-season <br />grasses. The irrigation water used was hauled from Roggen <br />and was assumed to be high quality non-saline water. <br />Table 4. Vegetation cover on 6 Septeeber 1978 as influenced <br />by sprinkler irrigation on plots seeded 24 May 1978. <br />• Treatment Vegetation Cover <br />Not irrigated 3 <br />Irrigated 44 <br />Species Establishment and Adaptability <br />Eighteen grass species and two legumes were seeded in <br />individual plots on a Deep Sand Site that had been sprayed <br />with Paraquat and rototilled twice to kill the native stands. <br />Seeding on 24 May 1978 was with a row seeder. After seeding <br />the plots were mulched with manure at the rate of 15 tons <br />(dry weight) per acre. Water was applied with a sprinkling <br />system to supplement natural precipitation. A total of <br />• 4 inches of precipitation fell during the 24 May through <br />7 September establishment period, this was supplemented by <br />9 inches of irrigation water. A11 species were heavily <br />grazed before a rabbit-proof fence was completed on 7 July. <br />All plots were fertilized with ammonium nitrate at the rate <br />of 150 pounds per acre (50 pounds N per acre) on 10 July. <br />