Laserfiche WebLink
36 <br />while the nitrogen and mulch additions in Treatment 6 give this method a slight <br />advantage from a vegetation growth standpoint. On steeper areas the use of <br />mulch would be more crucial. <br />Treatments 2-6 gave good levels of vegetation; however, the question as <br />to whether the soil is equally good to maintain that population of species <br />remains unanswered. At present, all treatments are 5 to 10 times lower in <br />organic matter and total nitrogen; sharply lower in potassium, zinc, and <br />copper; and only moderately lower in nitrate than the Reference Areas. The <br />manured treatment showed closest results (Appendix, page 69). This <br />does not constitute a deficiency, and at present none of these nutrients are <br />particularly lacking to the plant (Table 8). However, it stands to reason <br />that the less you have, the greater your potential for problems to occur. <br />The point to be made is that future soil analysis and possible fertilizer <br />amendments should be recognized. <br />Treatment 7 is a special case in itself that dictates further <br />investigation. In 1978 and 1979 manure was removed from the analyses because <br />of extreme numbers of invading weeds it introduced. In 1980 it was again <br />sampled, and while very different species composition make it somewhat diffi- <br />cult to analyze against Treatments 1-6, some important characteristics should <br />be noted. To begin, it produces a cover and biomass slightly lower, yet <br />similar to that found in other fertilizer treatments (Figures 6 and 7). What <br />is of special interest, however, is the very high density of plants this <br />treatment supports. While the prolific reproduction from the annuals cheat- <br />grass and kochia are the main cause of this high value, the fact that so many <br />germinate each year given the variability of precipitation at this site leads <br />one to appreciate the superior seedbed characteristics of manure over all <br />other treatments tested. The fact that no other treatments show very high <br />