Digital Commons Network^™

Control Of Three Invasive Annual Grasses In Utah Using Herbicides Including Indaziflam, Hailey L. Buell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Invasive grasses pose a threat to rangeland ecosystems in Utah. Three grasses in particular: downy brome, medusahead, and ventenata can push out native plants and prevent other vegetation from germinating. These grasses can also degrade grazing lands for cattle and act as kindling for wildfires. The use of herbicides is the most common way to rid a site of invasive plants. Herbicides that prevent germination for many years work well to keep annual grasses at bay while not harming the many long-living native plants that are already growing.

A study was designed on a site infested with downy brome to …

Efficacy Of Sediment Contaminant Remediation Of The Benthos In A Segment Of The Southern Branch Of The Elizabeth River, Colton Martin

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The bottom sediment of the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River, a tributary of Chesapeake Bay, was historically contaminated with hydrocarbons from industrial sources especially wood treatment facilities. The Elizabeth River Project selected a section of the bottom off Money Point in the Southern Branch for a sediment contaminant remediation effort. Prior to initiation of remediation efforts, a survey occurred in summer 2010 to characterize the ecological condition of the benthic communities off Money Point compared to benthic communities of a benthic region across the channel and northwest of Money Point near Blows Creek. That study characterized the benthos of …

Connecting Communities To Coastal Resilience: Enhancing Sustainability Through Public Participation In Salt Marsh Management And Restoration In Suffolk County, Ny, Jennifer L. Mcgivern

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Coastal resiliency is becoming significantly more critical to the livelihood of coastal communities as the frequency and intensity of storm events increases and is exacerbated by rising sea levels due to climate change. In October 2012 Superstorm Sandy impacted the New York-New Jersey area costing over $70 billion in storm damages and 147 lives lost, as storm surges surpassed record highs for the region. Protruding more than 100 miles into the Atlantic Ocean with over 1,000 miles of shoreline, Long Island is particularly vulnerable to the increasingly ferocious and numerous storms as well as the rising sea levels that climate …

Restoring Biogeochemical Properties In Drylands And Exploring Functional Roles Of Biological Soil Crust, Kristina Young

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Degradation in dryland regions is a persistent and accelerating problem. Though the mechanisms that initiate and maintain dryland degradation have been well studied, restoring productivity and function to degraded dryland ecosystems remains difficult. Here, I present three chapters that address gaps in our understanding of dryland functions and our ability to restore them. I begin by examining how dryland restoration research has addressed altered biogeochemical cycling in drylands and how to expand current understandings of dryland biogeochemistry into restoration. I then present two chapters that explore mechanistic and quantitative understandings of the contribution of biocrusts to soil nutrient cycling both …

Transplanting Mature Mountain Big Sagebrush Plants Yields High First-Year Survival In Dryland Pasture Restoration, Elizabeth C. Bailey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Approximately 10-20% of global dryland ecosystems are severely degraded, an amount that is expected to increase, threatening the environment and ecosystem services that 38% of the global population relies upon. Human activities such as agriculture, livestock grazing, mining and urban development have contributed to the degradation and loss of rangelands worldwide. A need for reestablishing sagebrush in disturbed landscapes across the Western United States, including dryland pastures, has been identified but traditional, primarily seeding-based, restoration methods have largely been unsuccessful. To improve restoration outcomes, there has been increased interest in the planting of containerized greenhouse “tubelings”, but transplanting of mature …

Effects Of Traditional And Microbially-Focused Restoration Techniques On Soil Communities In Tallgrass Prairies, Zachary J. Whitacre

Masters Theses

Tallgrass prairies have virtually disappeared in many parts of their former range due to the conversion of this ecosystem to farmland. In more recent years there have been efforts to restore these prairies on reclaimed agricultural land. However, these restored prairies do not resemble their remnant counterparts in many ways, such as in soil microbial community composition and metrics related to carbon storage. In Chapter 1, I show that bacterial communities in a restored prairie and an adjacent remnant prairie in southwest Michigan differ in their immediate and longer-term responses to prescribed fire, a commonly used prairie restoration and maintenance …

Incorporating Life Into Living Shorelines: Can Gulf Ribbed Mussels Reduce Shoreline Erosion And Enhance Restoration Practices?, Jordan Logarbo

LSU Master's Theses

The gulf ribbed mussel (Geukensia granosissima) exists throughout the Gulf of Mexico and influences biotic and abiotic environmental attributes as an ecosystem engineer. Ribbed mussels are an important component of marsh ecosystems providing services including filtering particulate matter, depositing and transforming nutrients in the system, increasing soil strength via byssal threads and providing structure via their shells.

The spatial distribution of mussels along the marsh edge of Sister Lake, LA was investigated via a broad survey of 150 sites, in relation to elevation, exposure and vegetation percent cover. This survey was followed by a second survey at a …

Using Bacterial And Fungal Inoculation Strategies To Aid In The Wetland Restoration Of Native Plants In Southern California, Amy Alverson, Karina K. Johnston

Honors Thesis

Planting of native species is a key part of ecological restoration, although the encroachment of invasive species and obstacles to seed germination can limit the success of revegetation efforts. The use of indigenous Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) and Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) have been shown to increase the long-term height and diameter of native plants and increase soil fertility in certain studies. Inoculation of seeds with native PGPR have also been shown to increase seed germination. In this study, the effect of different inoculation treatments on different plants native to southern California was studied at two sites in the …

Comparing The Effect Of Four Propagation Techniques On Hybrid Chestnut Seedling Quality, Taylor Evans

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Extensive resources have been used to breed hybrid chestnuts for reintroduction into the historical range of the American chestnut (Castanea dentata). Improving seedling quality is an efficacious method to improving restoration outcomes and nursery propagation methods can be selected to improve seedling quality, increasing the likelihood of survival. Four production methods (bed grown, air prune beds, container grown, and the Root Production Method®) and three media types (field soil, peat-perlite-vermiculite mix, and pine bark-rice hulls-sand mix) were compared across four measures of seedling quality (height, root collar diameter, root volume, and number of first order lateral roots) to …

Optimization Of Grow-Out Of Bouldering Coral Microfragments: Land Vs. Offshore Nursery, Ashlee A. Steinberg

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Corals along the Florida Reef Tract and the wider Caribbean have been declining for decades. Low densities of adult colonies hinder the ability of corals to replenish themselves through sexual reproduction, thus reef managers are focusing on restoration actions that increase coral biomass. Microfragmentation is a way to quickly increase the biomass of bouldering corals by cutting the coral into small pieces which forces the coral to allocate its resources away from reproduction and back into growth, increasing its growth rate. This study assessed the optimal location for grow-out (land vs. offshore nursery) and its synergy with size of fragment …

Use Of Flash Flaming Technology To Improve Seed Handling And Delivery Of Winterfat (Krascheninnikovia Lanata), Mitchell Grant Thacker

Theses and Dissertations

Ecological restoration of rangelands using wild-collected seeds can be challenging due to low seed quality, inconvenient seed anatomy, and poor plant establishment. In North America, the half-shrub winterfat (Krascheninnikovia lanata) is a valuable protein-rich forage for wildlife and livestock. Seeds of this species are contained in one-seeded fruits enclosed in four fluffy, silky bracts. While the seeds can be removed from the bracts, it is not recommended as the bracts are thought to help protect the seed and aid in germination and seedling growth. However, bracts of winterfat make it difficult to incorporate this species within a seed mix because …

Improving Perennial Bunchgrass Seeding Success In Annual Grass Invaded Areas Using Pre-Emergent Herbicide And Furrowing Techniques, Spencer Chad Camp

Theses and Dissertations

Exotic annual weeds have transformed western North America, particularly in sagebrush-steppe systems. Restoration of these invaded sites has been met with low levels of success. Pre-emergent herbicide provides a means to control annual weeds, but typically, this treatment does not allow for the concurrent seeding of desired species. Seeding within a deep, U-shaped furrow following herbicide application may be a method to reduce pre-emergent herbicide effects by transferring the herbicide away from the seed at the time of planting. We tested this potential planting technique by spraying plots with or without the pre-emergent herbicide imazapic, and planting bunchgrass seeds either …

Development Of A Propagation Program For Beech Bark Disease-Resistant American Beech (Fagus Grandifolia) And An Applied Restoration Plan For Mitigation Of Beech Bark Disease, Ande Myers

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This dissertation describes the work accomplished towards mitigation of beech bark disease (BBD) through a joint venture by Michigan Technological University and the National Park Service. American beech is an ecologically important species that is threatened throughout its range by beech bark disease and other newer, emergent pressures such as climate change and beech leaf disease. A literature review is included to synthesize recent advances in American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) propagation and their application in mitigation of BBD (Chapter 2). These concepts are examined in an applied restoration framework to outline the importance of understanding ecological and technological …

Revegetating Salt-Impacted Soils In The Northern Great Plains, Abigail P. Blanchard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the northern Great Plains (NGP), an estimated 10.6 million hectares of land are affected by naturally occurring salt-impacted soil. Naturally occurring salt impaction results when rainfall causes salts in parent material to move upward through the soil profile and remain in the root zone causing osmotic and ionic stress, negatively affecting seed imbibition, germination, and plant growth. Common methods to remediate saltimpacted soils were developed in the irrigated soils of the Southwestern U.S., are ineffective in the non-irrigated soils of the NGP, and can exacerbate the problem. Therefore, new methods to remediate salt-impacted soil in the NGP are needed. …

Effects Of Large Wood Restoration On Coho Salmon In A Northern California Watershed: A Before-After-Control-Impact Experiment, Natalie B. Okun

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Substantial time, money, and effort are invested in river and stream restoration projects to aid in the recovery of imperiled salmonid populations, but there is little evidence that these efforts have had lasting positive impacts on juvenile fish growth and survival. To assess the effectiveness of large woody debris (LWD) restoration, which is one of the most common restoration practices, I evaluated the growth and survival response of endangered Central California Coast coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in a paired watershed before-after impact-control (BACI) study. To determine if LWD supplementation influenced coho salmon growth and survival, two neighboring, similar …