Alkali Flat

Description

When this range site is near its potential, alkali sacaton, western wheatgrass, galleta, bottlebrush squirreltail and needleandthread make up over 40% of the plant community. Western wheatgrass is dominant in areas that receive additional moisture such as drainage bottoms. Ohter grasses that occur in the community are Indian ricegrass, sand dropseed, red threeawn, native bluegrasses, blue grama and inland saltgrass.

Forbs such as scarlet globemallow, wooly Indianwheat, mountain pepperweed, lomatium, daisy fleabane and pursh seepweed make up only 10-15% of the potential plant community.

Shrubs and half shrubs such as black greasewood, spiny hopsage, shadscale, greenmolly summercypress, and basin big sagebrush make up 30 to 45 percent of the potential plant community. As the plant community declines in condition, grasses and forbs will decrease while shrubs and half shrubs such as black greasewood will increase to dominate the site. Annual invaders such as Russian thistle and downy brome will also increase as the range condition declines.

Submodel