Rocky Mountain Research Station

Title: Fire and nutrient cycling in shortgrass steppe of the southern Great Plains, USA

Author: Ford, P.L.; White, C.S.

Date: 2005

Source: In: O'Mara, F.P.; Wilkins, R.J.; 't Mannetje, L.; Lovett, D.K.; Rogers, P.A.M.; Boland, T.M., editors. XX International Grassland Congress: Offered Papers, XX International Grassland Congress, June 26 - July 1, 2005, Dublin, Ireland. p. 744.

Description: Fire in semi-arid grasslands releases nutrients bound up in organic matter and accelerates the rate of decomposition in the soil. This research experimentally tested effects of season and frequency of fire on nutrient cycling dynamics in shortgrass steppe. The objective was to identify if fire treatments have the ability to increase potential grassland productivity relative to untreated ëreference conditioní grassland. Many such studies focus on short-term, direct effects of fire. However, this study is part of a long-term, 18-year study examining both direct, and indirect effects of fire in the growing vs. dormant season at return intervals of 3, 6 and 9 years.

Keywords: nutrient cycling, fire, shortgrass steppe, potentially mineralisable nitrogen, plant cover

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Citation

Ford, P.L.; White, C.S.  2005.  Fire and nutrient cycling in shortgrass steppe of the southern Great Plains, USA.   In: O'Mara, F.P.; Wilkins, R.J.; 't Mannetje, L.; Lovett, D.K.; Rogers, P.A.M.; Boland, T.M., editors. XX International Grassland Congress: Offered Papers, XX International Grassland Congress, June 26 - July 1, 2005, Dublin, Ireland. p. 744..