6 



BULLETIN- 588, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTUEE. 



TABLE I. Comparison of vegetation on grama-grass range lightly grazed during the grow- 

 ing seasons of 1913, 1914, and 1915 with that on similar adjoining range grazed year- 

 long. 



1 Figures represent square centimeters of vegetation on each 10,000 square centimeters of area, based 

 on measurements 1 inch above soil surface. 



The chpnges in amount and kind of vegetation on the Pasture 2 

 range as compared with the outside range during the three years are 

 shown graphically in figure 1. 



The striking features in connection with total vegetation are (1) 

 that in the Keserve pasture' it is higher from water out and is as great 

 at less than one-half mile from watering places as that on the outside 

 range about 4J miles from water, and (2) that on the outside range 

 it is as great at a point about 5 miles from the watering places as it 

 is at any point in the pasture. This last point shows that the out- 

 side range is naturally as productive as the pasture, if grazed under 

 the same system of management. Grazing at improper seasons and 

 overstocking, however, have kept the total vegetation at 70.3 per 

 cent of that inside the Keserve. 



Total vegetation alone is not, however, a good index of carrying 

 capacity or condition of a range, since on overgrazed areas the ten- 

 dency is for good forage plants to be replaced by ones of less value. 

 The curves for the amount of good forage plants on the two areas 

 show that there is more good forage one-half mile from watering 

 places in the Reserve pasture than at any point within 3f miles from 

 water on the outside area, while Table I shows that there is only 

 49 per cent as much good forage on the outside range as in the pas- 

 ture. As in the case of total vegetation, the amount of good forage 

 on the outside range gradually increases with distance from water 

 until at a point 5 miles from water it is as great as at any point in 

 the pasture. 



The most striking features in connection with medium forage are 

 (1) that there is more on the outside range than in the pasture, except 

 near water, and (2) that the amount on the outside range begins to 

 decrease at about 3 J miles from water, the point at which the good 

 forage begins to increase rapidly. It will be noted also that in the 



