Medusahead, a range pest that has replaced cheatgrass in some parts of western Idaho, 

 is a grass similar to cheatgrass in growth habit and life history. Preliminary experiments with 

 medusahead have shown its response to several eradication treatments to be similar to that of 

 cheatgrass; but too few tests have been made of eradication of medusahead for us to make more 

 than a tentative recommendation that it be treated like cheatgrass. 



Russian-thistle, a summer annual, demands most soil moisture after perennial grasses 

 are dormant. It offers little direct competition to seedlings of recommended seeded species. 

 Grass seed usually can be successfully drilled among these weeds without any ground 

 preparation. 



Halogeton has growth requirements similar to those of Russian-thistle and can be treated 

 the same way (Plummer et al. 1955). Seedings of perennial grasses in areas occupied by halo- 

 geton have not been successful where soils were heavy or saline and had not supported good 

 sagebrush. 



Mustards and other winter annuals grow early in the spring and compete more directly 

 with planted seedlings than Russian-thistle does. Drilling in mustard stands without prepara- 

 tory ground treatment has seldom resulted in successful seedling establishment. For best 

 results, mustard stands should be plowed or disked in the spring before mustard produces seed. 



Abandoned farmlands offer economical seeding opportunities . They require no seedbed 

 preparation if seeding is to be done the first fall or early spring following the last harvested 

 crop. If seeding is delayed, the treatment should be that recommended for the vegetation that 

 invades the field. 



JUNIPER LANDS 



The juniper type is relatively minor in Idaho, but its potential for improvement is great. 

 Species recommended for juniper and pinyon sites are those mentioned above for intermediate 

 sagebrush sites. 



Juniper sites with openings dominated by weeds or sagebrush should be treated as recom- 

 mended for those types. Thick stands of old juniper and pinyon can be cabled or chained. 

 Juniper with enough understory to carry a fire can be burned and the bums seeded in the same 

 manner as suggested for sagebrush. Individual junipers can be burned with a flame thrower or 

 pushed over and piled by a bulldozer. 



MOUNTAIN BRUSHLANDS 



Large areas of foothill and mountain country in southeastern Idaho support a "mountain 

 brush" type, which includes bigtooth maple, bitterbrush, chokecherry, curlleaf mountain- 

 mahogany, rubber rabbitbrush, serviceberry, snowberry, and snowbrush. Sagebrush is an 

 important associate. Good -condition ranges have an understory of perennial grasses and palat- 

 able broad-leaved herbs. On depleted ranges the understory vegetation is mostly low -quality 

 weeds and grasses. Where topography permits, such depleted mountain-brush ranges can be 

 greatly improved by seeding. 



Because browse in this zone is a valuable forage, especially for fall use by livestock and 

 fall and winter use by big game, it may not always be desirable to destroy brush stands for 

 seeding grass. 



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