PLANT SUCCESSION AND RANGE MANAGEMENT. 
43 
cerned, much higher utilization will be obtained by cropping the 
second- weed-stage coyer by sheep than by cattle and horses. 
Table 4. — Comparative palatabiUty and -forage value of the plants characteristic 
of the second weed stage. 
Plant. 
PalatabiUty. 
Sheep. 
Cattle. 
Horses 
Abundance. 
Aster 
B ladder pod 
Blue foxglove 
Butterweed 
Cinquefoil 
E veiling primrose 
False cymopterus 
Geranium 
Horsemint 
Large mountain brome grass. 
Low pea vine 
Mexican dock 
Mountain dandelion 
Mountain rock cress 
Nodding brome grass 
Onion grass 
Peppergrass 
Plantain 
Rubberweed 
Sampson's mertensia 
Scarlet gilia 
Scribner's wheat grass 
Showy onion grass 
Sneezeweed 
Sweet sage 
Tongue-leaved violet 
Yarrow 
Medium. 
Low 
Medium. 
High.--. 
Medium. 
....do... 
Low 
Medium. 
Low 
High.... 
Medium, 
.-..do... 
Low 
Negative 
Low 
Medium. 
Low 
do 
Negative 
Low 
do 
Negative. 
do.... 
do.... 
High. 
Low. 
.do. 
High 
Low 
High 
Low 
do 
Medium ... 
Objectionable. 
High 
Medium 
Low 
do 
Objectionable. 
Medium 
do 
High 
Medium 
Negative 
High 
Medium 
Negative 
Low 
Objectionable . 
High 
Low 
Medium 
....do.. 
Objectionable. 
Low 
do 
Medium 
Low 
Negative 
do -.. 
do 
Low 
Negative 
High.......... 
Low 
Negative 
Low 
Negative. 
High 
Medium ... 
Negative 
do .* — 
Objectionable . 
Low 
Negative 
Medium 
do... 
Objectionable . 
Negative 
do 
Low 
Moderately dense. 
Scattered. 
Dense. 
Scattered. 
Ho. 
Do. 
Do. 
Moderately dense. 
Scattered. 
Moderately dense. 
Do. 
Very scattered. 
Scattered. 
Very scattered. 
Scattered. 
Do. 
Verv scattered. 
Do. 
Scattered. 
Do." 
Do. 
Do. 
Do. 
Do. 
Dense. 
Scattered. 
Dense. 
* Abundance as here used takes into account the size of the plant and its herbage production as well as 
the density in which it occurs. 
FORAGE PRODUCTION. 
As compared with the porcupine-grass-yellow-brush consociation, 
the carrying capacity, acre for acre, is notably less on the foxglove- 
sweet-sage-yarrow type, regardless of the class of stock grazed. Even 
if used by sheep, the more superior second-weed-stage type will 
probably support only 50 per cent as many year after year without 
injury to the range, as will an equally desirable cover of the porcu- 
pine grass and yellow brush. In the absence of a sufficient stand of 
grasses and other desirable late-maturing plants the herbage of the 
second-weed stage is highly succulent ; and while palatable and con- 
ducive to the production of large gains in the case of sheep it does 
not produce fat which is as solid or as permanent as that which 
characterizes the condition of the animal when it eats a fair bal- 
ance of grasses and of other late-maturing plants. Cattle and 
horses little more than maintain their weight on a range distinctly 
in the second-weed stage. The acreage required per cow is propor- 
tionately much greater on a range in the second-weed stage than on 
a porcupine-grass-yellow-brush cover or on a wheat-grass area. Eela- 
tively little of the palatable feed is grazed either by sheep or cattle 
after the plants reach maturity or after killing frosts have occurred. 
