DataMaster_and_Metadata.xlsx

Antelope Pasture, located in the Black Pine Valley of Oneida County, Idaho, is a 1500-acre portion of the Curlew Grazing Allotment, managed by the Pocatello Field Office of the BLM. The pasture is heavily invaded with exotic annuals and grazing is temporarily discontinued. The Pocatello BLM Office partnered with Utah State University in 2017 to provide detailed soil and vegetation maps of Antelope Pasture, and determine plant-soil relationships. A survey of the soil and vegetation of Antelope Pasture was conducted in the summer of 2017. Vegetation sampling took place in May and early June, and soil sampling in June and July. We found a total of 42 plant species at Antelope Pasture, 26 of which are native to the region. However, species of the highest cover and frequency were introduced annuals such as Bromus tectorum (cheatgrass), Lepidium perfoliatum (clasping pepperweed), Descurainia pinnata (flixweed) and Ranunculus testiculatus (burr buttercup), as well as the seeded perennial Agropyron cristatum (crested wheatgrass). The soils of Antelope pasture are primarily characterized by translocated accumulations of calcium carbonate and exchangeable sodium in the subsurface horizons, and the primary difference among pedons was the presence or absence of natric horizons. The majority of soils were classified into the Xeric Natrargids subgroup and were similar in morphology to the Mellor soil series. We concluded that the strongest driving factor in relationships between pasture soils and vegetation identified through analyses was the presence or absence of a biological soil crust or moss cover. Because so few relationships were found between vegetation and soil variables, other factors, such as disturbance history, are more likely to be the central cause of variation in vegetation across the pasture. See "Soil and Vegetation Survey of Antelope Pasture, Curlew Grazing Allotment, Oneida County, ID" Report for full methodology: https://works.bepress.com/kari_veblen/75/