Establishment, Growth, Utilization and Chemical Composition of Introduced Shrubs on Oklahoma Tall Grass Prairie

Abstract

On April 1, 1977, 14 species of containerized shrubs grown from seed in a greenhouse were transplanted onto North-Central Oklahoma tallgrass prairie to determine first-year growth and survival and fall utilization and forage quality of the shrubs. Plants of each species were transplanted onto Lucien loam (Udic Ustochrepts) and onto Grainola silt loam (Vertic Haplustalfs) soils. Grazing was permitted on one-half of the plants of all species during the fall. Growth and survival were greater on the more mesic Grainola soil, whereas utilization was greater on the more xeric Lucien soil. Early winter N, P, K, and Ca contents and in vivo dry matter digestibility were two or three times greater in shrubs than in native herbaceous plants collected from the same area at the same time. Based on survival, growth, fall utilization and early winter forage quality, seven species deserve additional study under different soil, weather and management conditions. Atriplex canescens, Fallugia paradoxa, and Cowania mexicana var. stansburiana are the most promising winter browse plants for Oklahoma tallgrass prairies.