Seeding Rate-Cover Relationships of Annual Ryegrass Seeded on Burned Brushlands

Abstract

The relationship between seeding rate and cover of reseeded annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) was studied for 3 years on a burned brushland near Berkeley, California. Five seeding rates were compared: 6, 11, 22, 34, and 45 kg/ha. During the first winter the percentages of cover from the high seeding rates were greater than those from the lower rates; however, the differences were eliminated in the spring as a result of more tillering in the areas of low seeding rates. Percentages of cover declined in the second and third years even though seed supplies were, respectively, 32-fold and double that of the first year. It is suggested that high rates of seeding be used after wildfires, where the objective is to have a good cover to protect bare soil against erosion during the winter months.