Jan 03, 2022
Version 2
White Water Ranch Pollinator Enhancement Study Design V.2
- 1University of Oregon
- Ponisiolab
Protocol Citation: Lauren Ponisio 2022. White Water Ranch Pollinator Enhancement Study Design. protocols.io https://dx.doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.b3c8qizwVersion created by Lauren Ponisio
License: This is an open access protocol distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Protocol status: Working
We use this protocol and it’s working
Created: December 31, 2021
Last Modified: January 03, 2022
Protocol Integer ID: 56448
Abstract
Field protocol for Whitewater Ranch wildflower patch enhancement study
Questions
Questions
- Can native, flowering plants succeed (germinate and flower within 1-3 years after seeding) in clearcuts with minimal site prep?
- What native shrubs can establish on road edges?
- Is there an interaction between plant success and planting inside burn piles or outside burn piles?
- Does intraspecific competition influence success?
- Is there an effect of different site characteristics (slope, elevation, aspect, N:C ratio)?
- Is there evidence of dispersal of seeds in subsequent years?
Study area
Study area
- White Water Ranch ~1,700 acres of mid elevation slopes in the Cascades, along the McKenzie River (https://g.page/whitewater-ranch?share)
- Area was Doug fir plantations, most burned in the 2020 Holiday farm fire
- ~200 burn piles of varying size, easily accessible from roads, no map of locations
Design considerations
Design considerations
- Mimic possible methods of planting a industrial timber plantation would consider using (i.e., minimal site prep, no extensive weeding of plants that do not complete with saplings, no removal of unburned logs in burn pile, no individual seeding)
- Assume canopy closure in 6 years after sapling planting in year 1, need plants to flower within 1-3 years
- Split plot design in and out of the burnpile to address within/outside burnpile interaction (https://www.statisticshowto.com/split-plot-design/)
- ideal: a control + all the seed species in each block, inside and outside the burnpile.
- Would closely control for soil/other local conditions
- Model
- Number of germinated seedlings ~ species*treatment + plot characteristics (slope etc.) + Block
- Treatment = “within” or “outside of burn pile”
- Block = random effect accounting for variation between plots not accounted for by fixed effects of plot characteristics
- ½ m2 plots would be easy to nestle in the burn pile avoiding big bits of charcoal
- Most burn piles will fit all 23 plots
Pre-field prep
Pre-field prep
Order seeds for 50 0.5 m2 plots: 20 single species, 3 mixes
Pre-weight seeds and put in coin envelopes, labeled with species 6 letter code.
Put each of the 23 pre-weighted baggies into a large gallon ziplock for each set + 1 control flag (i.e., no seeds)
| Species | seeds/lb | target seeds/ft2 | lbs/acre | plots in acres | lbs/plot | oz/plot | |
| Achillea millefolium | 1,418,947 | 40 | 1.23 | 0.0001 | 0.0002 | 0.0024 | |
| Madia gracilis | 300,000 | 40 | 5.81 | 0.0001 | 0.0007 | 0.0115 | |
| Potentilla gracilis var. gracilis | 1,417,460 | 40 | 1.23 | 0.0001 | 0.0002 | 0.0024 | |
| Phacelia heterophylla | 559,172 | 40 | 3.12 | 0.0001 | 0.0004 | 0.0062 | |
| Gilia capitata | 680,000 | 40 | 2.56 | 0.0001 | 0.0003 | 0.0051 | |
| Lupinus latifolius | 31,000 | 40 | 56.21 | 0.0001 | 0.0069 | 0.1111 | |
| Mimulus guttatus | 45,360,000 | 40 | 0.04 | 0.0001 | 0.0000 | 0.0001 | |
| Iris tenax | 46,000 | 40 | 37.88 | 0.0001 | 0.0047 | 0.0749 | |
| Collinsia grandiflora | 464,487 | 40 | 3.75 | 0.0001 | 0.0005 | 0.0074 | |
| Collomia grandiflora | 121,715 | 40 | 14.32 | 0.0001 | 0.0018 | 0.0283 | |
| Eriophyllum lanatum | 1,169,047 | 40 | 1.49 | 0.0001 | 0.0002 | 0.0029 | |
| Geum macrophyllum | 760,037 | 40 | 2.29 | 0.0001 | 0.0003 | 0.0045 | |
| Microsteris gracilis | 416,392 | 40 | 4.18 | 0.0001 | 0.0005 | 0.0083 | |
| Potentilla glandulosa | 1,135,000 | 40 | 1.54 | 0.0001 | 0.0002 | 0.0030 | |
| Lupinus rivularis | 28,917 | 40 | 60.26 | 0.0001 | 0.0074 | 0.1191 | |
| Ligusticum apiifolium | 112,000 | 40 | 15.56 | 0.0001 | 0.0019 | 0.0308 | |
| Lomatium utriculatum | 277,765 | 40 | 6.27 | 0.0001 | 0.0008 | 0.0124 | |
| Lomatium dissectum | 28,499 | 40 | 61.14 | 0.0001 | 0.0076 | 0.1209 | |
| Sidalcea campestris | 100,000 | 40 | 17.42 | 0.0001 | 0.0022 | 0.0344 | |
| Sidalcea malviflora | 133,000 | 40 | 13.10 | 0.0001 | 0.0016 | 0.0259 | |
| Tough and tenacious mix | 170,942 | 40 | 10.19 | 0.0001 | 0.0013 | 0.0201 | |
| Burn pile mix | 217,934 | 40 | 8.00 | 0.0001 | 0.0010 | 0.0158 | |
| Disturbed Ground forbs only mix | 224,814 | 40 | 7.75 | 0.0001 | 0.0010 | 0.0153 |
Pre label and number flags with plot numbers and 6 letter codes
Field checklist
Field checklist
- Field desks with pencils and datasheets on “rite in the rain paper”
- Flagging tape
- Pre numbered and labeled WHITE pin flags (2 per plot*23 plots) (non-white flags will attract pollinators, which will distort the pollinator visitation observations and hummergbirds can be dangerous)
- Garmin gps *2 (charged)
- Extra AA batteries
- Walkie talkies for each car
- 6 inch rebar stakes for center markers
- Metal tree tags for center markers
- Zip ties for adding metal tags to rebar stake
- Pre-weighted seeds
- Bags of vermiculite
- Compasses for slope estimation
- Quart Ziplocks (for soil samples)
- Auger (for soil samples)
For each crew member
- Plastic bowls for mixing vermiculite and seeds
- Small rakes to level ground
- 0.5 m quadrat
- Bright orange field vests or regular vests
- Silver sharpies for writing on flags
Plastic buckets for carrying planting kit for each crew member
Check list personal:
- Waterproof boots and rain gear (top and bottom)!
- Lunch
- Water
- Cell phone
- Sunscreen!
- Field hat
- Sunglasses (optional)
Planting protocol
Planting protocol
Locate burn pile. We have enough seed so that we can plant in basically any pile we can find. Add a rebar stake, label with block 1:50 metal tag with a zip tie. Mark with more flagging so we can find it again.
Plot centers marked in a urn pile and adjacent clearcut.
Randomly distribute the seeds and their corresponding pre-labeled flags + 1 control flag among the crew, each person preps their seed planting kit (flags, seeds, rake, vermiculite)
Add GPS point, label it with 1:50 (gps will take elevation estimate)
Measure the slope with the compass, record on the data sheet
Take auger sample, put into a ziplock, label with block number + BP
Start with the burn pile, find areas without large pieces (i.e., log size) for charcoal (see photo below), place 0.5 m quadrat.
Give the plot a gentle rake (including for the control)
Put pin flags in opposite corners (i.e., top left and bottom right)
Select one of the sets of pre-labeled flags from our kit
Find a bag of seed of the correct species, mix it with vermiculite in our bowl, spread evenly within the quadrat
Reserve one seed and plant it above the plot all by itself (at least 6 inches from the plot). Mark with a flag (which has its 6 letter code already). (this is to measure intraspecific competition, we will see if it works).
Repeat for all the plant species
After you finish the burnpile:
Pace out 5 big steps, repeat outside the burn pile. Do not plant within 3 ft saplings, they will be herbicided.
Repeat the plating steps above, vigorous raking may be needed because it is the second season since the fire.
No not plant the single seed outside the plot (too many completing species to measure intraspecific competition without significant weeding)
Hedgerow installation
Hedgerow installation
- Locate a previously planted burnpile. Flip a coin to determine whether to install a hedgerow or not. There are 20 existing planted burn piles, and 30 additional planned. We are planning to plant 20 hedgerows with 10 plants each.
- Select 10 individuals. Dig holes and plant each gallon pot 6 feet apart on the road edge adjacent to the planted burn pile.