Progress and a Measure of Success in Land Restoration

Before and after photographs, or repeat photography, are useful tools for measuring success of any prescription applied as an intervention in landscape restoration.  In the case of the area around the rustic cabin the first prescription applied was fencing.  The 240 acres encompassing the cabin and the river bottom were fenced to exclude grazers and create a seed reservoir for existing grasses to reseed the surrounding landscape, both on and off the estate.  Later topsoil restoration barriers were added to benches above the west side of the riverbed where only clay hard pan subsoil was present as a result of poor range management practices.  After 2 seasons plants are not only growing on the subsoil but the areas surrounding the hard pan have more plants.  While there are some native grasses, woody shrubs also are also present.  This is in contrast to early descriptions of the San Simon Valley describing a "luxuriant growth of grasses, affording excellent pasturage for all kinds of stock."  It is clear that a variety of factors combined to significantly alter the landscape and recovering the original grasslands presents a number of problems.  Since the soil types above the riverbed are sandy/gravelly loam, decaying biomass is essential to building healthy new topsoil and the first step is any plant that creates biomass and prevents further erosion, grasses or shrubs.  The conversion of soil minerals into useful Biomass provides a home to soil microbes and nematodes which will benefit the next plants (ideally only grasses) in a succession of species that leads back to a productive landscape. It should be noted that this plant growth is especially encouraging since the area has received less than 6" of rain this year (PRISM climate model average rainfall for the estate is 12.17").

Initial view with topsoil restoration barriers installed at the Rustic Cabin.  This is after fencing.  Note
the large area without subsoil or plant life.

Two seasons later and the return of plant life.  Especially noteworthy are plants growing in the hard pan subsoil
creating biomass for new topsoil.

topsoil restoration barrier

The same topsoil restoration barrier after 2 seasons.

Some online references:
1.  http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/pubs/rmrs_p003/rmrs_p003_306_311.pdf
2.  http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/arizona/sansimonareaAZ1924/sansimonareaAZ1924.pdf
3.  http://www.malpaiborderlandsgroup.org/?section=conservation-action
4.  https://sites.google.com/site/sansimonassessment/actions-participants
5.  Slides from a landscape restoration talk presented at the the 2015 Chiricahua Peloncillo Heritage Days - https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9IXOUCL-_hoSTRQd3N0bWU1dGc/view?usp=sharing

Chiricahua Peloncillo Heritage Days 2015

The Upcoming 2015 Chiricahua Peloncillo Heritage Days is shaping up into another great event for the area.  The Painted Pony Resort will present a talk on landscape restoration on the estate.  It will cover techniques implemented on the estate to restore the grasslands and improve range conditions on the 750 acres of deeded land comprising the estate.  Covering water, soil, vegetation, and animals it will highlight techniques that may be implemented by any land owner to improve landscape conditions

Chiricahua Peloncillo Heritage Days 2015

Addendum:

There will be several walks on Sunday after Saturday's presentations for participants of Heritage Days.  If your interested in seeing and learning more about the area, please join one of the walks for a great learning experience.

Addendum:
The farmers market for this years Chiricahua Peloncillo heritage days is ready to go.

Goodies at the framers market

Something to do with Tumbleweeds

Last years crop of tumbleweed was enormous on the estate.  The drive along the fence line at the north end of the property was completely obscured by tumbleweed and required cleaning not once but 4 times.  Dreading the arrival of spring, since tumbleweed produce lots of seed, I watched closely the sprouting of carpets of green baby tumbleweed that appeared across the landscape.   Expecting rapid growth and large plants I was surprised to see many of the carpets of tumbleweed start to die back.  Whether the result of competition between plants or just the result of poor viability, the carpets of green slowly started to turn brown.  Good news since the carpets appeared primarily in barren areas where no grass grew.  The appearance of carpets of baby tumbleweed followed by their die off means the established root systems will help hold the soil in these barren areas as well as providing some aeration allowing other plants to colonize these areas.  The conversion to biomass also means accessible nutrients for other plants.

This years crop of tumbleweeds not only appeared in open barren areas but also along the topsoil restoration barriers and other created edges on the landscape which will help catch more wind and water born soils adding to the process already started.

A green carpet of baby tumbleweeds turning brown, but providing ground cover for barren areas.

The Edge effect, where tumbleweed are growing around a pile of last years decaying tumbleweed skeletons

Rangeland Rehabilitation: Stabilizing Arroyos

Arroyos in the desert southwest are major conduits of water across the landscape and during the rainy seasons can be major sources of erosion on a lightly vegetated landscape.  On the 756 acres of the Painted Pony Resort just several arroyos contribute to the majority of erosional damage on the estate.  These arroyos collect water from the west flanks of the Peloncillo mountains which is concentrated into 3 arroyos by bridges along the old El Paso and Southwestern Railroad running along the base of the mountains.  The water collected on the up slope side of the railroad bed is funneled through the bridges and across the property down these 3 arroyos eventually reaching the San Simon Riverbed.  The concentrated and rapidly flowing water erodes both down through the soils and also moves the arroyos laterally.  The high velocity water makes roads on the east side of the estate impassible and washes out culverts and crossings which require significant repair work.  While the changes in drainage patterns as a result of the railroad bridges is beyond one persons ability to easily change, the arroyos resulting from a century of landscape modification can be managed to reduce the damage caused by concentrated high velocity water.  

One of several arroyo management techniques in use requires stabilization of the arroyo banks.  Over 10' deep in places on the estate, arroyo banks frequently collapse and stabilization would reduce the amount of soil eroded during the rains.  But what sort of stabilization technique is applicable?  Being in favor of utilizing low cost materials that are available on the landscape this is the approach most frequently chosen.  Many times people toss in whatever garbage is available into arroyos to slow water flow and protect the banks, but this approach results in an arroyo strewn with leftover wood and metal products which randomly catch sediment and is unsightly (the out of sight out of mind approach).  An alternative approach is to utilize plants for stabilization.  In this case, a native species of ground spreading gourd Cucurbita sp.. 

Members of this genus are low growing ground covering annuals and perennials, in many species the fruit is edible and include cultivars of squash and pumpkin.  Adapted to arid climates and growing well in sandy soils they can be found along roadsides and the gourds may be collected in the late summer.  Producing about 300 seeds/gourd, 3 species of Cucurbita are found on the estate, Cucurbita digitata , Cucurbita foetidissima, and an unidentified species.  The green developing gourds turn yellow when dried and are easily spotted on the landscape for collection.  Arroyo stabilization requires harvesting the gourds and extracting the seeds which are then planted high along the edges of arroyos.  The gourd produces a taproot allowing it anchor itself deeply in soil ensuring it will not wash out with periodic high water and hold the soil.  The long vines it produces cover the ground, absorbing energy and slowing water, and will hang along vertical surfaces allowing its large leaves to protect the underlying soil, reducing soil loss.

Previous tests with planted Cucurbita along the entrance driveway resulted in plant coverage over areas of barren ground which has allowed additional grass to establish itself.  So this is being expanded to treat problem arroyos on the estate.  Collected seeds were planted at about 50 locations along a segments of 2 deep arroyos at the bottom to the top at a depth of 1-2".  Starting at the old bridge, quarter sections of gourds were cut and planted along the banks for a distance of several hundred feet.  Next years crop of gourds should spread downstream with the goal of creating more plants that will stabilize these problem arroyos.

Fruit from C. digitata, C. foetidissima, and an unknown species harvested from the estate.

Looking downstream along a problem arroyo, treated by planting native gourds .

Looking upstream at an old El Paso and Southwestern railroad bridge that funnels water creating problem arroyos.

Native Cucurbita along an arroyo showing how the vines and leaves provide cover for developing grasses.

Preparing for the Monsoon Rains: Arroyo Stabilization

A number of small arroyos along Painted Pony Road contribute to road damage when the monsoons arrive.  By funneling water onto the road during a rain storm, it erodes the surface and leaves the corner a muddy mess.  To mitigate this problem tumbleweed garlands were created last year and placed in a number of arroyos along with check dams in an attempt to slow the water, rebuild the arroyos, and protect the road.  The only problem last year were the cattle, which ate many of the tumbleweed garlands mistaking them for brightly wrapped feed.  But this year the cattle stayed away from the road (fencing helps) and a new crop of tumbleweed was ready for harvest.  Tumbleweed growing along the flanks of the river bed was harvested and again wrapped with twine to create long garlands.  These were then placed in the problem arroyos on the upslope side of the road.  The check dams were then reinforced with new rock bringing the heights above last years collected sediment.  Although a slow process, this method of filling in small arroyos helps with the yearly erosion problems and combined with a check dam along the outside corner of the road to catch additional sediment the corner is in much better condition.

Harvesting tumble weed for arroyo garlands.

The same arroyo as shown below with rock added to the check dam with installed tumble weed garland.

A problem arroyo early in the treatment phase.  Note small check dam.

Rock soil barrier at the corner of Painted Pony Road.  Note 2 layers of rock as the barrier stops sediment from eroding the barrier must be raised.