Strawberry Creek Canyon After the Fire: Restoration and Weeds

First published in The Midden*, Great Basin National Park's newsletter, Vol. 21, No. 1, Summer 2021. By Julie Long, biological science technician.*

Park staff survey non-native plants and treat them with targeted herbicide from a backpack sprayer. NPS photo by Julie Long.

In 2016, a lightning-caused fire burned more than 2,700 acres of the Strawberry Creek watershed in Great Basin National Park. Park biologists have worked with the Nevada Department of Wildlife, the Bureau of Land Management and other agencies to treat, restore and monitor the area since.

Four years of restoration

Park staff have:

• surveyed vegetation, fish populations and fish habitat;
• seeded the area with a native seed mix, from the air and by hand;
• monitored and treated invasive plants.

Restoration keeps invasive plants from taking hold and limits soil erosion — and helps native plants, wildlife and fish establish and persist.

The upper meadow of Strawberry Creek four months after the fire (top; NPS photo by Meg Horner) and three years after it (bottom; NPS photo by Julie Long).

Park staff removing weeds by hand. NPS photo by Julie Long.

Weed questions answered

Which weeds were there? Before the fire: musk thistle, bull thistle, Canada thistle, whitetop, spotted knapweed, horehound and cheatgrass. After it, two species not recorded before appeared: sow thistle and houndstongue (also called gypsy flower).

Which are most common in Strawberry Canyon? Bull thistle, musk thistle, cheatgrass and whitetop. As far as staff know, Strawberry Canyon is the only place in the park with whitetop, present both before and after the fire.

And in the rest of the park? Bull thistle.

What is the first line of defence? Early detection and rapid response — essential to stop non-native plants getting established.

Which is hardest to eliminate? In the author's experience, cheatgrass. Invasive plants spread fast and compete with natives for water, light and nutrients, each with its own survival strategy. Perennials can be especially hard to get rid of, thanks to adaptations such as extensive roots and the ability to live shorter or longer lives than annual plants.

Sources

• National Park Service, Great Basin National Park, "Short Recap on Strawberry Creek Canyon," The Midden, Vol. 21, No. 1, Summer 2021. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/short-recap-on-strawberry-creek-canyon.htm
• Rewritten in hubnx's own words.