Project Number: 5428-21000-012-12
Project Type: Reimbursable

Start Date: Jan 30, 2007
End Date: Sep 30, 2010

Objective:
Increase native plant materials, particularly native forbs, available for restoration (germplasm evaluations, plant selection, seed transfer guidelines, genetics). Characterize multi-species interactions in response to disturbance and exotic seed invasion.

Approach:
We propose to use AFLP DNA primer pairs to identify and genetically characterize widely distributed germplasm collections of basalt milkvetch. Application of AFLP and Bayesian cluster techniques will allow an asssessment of the structure of genetic diversity within basalt milkvetch. These analyses are fundamentally important in deciding how selection and release of basalt milkvetch populations should proceed. These data will be critical in determining if the collections of basalt milkvetch can be treated as one unstructured population, or if significant differences in genetic diversity and population structure exist so that populations need to be grouped into several distinct populations for release. Application of these results to basalt milkvetch will ensure that the best selection and release strategies will be used to most effectively represent existing genetic variation within this widespread North American legume. The plots of Great Basin species were established in 2003 and will be used for additional evaluations proposed in this study. The experimental design accommodates evaluation of species compatibility in the species mixtures as well as evaluating the importance of "functional group diversity" as well as the impacts of disturbance and exotic species invasion. This research will show micro-site requirements of desirable species of high priority for rangeland restoration in the Great Basin and identify the underlying mechanisms responsible for species mixtures that successfully resist exotic species invasion and promote species diversity for insect, wildlife, and multiple human uses.