Have you seen the latest Pocket Guide from the Great Plains Grasslands Extension Partnership? This Pocket Guide integrates new guidelines for reducing woody encroachment with a planning process. It is also an important resource that further incorporates the latest, science-based approaches for reducing woody encroachment.
There are 8 Key Principles for Reducing Woody Encroachment in Grasslands, these include:
- Grasslands do not have trees
- Grasslands are so widespread, they form a biome
- Grasslands are more vulnerable to woody encroachment today than in the past
- Proximity to seed sources (exposure) is the most important predictor of where encroachment occurs
- Management efforts should target all three stages of woody encroachment
- Develop a plan for every acre and track progress over time
- Reducing grassland vulnerability is the cheapest way to manage woody encroachment
- Anchor to intact grasslands and scale up collaboration
In order to combat woody encroachment, you first have to learn how to take inventory. This Pocket Guide walks you through the different approaches on how to capture your own inventory as well as using nationally available data from the Rangeland Analysis Platform.
Once you figure out your inventory and conservation plan, you can begin to develop solutions to reduce grassland vulnerability to woody encroachment. This pocket guide has decision support aids to help walk you through making decisions on contamination, ultra-low infestation, severe infestation, sire rehabilitation, windbreak management, and other special cases.
Next and last phase is implementation. This guide provides all the right steps to implementation, including a checklist for common mistakes to avoid. For more information and the full step by step process, be sure to check out the Pocket Guide here.