Stromberg and Griffin documented long-term patterns in species abundance in selected abandoned agricultural fields and in uncultivated stands dominated by native grasses (relicts) on the Hastings Natural History Reserve (HNHR) in California. Grasslands on HNHR showed two distinct and stable associations: stands with and without historical cultivation. Relict stands dominated by native, perennial grasses Nassella pulchra and Poa secunda are limited to uncultivated, steeper stands, often where soils have more clay. Abandoned agricultural fields have stable compositions dominated by Bromus mollis, B. diandrus, and Erodium spp.Gophers (Thomomys bottae) provide a significant and continuous source of soil disturbance and may slow successional processes in old fields. Where gophers are excluded, aboveground biomass accumulates. Germination and establishment of native perennial grasses are reduced on gopher tailings in old fields. Examination of cultivation records (fields abandoned prior to 1940) revealed that variables including higher soil nitrogen and species richness are more strongly influenced by cultivation history than grazing.
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