Vigor of needleandthread (Stipa comata) and blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) was measured by Reece et al., in a 7-pasture rotational grazing system after four years of short-duration grazing or three years of short-duration grazing and one year of rest, and four years of rest. Compared to ungrazed plants, blue grama plants grazed for four years had lower total nonstructural carbohydrates (TNC), while some blue grama plants that were rested for one year following three years of grazing and all needleandthread plants had TNC concentrations that were similar to ungrazed plants. Grazing increased the number of tillers that grew from covered and uncovered plants of both species, however, the weight of these tillers was significantly lower than the weight of tillers growing on ungrazed plants. In general, vigor of grazed plants was lower than vigor of ungrazed plants, even when plants were rested for one grazing season and blue grama plants tended to be more susceptible to grazing damage than needleandthread plants. Assimilations produced in early spring growth appeared to be more important for tiller initiation in plants that had been grazed than in ungrazed plants.
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