@article {KNZ001858,
	title = {Use of vegetation sampling and analysis to detect a problem within a portion of a prairie restoration project},
	journal = {International Journal of Phytoremediation},
	volume = {19},
	year = {2017},
	pages = {65 - 72},
	abstract = {<p>In June 2005, the Department of Energy (DOE) began establishing the 60-ha Howell Prairie around the disposal cell at the DOE Weldon Spring Site (WSS). Prairies were historically present in the area of the site. Quantitative Cover sampling was used to quantify Total Cover, Native Grass Cover, Non-Native Grass Cover, Native Forb Cover, Non-Native Forb Cover, Warm Season (C-4 Grass), Cool Season (C-3 Grass), Perennial Cover and Annual Cover, Litter, and Bare Ground. Four permanent vegetation sampling plots were established. The first 4 years of vegetation measurements at Howell Prairie were made during above-average rainfall years on burned and unburned plots. The fifth-year (2012) vegetation measurements were made after below-average rainfall. Five years of results not only document the consistency of the restoration effort in three areas, but also demonstrate deficiencies in Grass Cover in a fourth area. The results are not only useful for Howell Prairie, but will be useful for restoration work throughout the region. Restoration work suffers from a lack of success monitoring and in this case from a lack of available reference areas. Floristic Quality Indices are used to make qualitative comparisons of the site to Konza Prairie sites.</p>},
	keywords = {LTER-KNZ, land restoration, Plant cover, prairie, success monitoring, Vegetation analysis, vegetation sampling},
	doi = {10.1080/15226514.2016.1216081},
	url = {https://doi.org/10.1080/15226514.2016.1216081},
	author = {Franson, Raymond and Scholes, Chad and Krabbe, Stephen}
}
@article {KNZ00656,
	title = {Is leaf-level photosynthesis related to plant success in a highly productive grassland?},
	journal = {Oecologia},
	volume = {117},
	year = {1998},
	pages = {40 -46},
	abstract = {We addressed the question: {\textquotedblleft}Are short-term, leaf-level measurements of photosynthesis correlated with long-term patterns of plant success?{\textquotedblright} in a productive grassland where interspecific competitive interactions are important. To answer this question, seasonal patterns of leaf-level photosynthesis were measured in 27 tallgrass prairie species growing in sites that differed in species composition and productivity due to differences in fire history. Our specific goals were to assess the relationship between gas exchange under field conditions and success (defined as aerial plant cover) for a wide range of species, as well as for these species grouped as dominant and sub-dominant grasses, forbs, and woody plants. Because fire increases productivity and dominance by grasses in this system, we hypothesized that any relationship between photosynthesis and success would be strongest in annually burned sites. We also predicted that regardless of fire history, the dominant species (primarily C4 grasses) would have higher photosynthetic rates than the less successful species (primarily C3 grasses, forbs and woody plants). Because forbs and woody species are less abundant in annually burned sites, we expected that these species would have lower photosynthetic rates in annually burned than in infrequently burned sites. As expected, the dominant C4{\textvisiblespace}grasses had the highest cover on all sites, relative to{\textvisiblespace}other growth forms, and they had the highest maximum and seasonally averaged photosynthetic rates (17.6 {\textpm} 0.42 μmol m-2 s-1). Woody species had the lowest average cover as well as the lowest average photosynthetic rates, with subdominant grasses and forbs intermediate in both cover and photosynthesis. Also as predicted, the highest overall photosynthetic rates were found on the most productive annually burned site. Perhaps most importantly, a positive relationship was found between leaf-level photosynthesis and cover for a core group of species when data were combined across all sites. These data support the hypothesis that higher instantaneous rates of leaf-level photosynthesis are indicative of long-term plant success in this grassland. However, in contrast to our predictions, the subdominant grasses, forbs and woody species on the annually burned site had higher photosynthetic rates than in the less frequently burned sites, even though their average cover was lower on annually burned sites, and hence they were less successful. The direct negative effect of fire on plant cover and species-specific differences in the availability of resources may explain why photosynthesis was high but cover was low in some growth forms in annually burned sites.},
	keywords = {LTER-KNZ, Competition, grassland, photosynthesis, Plant cover, tallgrass prairie},
	doi = {10.1007/s004420050629},
	author = {McAllister, C.A. and Alan K. Knapp and Maragni, L.A.}
}
