VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Leymus salinus | Salina Wildrye 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Little detailed information is presently available concerning livestock
and wildlife utilization of Salina wildrye.  Due to its tendency to grow
in rather dense bunches, this bunchgrass produces a moderate amount of
forage [32].  The somewhat coarse herbage is generally considered to
provide fair forage during the growing season [44].  Salina wildrye is
reported to decrease with domestic livestock grazing on sites dominated
by Atriplex spp. (A. confertifolia and A. gardneri) in northwestern
Colorado [3].


PALATABILITY : 
Due the coarsness of the herbage, Salina wildrye is not a preferred
forage; when dried and matured, plants are largely unpalatable to most
livestock.  Although palatability varies with site and associted
species, early in the growing season Salina wildrye is only moderately
palatable to cattle and horses; sheep utilization is apparently quite
low even during the spring and fall grazing seasons [44].

The degree of use shown by livestock and wildlife species for Salina
wildrye in several western states is rated as follows [58]:

                        CO        UT        WY
 
Cattle                 ----      Fair      Good
Sheep                  ----      Poor      Good
Horses                 ----      Fair      Good 
Pronghorn              ----      Poor      Poor
Elk                    ----      Fair      Fair
Mule deer              ----      Poor      Poor
White-tailed           ----      ----      Poor
     deer
Small mammals          ----      Poor      ----
Small nongame          ----      Poor      ----
     birds
Upland game birds      ----      Poor      ----
Waterfowl              ----      Poor      ----


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Salina wildrye has been rated as fair in energy value and poor in
protein value [58].

Nutritional information concerning Salina wildrye seeds is presented
below [38]:

        cal / kg         2,750
        % protein           12.5
        % carbohydrates     55.9
        % fat                0.60
        % ash               24.1
        % moisture           6.9


COVER VALUE : 
The degree to which Salina wildrye provides environmental protection during one
or more seasons for wildlife species is as follows [58]:

                               CO             UT            WY
Pronghorn                     ----           Poor          Poor
Elk                           ----           Poor          Poor
Mule deer                     ----           Poor          Fair
White-tailed                  ----           ----          Poor
     deer
Small mammals                 ----           Fair          Good
Small nongame                 ----           Fair          Good
     birds   
Upland game birds             ----           Poor          Good
Waterfowl                     ----           Poor          Poor


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Adaptational attributes such as salt tolerance, drought resistance and
the strongly rhizomatous nature of some ecotypes of Salina wildrye
[19,49] earmark this bunchgrass as a potentially important revegetation
species for use on saline slopes in the western United States [31].  In
Utah, Vallentine [44] reports that Salina wildrye has successfully
stabilized steep, erosive hillsides characterized by clay soils.  Recent
taxonomic studies differentiating Salina wildrye and Colorado wildrye
(Leymus ambiguus) were initiated in response to inquiries as to the
suitability of these bunchgrasses for revegetation projects [2].
Apparently subspecies salinus is being considered for planting on newly
buned areas througout the central Wasatch Plateau; subspecies salmonis
may prove potentially useful as a wildlife forage on extremely dry sites
in central Idaho.  Limited information indicates that although this
species exhibits low seed germination and poor seedling vigor, once
established, plants typically persist and spread on a variety of sites
[32].  These authors list Salina wildrye as adapted for seeding in the
following communities:  mountain brush, pinyon-juniper, big sagebrush,
black greasewood, saltgrass, and shadscale saltbush.


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Seeds of Salina wildrye were a native food resource utilized by Indian
tribes inhabiting the Great Basin [38].   


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
NO-ENTRY

Related categories for Species: Leymus salinus | Salina Wildrye