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You are here >1Up Info > Wildlife, Animals, and Plants > Plant Species > Shrub > Species: Adenostoma sparsifolium | Red Shank
 

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BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS

SPECIES: Adenostoma sparsifolium | Red Shank
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : Red shank is a native arborescent shrub growing from 6 to 18 feet (2-6 m) tall [7,16,33]. It has a rounded growth form with thick multiple branches that ascend several feet without foliage before multiple smaller branches display leaves [15,22]. Red shank is classified as a broad-leaved sclerophyll [15]. Its leaves are covered with a sticky resin that may serve to reflect excess radiation [39]. The bark exfoliates freely, peeling off in long strips [8,15,33]. Red shank has a large lignotuber; the lignotuber of one individual in the Santa Monica Mountains measured 12 inches (30 cm) in diameter. The root system has not been well studied but appears to be predominatly lateral with masses of small roots. Two plants excavated in the Santa Monica Mountains had thick, woody, multiple roots rapidly branching into succulent fibrous roots at 1 to 4 feet (0.3-1.2 m) below the soil surface. A few roots were found below 6 feet (1.8 m) [15]. The inflorescence is an open panicle; the fruit is an achene [7,33]. Red shank may live over 100 years [21]. RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : Phanerophyte REGENERATION PROCESSES : Red shank primarily reproduces vegetatively. The roots and lignotuber store carbohydrates and other nutrients necessary for sprout development from adventitious buds of the lignotuber [23]. Sprouting continues throughout the life of the plant until senescence, but die-off of young stems appears to be great. Growth-ring analysis of red shank in the Palomar Mountains of San Diego County revealed that most stems were either less than 5 years of age or greater than 30 years of age, with few in between [25]. Sprout viability may be enhanced in the first few years following top-kill by fire or other means because of lack of competition from older stems. Seedling recruitment is rare. Limited research suggests that this is due to three factors: low seed set, low seed viability, and rapid loss of viability in seed that is sound when fresh. Microscopic examination of red shank seed collected over the range of red shank's distribution showed that much of the seed was unfilled. Heat treatment and subsequent sowing of the seed resulted in 0 percent germination [15]. Red shank's congener chamise produces two physiologically distinct types of seed. One type has a hard seedcoat that requires heat scarification prior to germination. This seed can remain viable in the seedbank for decades before fire breaks dormancy. The other type is nondormant and loses viability rapidly [42]. Although red shank has been reported as producing hardcoated, dormant seed [21], it probably does not. One investigation indicated that red shank produces only one of the two chamise seed types: nondormant, short-lived seed. Seed crops are usually scant. Hanes [15] searched for red shank seedlings in or near mature red shank stands from San Luis Obispo County to Baja California. He found only one site, in the Santa Monica Mountains, that supported seedlings. This site was not a burn but had been bulldozed the year prior to seedling recruitment. The year following establishment, 50 percent of seedlings died during summer drought. Hanes suggested that lack of seedling recruitment accounts for red shank's limited distribution. SITE CHARACTERISTICS : Red shank grows on dry, well-drained slopes and mesas at elevations from 1,000 to 7,000 feet (305-2,134 m), with most populations found from 1,500 to 5,000 feet (457-1,524 m) elevation [7,15]. It may occur on any aspect [15], but shows definite slope association in some locations. In the Santa Monica Mountains, red shank occurs primarily on north-facing slopes [3], while in San Diego County, red shank is found on southern aspects [29]. All red shank populations except one in the Santa Monica Mountains occur more than 50 miles (80 km) inland [15]. Soils supporting red shank are typically shallow. They may be coarse in texture [15], but red shank's shallow, succulent roots are best adapted to fine-textured soils because of the superior water-retaining capacity of such soils [2]. Red shank grows in soils derived from granite or loosely-cemented Miocene sandstone [15]. A soil pH of 6.6 was reported beneath red shank stands in the Los Padres National Forest, Santa Barbara County [9], and of 6.3 beneath stands in the Palomar Mountains, San Diego County. Where coexisting with chamise, red shank occupies the more mesic and fertile sites [26]. Soil moisture, organic matter, sulfate, and ammonium levels are significantly higher (p<0.01, 0.01, 0.05, and 0.05, respectively) on red shank-occupied soil than on chamise-occupied soil. Magnesium levels, percent coarse fraction, and soil pH are significantly lower (p<0.05 in all cases) on red shank-occupied soil [3]. The climate in which red shank grows is Mediterranean, characterized by wet, mild winters and hot, dry summers [16]. Santa Ana foehn winds may occur at any time of year, but are most common in fall [32]. SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : Facultative Seral Species Red shank is a survivor in disturbed communities, establishing from sprouts following top-kill. It is usually not replaced by other species at any stage of chaparral succession. Red shank is shade intolerant [15]. Development of new red shank communities during secondary succession is rare. When this does occur, seedlings establish during the first few postdisturbance years, competing with the herbaceous species which also establish at this time. Herbs diminish in number as the community matures, occupying spaces between red shank [15,16]. Red shank stands attain maximum canopy coverage at about postdisturbance year 25 [17]. SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : Red shank growth begins in February. The period of most active growth is from June to mid-August [46]. Flowering occurs in late August and continues through September [8,33,46]. Stem die-off and abscission occurs during summer and fall drought. Plants on the Murphy Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains dropped 32.5 percent of randomly tagged stems during the dry season of a year of normal precipitation [15].

Related categories for Species: Adenostoma sparsifolium | Red Shank

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Information Courtesy: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. Fire Effects Information System

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