VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Menziesia ferruginea | Menziesia 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Menziesia's value to wildlife is primarily as food.  In Idaho and
Montana, elk used menziesia in considerable amounts in July, and to a
lesser extent in October.  Elk rarely eat menziesia when it occurs with
more palatable browse species.  Menziesia filled a browse requirement
during July when elk were primarily on an herbaceous diet in western
Montana and Idaho [14,54].  Mule deer use menziesia moderately in summer
and fall in the western states [31].  Menziesia accounted for over 15
percent of the summer moose diet in the spruce-fir cover types of
Jackson Hole, Wyoming [28].  Alaskan spruce grouse use small amounts of
menziesia capsules in their October diet [15].  Following a burn
treatment in western Montana, menziesia came back as an important source
of fruits and seeds used by rodents such as deer mice, chipmunks, and
voles [21].


PALATABILITY : 
The palatability of menziesia is generally rated poor.  This shrub
provides fair summer browse for deer and elk [35].  Menziesia's
palatability was considered very low for moose in Jackson Hole, Wyoming
[23].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Nutrient value of menziesia is considered poor to medium [20].
Menziesia contains toxic resinoids that are known to cause livestock
losses when leaves and roots are eaten [43].

Mean values of percent composition of macro- and micronutrients for
menziesia are as follows [22]:

                    MACRO                              MICRO
             (percent dry weight)                 (ppm dry weight)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
          N   P    K    Ca   Mg   Na           Cu     Mn    Fe   Zn
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Leaves  2.48 0.24 1.19 0.62 0.40 0.47         10.0  16,656 62.0 86.6
Stems   1.18 0.15 0.85 0.35 0.17 0.09         11.8  7139.2 22.8 40.5


COVER VALUE : 
Menziesia provides shelter and cover for a variety of wildlife species.
Dense thickets provide good cover for many small birds and mammals.


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
NO-ENTRY


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Menziesia is a desirable ornamental due its crimson-orange autumn
foliage [26].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Menziesia is mostly threatened by logging activities.  Following
clearcutting of Pacific silver fir and mountain hemlock, menziesia
exhibits a difficult time regenerating [6].  In northwestern Montana,
menziesia decreased considerably from its high abundance following a
clearcut in an old-growth stand [2].  Soil layers restricting root
growth and high water tables are common enough that compaction or
erosion-causing activities should be carefully controlled [6].

There appears to be little destruction of mature menziesia plants in
spruce-fir forests when selective logging is done during the winter [9].
If menziesia is a major component of the mature forest understory, it
will continue to dominate the postharvest plant community [10].

Mechanical site preparation:  Coates [8] found that recovery of
menziesia on Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir sites after clipping and
mechanical scarification was very limited and confined to the production
of new shoots from buds on old stems rather than from basal sprouts or
suckers.  Two seasons after cutting, new shoots had not reached the
height of precut stems, and did not overtop spruce or pine seedlings
planted at the time of cutting.

Menziesia control by Esteron brush killer was best achieved when this
herbicide was mixed with diesel and sprayed by helicopter from 150 to
200 feet (46-61 m) high [40].  After 2 years, Tordon 101 and Banvel 720
killed 100 percent of menziesia when sprayed on leaf foliage [39].

Related categories for Species: Menziesia ferruginea | Menziesia