SURVIVAL PATTERNS IN FOUR PRAIRIE GRASSES TRANSPLANTED TO CENTRAL TEXAS

Abstract

Transplanted clones of four widespread prairie grasses, Andropogon scoparius, A. gerardii, Panicum virgatum, and Sorghastrum nutans, that had survived in cultivation 1958‐1962 in central Texas were studied without cultivation 1963‐67 to determine survival patterns. In all four species, clones from northern and eastern sites in the United States were eliminated. Survival of A. scoparius was restricted to plants originating in central and southern Texas and in northern Mexico. Surviving clones of A. gerardii, P. virgatum, and S. nutans were chiefly of Texas origin but included other clones mostly from the south central United States. Population samples of the four species from a central Texas grassland community showed greatest survival in a multi‐ramet comparison of clones originating from North Dakota to Mexico City and in a multi‐clone comparison from six sites in Texas and one in New Mexico. While the superior adaptation to the local habitat by the local populations might have been expected, this study documented the survival potential of organisms in the local ecosystem.