Carnegie Institution of Washington Publication Volume 292 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1920 edition. Excerpt: ...Lincoln, is shown in plate 18, A. Artemisia filifolia. The sand-sage is often a very important species in the structure of mixed-prairie vegetation in sandy areas. This is due both to its shrubby habit and its great abundance. It is indicative of a light type of soil with considerable moisture penetration. It rarely occurs on the more compact silt-loam soils. Two large specimens were examined on a fairly well-covered area on a sandhill. The root system is dominated by astrong tap-root (plate 19, A), from which arise great numbers of long, profusely branched laterals. One tap-root was traced to a depth of over 8 feet. The strong, vertically descending, woody tap-root tapers gradually and uniformly. Some of the larger branches had a lateral spread of 4 or 5 feet and reached depths of 4 to over 6 feet. Most of the branches, both large and small, originated in the surface 3 feet of soil, and with their profuse laterals formed an extensive absorbing system in the surface 3 or 4 feet of sand. Little difference was found between these plants and thoise of the same species excavated near Colorado Springs (Weaver, 1919:73. Muhlenbergia pungens.---This grass is a regular component of blowout communities and is not infrequently dominant. It is characterized by tufted stems which arise from rootstocks and form cushions or mats that lie close to the sand (plate 9, c) and by scabrous, narrow, rigid leaves. This important sandhill grass was examined about 40 miles southeast of Colorado Springs, on the rim and grassy top of a blowout, where it was growing very abundantly. It was found to have a rather shallow but widely spreading root; system, none of the roots penetrating the dry sand to a greater depth than 2.8 eet. Careful examination of this species...