Establishment of Honey Mesquite and Huisache on a Native Pasture

Abstract

Scarified honey mesquite [Prosopis juliflora (Swartz) DC. var. glandulosa (Torr.) Cockerell] and huisache [Acacia farnesiana (L.) Willd.] seeds were broadcast on a native pasture to study their ability to establish plants under several mechanical and chemical treatments. Plots were subjected to mowing, disking, or herbicide treatments. After 5 years, no more than 1 and 2% of the original honey mesquite and huisache seeds ultimately produced established plants. However, no treatment entirely prevented the establishment of either species. During the 3- to 5-year period following seeding, honey mesquite plant numbers increased with close mowing (3 to 5 cm high) and high mowing (25 to 30 cm high) without fertilization. Huisache plant numbers increased most prominently on the untreated plots, on plots mowed close and high but without fertilizer, and on plots sprayed with a 1.1 kg/ha of 2,4-D [(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid] the year of seeding. Overall, the most effective treatment for controlling both species was 1.1 kg/ha of picloram (4-amino-3,5,6-trichloropicolinic acid) applied during the fall following seeding in the spring. Neither the treatments nor the brush cover affected herbaceous vegetative cover or estimated herbage yield during the 3- to 5-year period following seeding.