Timber Oatgrass

More info for the terms: prescribed fire, restoration

The Research Project Summary
Vegetation response to restoration treatments in ponderosa pine-Douglas-fir forests of western Montana
provides information on prescribed fire and postfire response of plant community species, including
timber oatgrass, that was not available when this species review was written.

timber oatgrass

intermediate oatgrass

wild oat grass

More info for the term: cover

The degree to which timber oatgrass provides cover has been rated as follows [12]: UT WY Small mammals Good Fair Small nongame birds Fair Fair Upland game birds Fair Fair Waterfowl Poor Poor

More info for the term: caespitose

Timber oatgrass is a native, strongly caespitose, perennial bunchgrass [23,67]. The erect culms are densely tufted and generally reach 4 to 20 inches (10-50 cm) in height [62]. Leaves are mainly basal, flat or involute [69]. The old sheaths and blades are often persistent and wither at the base of the plant [23]. The inflorescence is a narrow panicle, often 1-sided, with short mostly erect branches generally bearing 4 to 9 spikelets [10,23]. One- to 2-flowered spikelets occasionally occur in the axils of the lower leaves [69]. With age, the culms often separate at the nodes where these seed-bearing spikelets are borne. Timber oatgrass has a shallow and fibrous root system [58].

Timber oatgrass is widely distributed in North America from Alaska eastward to Newfoundland and south to northern California, Arizona, and New Mexico [10,22,30]. It occurs in northern Michigan and the Black Hills of South Dakota [21,58,69].

More info for the terms: fire regime, fire-return interval, forest, grassland, seed, shrub, tree, woodland

In the Pacific Northwest, timber oatgrass is "moderately resistant" to fire [67]. Postfire regeneration occurs through seed and recovery is generally complete within 5 to 10 years [33,67].

FIRE REGIMES:
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under "Find FIRE REGIMES".

For further information on FIRE REGIMES in forest and woodland communities, see the FEIS Species Summaries on these dominant tree species:

Species Fire-return interval interior ponderosa pine 2-45 years western juniper 7-100 years lodgepole pine 25-300 years For further information on FIRE REGIMES in grassland and shrub communities, see the FEIS Species Summaries on:
basin big sagebrush
bluebunch wheatgrass
Idaho fescue
rough fescue

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More info for the term: chamaephyte

Chamaephyte

More info for the term: tundra

Timber oatgrass grows in a wide range of habitats including rock outcrops, sphagnum bogs, dry meadows, grassy balds, and on alluvial flats of river floodplains [3,29,30,53]. It occurs on dry to moist sites from the prairies and grasslands to rocky alpine ridges [22]. In parts of the northern Rocky Mountains timber oatgrass is locally common in subalpine meadows in the fir-spruce zone [40,47]. In British Columbia, it grows in alpine tundra zones [1] and in the Sierra Nevada of California, it occurs in mountain meadows [56]. In fescue grasslands, timber oatgrass occurs in small patches or as a "fairly constant scattering" across the stand [24].

At high elevations timber oatgrass is most abundant in subalpine and alpine parks and meadows but also occurs in openings in upper elevation coniferous types, including fir-spruce and lodgepole pine communities [58,65,69]. It is common in ponderosa pine forests of the Black Hills of South Dakota [59].

Across its wide range, timber oatgrass grows from sea level to more than 12,000 feet (3660 m) in elevation [30]. Generalized elevational ranges of timber oatgrass are as follows [12,61,58,69]:

7,500 to 12,800 feet (2286-3901 m) in CO 3,200 to 8,900 feet ( 975-2713 m) in MT 4,950 to 6,780 feet (1509-2067 m) in SD 8,000 to 12,000 feet (2440-3660 m) in UT 5,000 to 11,000 feet (1981-3353 m) in WY Sites at high elevations are often rocky with permeable, well-drained, shallow to deep soils [22,27,34]. Often, soils are characterized by relatively high soil moisture derived from snowmelt above [13]. Soils are commonly derived from shale, limestone, and other sedimentary materials, or from granite or redeposited volcanics [25,27]. Timber oatgrass commonly grows on loam and silt-loam soils [30]. Growth is described as good on organic and andic soils [12].

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This species is known to occur in association with the following cover types (as classified by the Society of American Foresters):

206 Engelmann spruce-subalpine fir

210 Interior Douglas-fir

211 White fir

216 Blue spruce

217 Aspen

218 Lodgepole pine

237 Interior ponderosa pine

238 Western juniper

243 Sierra Nevada mixed conifer

244 Pacific ponderosa pine-Douglas-fir

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This species is known to occur in the following ecosystem types (as named by the U.S. Forest Service in their Forest and Range Ecosystem [FRES] Type classification):

FRES20 Douglas-fir

FRES21 Ponderosa pine

FRES23 Fir-spruce

FRES26 Lodgepole pine

FRES28 Western hardwoods

FRES29 Sagebrush

FRES36 Mountain grasslands

FRES37 Mountain meadows

FRES38 Plains grasslands

FRES44 Alpine

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This species is known to occur in association with the following plant community types (as classified by Küchler 1964):

More info for the terms: forest, woodland

K011 Western ponderosa forest

K012 Douglas-fir forest

K015 Western spruce-fir forest

K017 Black Hills pine forest

K018 Pine-Douglas-fir forest

K019 Arizona pine forest

K021 Southwestern spruce-fir forest

K024 Juniper steppe woodland

K050 Fescue-wheatgrass

K052 Alpine meadows and barren

K055 Sagebrush steppe

K063 Foothills prairie

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This species is known to occur in association with the following Rangeland Cover Types (as classified by the Society for Range Management, SRM):

More info for the terms: grassland, herb, woodland

102 Idaho fescue

107 Western juniper/big sagebrush/bluebunch wheatgrass

110 Ponderosa pine-grassland

213 Alpine grassland

216 Montane meadows

305 Idaho fescue-Richardson needlegrass

306 Idaho fescue-slender wheatgrass

312 Rough fescue-Idaho fescue

313 Tufted hairgrass-sedge

323 Shrubby cinquefoil-rough fescue

410 Alpine rangeland

411 Aspen woodland

613 Fescue grassland

902 Alpine herb

909 Freshwater marsh

Timber oatgrass is often top-killed by fire. However, some individuals may survive [67].

Timber oatgrass provides some forage for all classes of livestock and wildlife. It is especially valued as spring forage because it greens up before many other plants begin growth [58]. During the summer months in Montana, mountain goats feed on timber oatgrass [51]. In western Alberta, it is used to at least some degree by feral horses during all months of the year [49]. In the Black Hills of South Dakota, timber oatgrass forms an important part of cattle diets during June through September [63].

More info for the terms: climax, forbs, forest, grassland, natural, shrub, shrubland

Timber oatgrass is an indicator of climax in a number of
grassland and forest habitat types or plant communities, including ponderosa pine
(Pinus ponderosa), lodgepole pine (P. contorta), Douglas-fir
(Pseudotsuga menziesii), subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa), sagebrush
(Artemisia spp.)-grass, silver sagebrush (A. cana), western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis),
quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides), and some white fir (Abies concolor) types.

Timber oatgrass commonly occurs in small, isolated grasslands of
northwestern Montana that are considered mixtures of palouse and
Alberta fescue (Festuca spp.) grasslands with species such as bluebunch wheatgrass
(Pseudoroegneria spicata), Idaho fescue (F. idahoensis),
and rough fescue (F. altaica) [9,30].
It is rarely found in the Palouse prairie [30]. Timber oatgrass
grows in small openings surrounded by lodgepole pine
and in groves of quaking aspen [30]. Timber oatgrass occurs as a
dominant in fescue-oatgrass (Danthonia spp.) associations in Alberta and
Saskatchewan [6,30]. In subalpine meadow communities of the
northern Rocky Mountains and Pacific Northwest, timber oatgrass
commonly grows with species such as wedge-leaf
cinquefoil (Potentilla diversifolia),
reedgrass (Calamagrostis spp.), and sedges (Carex spp.)
[13,42]. In quaking aspen and ponderosa pine communities of South
Dakota, common associates include bearberry (Arctostaphylos
uva-ursi), and bluegrass (Poa spp.) [59]. Timber
oatgrass occurs with shrubby cinquefoil (P. fruticosa) in
riparian shrub communities of Montana and Nevada [38,46,60].

A variety of forbs and grasses occur with timber oatgrass in
grasslands and shrublands of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado,
including slender cinquefoil (P. gracilis), oneflower fleabane (Erigeron simplex),
alpine oreoxis (Oreoxis alpina ssp. puberulenta),
sibbaldia (Sibbaldia procumbens), low
goldenrod (Solidago multiradiata), tufted hairgrass
(Deschampsia caespitosa), prairiesmoke avens (Geum triflorum), bearded wheatgrass
(Elymus caninus), blue wildrye (E. glaucus ssp. glaucus), prairie
Junegrass (Koeleria macrantha),
needlegrass (Stipa spp.),
and Parry oatgrass (D. parryi) [2,5,28,43,61]

Publications listing timber oatgrass as an indicator include the following:



A preliminary classification of the natural vegetation of Colorado [2]

Summary flora of riparian shrub communities of the Intermountain
region with emphasis on willows [16]

Grassland, shrubland, and forestland habitat types of the White
River-Arapaho National Forest [19]

Plant associations of the Wallowa-Snake Province: Wallowa-Whitman
National Forest [24]

Habitat types on selected parts of the Gunnison and Uncompahgre National
Forests [28]

Preliminary riparian community type classification for Nevada
[38]

The vegetation of Alberta [41]

Grassland and shrubland habitat types of western Montana [43]

Classification of deer habitat in the ponderosa pine forest of the
Black Hills, South Dakota [59]

Riparian classification for the Upper Salmon/Middle Fork Salmon
River drainages, Idaho [60]

More info for the term: graminoid

graminoid

More info for the term: codominant

Timber oatgrass has basal meristems and is much more tolerant
of grazing than many of its associates [36]. In
California, it is able to withstand
heavy grazing [50]. In fescue (Festuca spp.) grasslands of
Alberta, timber oatgrass is a codominant only in grazed or
mowed areas [9]. It often becomes common after
grazing in these grasslands [42]. In a
north-central Idaho study, timber oatgrass increased with
cattle grazing [32].

In the mountain and southern Great Plains
physiographic regions of New Mexico, and in the mountains of
Wyoming, timber oatgrass decreased in response
to grazing pressure [66]. Costello and Schwan [8] report
that timber oatgrass is a common component of ponderosa pine
ranges in excellent condition, but is scarcer on ranges in
good condition.

Timber oatgrass is one of the more productive grasses on
subalpine domestic sheep ranges of Wyoming.
Herbage yields of oatgrass may reach 164 lbs/acre (green weight)
on these sites [25]. Mueggler [44] reports
that in western Montana, timber oatgrass produces 4 to 9 times
more biomass during "best" years than during "poorest" years. In
ponderosa pine stands of South Dakota, greatest understory
production of timber oatgrass was observed in pole-sized stands
within clearcuts [64].

More info for the terms: phenology, seed

Dittberner and Olson [12] rated timber oatgrass as fair in energy value
and poor in protein value. In Utah, it is described as low in protein
and phosphorus and high in crude fiber at all growth stages [65].
Nutritional composition (based on dry matter) of timber oatgrass is as
follows [26]:
Leaf Heading Seed Cured Weathered
Stage Ripe
Dry matter % 93.45 92.40 93.88 92.85 94.03
Protein (Nx6.25) 9.35 7.85 6.98 5.20 3.63
Crude fat % 3.15 3.40 3.45 3.85 3.10
Crude fiber % 28.50 28.25 28.32 31.05 33.97
Ash % 9.40 6.70 7.98 9.90 8.77
Calcium % 0.36 0.36 0.32 0.32 0.32
Phosphorus % 0.13 0.14 0.11 0.08 0.08
Carotene mg/kg 26.45 55.70 35.18 8.60 0.87



Nutritional values from an Alberta study during various
phenological stages are as follows [4]:
Leaf stage Heading Seed ripe Cured Weathered
Digestible protein(%) 3.9 2.8 2.4 1.8 1.3
Cellulose(%) 33.8 30.1 32.6 36.7 39.0


Nutritional value of timber oatgrass can vary according to habitat as
well as by phenology. Severson and Uresk [52] report the
following values in the Black Hills of South Dakota:

pole stand sapling
(%) (%)
crude protein 5.3-8.4 5.6-7.2
acid detergent fiber 41.8-43.5 40.8-42.7
acid detergent lignin 5.4-7.2 5.1-6.9
ash 4.75-6.22 5.06-5.77
calcium 0.25-0.29 0.25-0.29
phosphorus 0.19-0.23 0.18-0.20

AK AZ CA CO ID
ME MI MT NV NH
NM NY NC OR SD
UT VT WA WY

AB BC MB NF ON
PQ SK

Timber oatgrass is palatable for all classes of livestock and wildlife.
Utilization of timber oatgrass occurs mostly in the spring when
palatability is considered good [57,65]. After spring, it is only
moderately palatable and not highly productive [65]. In the northern
Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming, Uresk and Paintner [63]
reported that timber oatgrass was utilized by cattle throughout the
grazing season (June through September). In the central Black Hills of
South Dakota, the heaviest use of timber oatgrass by cattle occurred in
June [62].

The palatability of timber oatgrass to livestock and wildlife species in
several western states has been rated as follows [12,43]:

MT SD UT WY
Cattle Fair-Good Good Good Fair
Domestic sheep Fair-Good ---- Fair Fair
Horses Good ---- Good Fair
Pronghorn ---- ---- Poor Poor
Elk Good ---- Good Good
Mule deer Fair ---- Good Poor
White-tailed deer Fair ---- ---- Poor
Small mammals ---- ---- Fair Fair
Small nongame birds ---- ---- Poor Fair
Upland game birds ---- ---- Fair Poor
Waterfowl ---- ---- Poor Poor

More info on this topic.

More info for the term: seed

Timber oatgrasss begins growth early in the spring [57]. Flowering occurs from June to August, depending on the location [50]. The seed crop is disseminated during August and September [58].

At lower elevations in California, flowerstalks may appear in April, with the seed cast by June [50]. At higher elevations, these dates are correspondingly later. In Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming, flowering begins in July and ends in August [12].

In western Montana, seasonal development varies according to aspect as follows [44]:

Southwest Northeast range mean duration range mean duration date (days) date (days) growth starts 4/28-5/24 5/12 10.2 4/28-5/29 5/16 11.9 1st bloom 6/10-7/14 6/25 7.8 6/8-7/8 6/27 10.0 blooming over 6/29-7/20 7/9 6.2 7/1-7/21 7/13 6.2 dissemination starts 7/22-8/10 7/30 6.3 7/26-8/21 8/3 6.1 plant dried 8/18-10/15 9/25 17.4 9/10-11/2 10/6 13.6

More info for the terms: cover, frequency

Timber oatgrass is "moderate" in postfire regeneration response in the Pacific Northwest, (having a 35 to 64% chance that at least 50% of the population will survive or reestablish after fire). In the Pacific Northwest, it takes 5 to 10 years to approximate preburn frequency or coverage [67]. In Washington, levels of timber oatgrass and other grasses were not affected immediately after fire in a timbered area. However, several grasses, including timber oatgrass, began to increase 2 years after the burn. By the 5th year after fire, timber oatgrass was the dominant grass on burned plots [39].

Timber oatgrass increased after a mid-summer fire in the Pacific Northwest [67]. Two seasons after a May burn in northwestern Montana, timber oatgrass cover increased by 7.5% over preburn levels [7].

More info for the term: graminoid

Tussock graminoid
Initial-offsite colonizer (off-site, initial community)

More info for the term: seed

Timber oatgrass reproduces by seed and tillering [57]. This grass also produces self-fertilized spikelets in the axils of the lower leaves [69]. These cleistogamous spikelets enable the plant to reproduce even if development of the flower stalks is retarded [50]. In the Intermountain region, timber oatgrass is apparently largely apomictic (setting seed without fertilization), as the anthers are mostly abortive [10].

Mean germination of seed collected in southeastern British Columbia was 22.2% under laboratory conditions [54].

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This species can be found in the following regions of the western United States (according to the Bureau of Land Management classification of Physiographic Regions of the western United States):

2 Cascade Mountains

4 Sierra Mountains

5 Columbia Plateau

6 Upper Basin and Range

8 Northern Rocky Mountains

9 Middle Rocky Mountains

11 Southern Rocky Mountains

12 Colorado Plateau

15 Black Hills Uplift

16 Upper Missouri Basin and Broken Lands

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More info for the terms: climax, forest, severity

Timber oatgrass is an indicator of climax in a number of subalpine and alpine grasslands, fescue grasslands, and forest communities. According to Beetle [3] timber oatgrass is "indicative of long-standing stability in the vegetation." In Nevada, it is often associated with "stable" riparian communities [38].

Depending on the type and severity of disturbance, timber oatgrass is also a constituent in some early seral communities. In lodgepole pine forests of Wyoming, timber oatgrass is most common in immature stands as compared with mature stands [3]. Similarly in ponderosa pine stands of South Dakota, it is more abundant and more productive in clearcut and heavily thinned sapling and pole stands (measured 8 to 15 years after treatment) than in unthinned stands [64].

The scientific name of timber oatgrass is
Danthonia intermedia Vasey (Poaceae) [17,20,48,68,69]. The
genus Danthonia is described as "among the most variable" of the grass family in terms of morphology,
cytology, and anatomical characteristics [11]. According to Koterba and Habeck [30] "the ecological versatility exhibited by
Danthonia intermedia supports the idea that this species is composed of ecotypes."

Timber oatgrass is rated as having low to moderate potential for erosion control and short-term revegetation, and moderate potential for long-term revegetation projects [12].

Danthonia intermedia Vasey, Bull. Torrey Club 10: 52. 1883
Danthonia intermedia Cusickii T. A. Williams, Circ. U. S. Dep. Agr. Agrost. 30: 7. 1901. (Type from Oregon, Cusick 2427.)
Mcratlirepta intermedia Piper, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 11: 122. 1906. (Based on Danthonia intermedia Vasey.)
Mcrathrepta inlermediaCtisickiiVpeT,Conir.V.S.'iia...'Herh. II: 122. 1906. (Based on Dan/Aonta intermedia Cusickii T. A. Williams.)
Pentameris intermedia Nelson & Macbr. Bot. Gaz. 56: 470. 1913. (Based on Danthonia intermedia Vasey.)
Danthonia Cusickii Hitchc. Am. Jour. Bot. 2: 305. 1915. (Based on D. intermedia Cusickii T. A. Williams.)
Culms densely tufted, 10-50 cm. tall; sheaths glabrous (the lower rarely pilose), with long hairs in the throat; blades subinvolute, or those of the culm flat, glabrous or sparsely pilose; panicle purpUsh, narrow, few-flowered, 2-5 cm. long, the branches appressed, bearing each a single spikelet; glumes about 15 mm. long; lemmas appressed-pilose on the margin below and on the callus, the back glabrous, 7-8 mm. long, including the short-awned teeth; terminal segment of the dorsal awn 5-S mm. long; palea narrowed above, notched, nearly as long as the lemma.
Type localtty: Mount Albert. Canada (O. D. .Allen).
Distribution: Meadows and bogs, northern and alpine regions, from Newfoundland and Quebec to Alaska, and southward to northern Michigan, New Mexico, and California.

Perenn ials, Terrestrial, not aquatic, Rhizomes present, Stems nodes swollen or brittle, Stems erect or ascending, Stems caespitose, tufted, or clustered, Stems terete, round in cross section, or polygonal, Stem internodes hollow, Stems with inflorescence less than 1 m tall, Stems, culms, or scapes exceeding basal leaves, Leaves mostly basal, below middle of stem, Leaves conspicuously 2-ranked, distichous, Leaves sheathing at base, Leaf sheath mostly open, or loose, Leaf sheath smooth, glabrous, Leaf sheath hairy, hispid or prickly, Leaf sheath hairy at summit, throat, or collar, Leaf sheath and blade differentiated, Leaf blades linear, Leaf blades very narrow or filiform, less than 2 mm wide, Leaf blades 2-10 mm wide, Leaf blades mostly flat, Leaf blade margins folded, involute, or conduplicate, Leaf blades mostly glabrous, Leaf blades more or less hairy, Leaf blades scabrous, roughened, or wrinkled, Ligule present, Ligule a fringe of hairs, Inflorescence terminal, Inflorescence a contracted panicle, narrowly paniculate, branches appressed or ascending, Inflorescence solitary, with 1 spike, fascicle, glomerule, head, or cluster per stem or culm, Flowers bisexual, Spikelets pedicellate, Spikelets laterally compressed, Spikelet 3-10 mm wide, Spikelets with 3-7 florets, Spikelets with 8-40 florets, Spikelets solitary at rachis nodes, Spikelets all alike and fertille, Spikelets bisexual, Inflorescence disarticulating between nodes or joints of rachis, rachis fragmenting, Spikelets disarticulating above the glumes, glumes persistent, Spikelets disarticulating beneath or between the florets, Rachilla or pedicel glabrous, Glumes present, empty bracts, Glumes 2 clearly present, Glumes equal or subequal, Glumes equal to or longer than adjacent lemma, Glumes 4-7 nerved, Lemma coriaceous, firmer or thicker in texture than the glumes, Lemma 5-7 nerved, Lemma 8-15 nerved, Lemma apex dentate, 2-fid, Lemma distinctly awned, more than 2-3 mm, Lemma with 3 awns, Lem ma awn less than 1 cm long, Lemma awned from tip, Lemma awn from sinus of bifid apex, Lemma awn twisted, spirally coiled at base, like a corkscrew, Lemma awn once geniculate, bent once, Lemma margins thin, lying flat, Lemma straight, Palea present, well developed, Palea about equal to lemma, Palea 2 nerved or 2 keeled, Stamens 3, Styles 2-fid, deeply 2-branched, Stigmas 2, Fruit - caryopsis, Caryopsis ellipsoid, longitudinally grooved, hilum long-linear.

Danthonia intermedia is a species of grass known by the common names timber oatgrass, intermediate oatgrass, and mountain wild-oat grass. This clumping erect perennial grass is native to North America, where it is widespread across most of Canada and along the western United States into California. It is a plant of the plains as well as forested, mountainous, alpine environments.

Danthonia intermedia in mountain meadow at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)

The bunchgrass reaches about half a meter in height at maximum. Its leaves are short and mostly basal. Each inflorescence is a narrow cluster of up to about ten spikelets, each spikelet holding 3 to 6 florets. The flowers are cleistogamous, meaning they remain closed and pollinate themselves. This grass also sometimes undergoes apomixis, reproduction without fertilization. This independence of the need for pollination between individuals is one reason why this grass is so widespread and able to tolerate a variety of climates.

This is a desirable grass for grazing land because it begins growing earlier in the spring than most other grasses, and it tolerates heavy grazing better than some other grasses because of its basal meristem, that is, new growth occurs low on the grass instead of on the tip where it can be chewed off. This grass is an indicator of ecological climax in many ecosystems.