ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Utilizing native plants in lieu of exotic cool season grasses on roadside rights-of-way
Research Advisors: Dr. Jeffrey Matthews and Dr. Rabin Bhattarai
Zoom link: https://tinyurl.com/bptm3p76
To provide evidence-based revisions to the IDOT and InDOT roadside specifications manuals, I reviewed native species usage in roadside manuals of midwestern DOTs, finding many different approaches to native seeding and making recommendations for improvements based on best-practices. I also assessed native mixes competetiveness with existing IDOT mixes in cover and richness experiments, finding differences by mix but overall positive effects of native mixes. I surveyed native plantings along roadsides in IN and IL, evaluated variables to determine which factors led to long-term establishment, and found cover by seeded native species and native species overall increased with distance from road and decreased with increasing soil N and P. I found that number of native and seeded native species increased with distance from road and greater mix diversity. 28 species were observed at more than half of their seeded sites. Our results suggest that native plantings can persist on roadsides for several years after planting, but that specific site-level factors increase the likelihood of long-term success.
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