[MAIPC] FW: Stilt grass question

Mon Sep 28 06:49:25 PDT 2015

I agree with Bud, and I was going to say Hollies and laurels/rhododendrons/azaleas generally prefer to grow in acidic soils.  You should also notice less stilt grass growing in pine forests and under large pines due to acidity of decomposing pine needles.

I'd further venture to say the rate of decomposition of the strong holly and laurel leaves may be playing a role. The dense lignin/cellulose content of holly leaves means it takes at least two years for the leaves to break down.  My thought is that these trees may be self mulching and stilt grass may have a hard time establishing in areas of dense, long lasting leaf litter.

Michael Ellis
Non-Native Invasive Plant Specialist
Natural and Historical Resources Division, Park Ranger Office
The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission
www.pgparks.com<http://www.pgparks.com>

240-429-5042<tel:240-429-5042>

_____________________________
From: Earl "Bud" Reaves Jr. <ipreav00 at aacounty.org<mailto:ipreav00 at aacounty.org>>
Sent: Monday, September 28, 2015 9:30 AM
Subject: Re: [MAIPC] FW: Stilt grass question
To: tomnjan2 <tomnjan2 at comcast.net<mailto:tomnjan2 at comcast.net>>
Cc: MA-IPC MA-IPC <maipc at lists.maipc.org<mailto:maipc at lists.maipc.org>>, <INVASIVES at listserv.umd.edu<mailto:INVASIVES at listserv.umd.edu>>

I think it may be a soil condition, specifically a low pH from the accumulation of leaf debris.  Stilt grass is known to prefer more basic soils.

On Mon, Sep 28, 2015 at 8:46 AM, tomnjan2 <tomnjan2 at comcast.net<mailto:tomnjan2 at comcast.net>> wrote:
There were areas that little light was clearly at play, but a blanketed grass area with a lone Holly still didn't have grass below. Tree heights were mixed, and many were in significant sunlight as well. This variety of holly is more open than common garden type.
Jan

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On Sep 28, 2015, at 8:03 AM, "Hughes, Jake" < jake_hughes at nps.gov<mailto:jake_hughes at nps.gov>> wrote:

My guess is that light limitation is at work.  Cole and Weltzin found the same pattern with paw paw (Asimina triloba):

Cole, P.G. and J.F. Weltzin. 2005. Light limitation creates patchy distribution of an invasive grass in eastern deciduous forests. Biological Invasions 7(3): 477-488.

On Mon, Sep 28, 2015 at 6:27 AM, Marc Imlay <ialm at erols.com<mailto:ialm at erols.com>> wrote:

Any response for Tom and Jan?
Marc Imlay, PhD, Chair, Biological control working Group
Conservation biologist, Park Ranger Office, Non-native Invasive Plant Control coordinator.
(301) 442-5657<tel:(301)%20442-5657> cell  ialm at erols.com<mailto:ialm at erols.com>
Natural and Historical Resources Division
The  Maryland-National   Capital   Park  and Planning Commission
www.pgparks.com<http://www.pgparks.com/>

-----Original Message-----
From: tomnjan2 [mailto:tomnjan2 at comcast.net<mailto:tomnjan2 at comcast.net>]
Sent: Monday, September 28, 2015 12:16 AM
To: Marc Imlay <ialm at erols.com<mailto:ialm at erols.com>>
Subject: Stilt grass question

Hi Marc,

Tom (Crone) and I were walking around the back end of Greenbelt Park today. He was checking on some multiflora rose he'd cut earlier as well stilt grass he cut. But I noticed something I hadn't before. There were large swathes of stilt grass that had bare patches within those areas. The common denominator was Holly tree leaf shed. We started searching elsewhere and found the same correlation. The stilt grass totally avoided wherever the dropped holly leaves landed. Have you seen this before, or know if there's a specific chemical in the leaf that inhibits or kills the grass? Or some other symbiotic relationship creating the inhibition? I'm really curious to know. As we were driving out of the park, I started looking at the mountain laurel and what I saw didn't seem to be surrounded by stilt grass either.

thanks

Jan Steiner

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