Klamath County, Oregon – To rebuild native plant species over roughly 1,525 acres in Klamath County, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is poised to start a major aerial seeding project. The initiative to restore land impacted by fire and invading species will be supervised by the Klamath Falls Field Office. Scheduled to start in December, seeding procedures depend on good weather.
Three main sites include the Van Meter Fire area on Stukel Mountain near Weber Road and sagebrush restoration sites near the Town of Bonanza, specifically Harpold Ridge and Windy Ridge 4. The BLM aims to restore the local environment by reinstalling locally appropriate shrubs, grasses, and forbs, therefore preventing the growth of invading annual grasses including cheatgrass, medusahead rye, and North African grass. Unchecked, these invading species can upset ecosystems, raise fire risk, and outcompete local plants.
In the impacted regions, the BLM sprayed pesticides to control invading grasses before the seeding operations. The optimum possibility of the newly sown seeds to take root and flourish depends on this preparation activity. The native seed mix has been carefully selected to include species such as mountain big sagebrush, bitterbrush, Idaho fescue, squirreltail, Sandberg’s bluegrass, bluebunch wheatgrass, Great Basin wildrye, yarrow, sulphur buckwheat, and tapertip hawksbeard. These plants give local animals vital places to live in addition to enhancing soil stability and diversity.
Maps showing the treatment zones will be displayed beside main roads heading into the project regions to keep the public informed. The airborne seeding operation is likely to take up to two weeks to finish; mostly, weather patterns will determine the progress. The BLM emphasizes that local participation and cooperation are still very imoortnat components of this effort at restoration.
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Klamath County’s restoration efforts complement the BLM’s more general dedication to preserve strong ecosystems and public lands. Focusing on native species, the agency aims to produce sustainable environments less vulnerable to the dangers presented by invading plants and wildfire. This project is one of many that demonstrate the BLM’s proactive approach to land management in the Pacific Northwest.
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Members of the public are encouraged to reach out to Trisha Roninger, KFFO Assistant Field Manager, at 541-886-4109 or Kerry Johnston, KFFO Botanist, for more specifics regarding the seeding activities.
Highlighting native species and ecological balance, this initiative plays a crucial role in helping Klamath County’s landscapes to be naturally beautiful and resilient.
