Feasibility of Utilizing Native Grasses and Forbs in Lieu of Exotic Cool Season Grasses on Roadside Rights-of-Way

Bollinger, Wesley; Bhattarai, Rabin; Matthews, Jeffrey W.

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Feasibility of Utilizing Native Grasses and Forbs in Lieu of Exotic Cool Season Grasses on Roadside Rights-of-Way

2025-05-15
By Bollinger, Wesley ; Bhattarai, Rabin ; Matthews, Jeffrey W.

File Language:

English

Details

Creators:

Bollinger, Wesley ; Bhattarai, Rabin ; Matthews, Jeffrey W.
Corporate Creators:

Purdue University. Joint Transportation Research Program
Corporate Contributors:

Indiana. Department of Transportation ; United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Highway Administration
Subject/TRT Terms:

Environmental Quality Feasibility Analysis Grasslands Invasive Plants Landscaping Plants Right Of Way (Traffic) Roadside Seeding Soil Components Soil Quality Surveys Vascular Plants
Publication/ Report Number:

FHWA/IN/JTRP-2025/14
Resource Type:

Tech Report
Geographical Coverage:

United States ; Indiana
Edition:

Final Report
Corporate Publisher:

Purdue University. Joint Transportation Research Program
Abstract:

We assessed the status of 34 native species plantings along roadsides in Indiana and Illinois and evaluated soil conditions, distance from road, and surrounding landscape cover to determine which factors led to successful long-term establishment of plantings. Cover by seeded native species and native species overall increased with distance from road and decreased with increasing soil nitrate and phosphorous. Number of native species and seeded native species increased with distance from road and greater seed mix diversity. In contrast, richness of non-native, non-seeded species was greater at shorter distances from road. Across all sites,84 of the 150 native species seeded at sites were never observed in our surveys, but 28 native species were observed at more than half of the sites in which they were seeded. 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.
Format:

PDF
Funding:

SPR-4810
Collection(s):

US Transportation Collection
Main Document Checksum:

urn:sha-512:0d49ffac3a55cd826ab38dff52076fcfec3e1e012eeec0714a093635037e284a2a8e749084579a181619ab050730cdb30582fba911a3708674c8dfa7eb6babd3
Download URL:

https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/89214/dot_89214_DS1.pdf
File Type:

[PDF - 1.68 MB ]

File Language:

English

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