Plant-Soil-Environment Laboratory (FRESC)
We produce basic and applied science needed to manage landscapes in ways that make them resistant and resilient to stressors such as wildfire, exotic plant invasions, drought, and temperature extremes. These stressors impact ecosystem productivity and functioning and pose costly risks to human health and safety in the western United States. We team with other state and federal agencies to find efficient and effective ways of mitigating their impacts.
Our program integrates biophysical ecology, ecophysiology, ecohydrology, and biogeomorphology at scales ranging from plants to populations, communities, ecosystems and landscapes. Current projects evaluate emerging approaches for soil stabilization, control of exotic annual grasses, and restoration of desirable native perennials following wildfire in sagebrush steppe. Understanding plant adaptation to temperature and water limitation, and applying this knowledge to management practices such as post-fire restoration seeding or landscape vulnerability assessments, is a major focus.
Principal Investigator
Matt Germino - Supervisory Research Ecologist
Federal Staff
Cara Applestein - Ecologist
Krystal Busby - Ecologist
Bill Davidson - Ecologist
Scott Fordham - Biologist
Chad Kluender - Ecologist
Darius Liles - Biologist
Andrew Lague - Ecologist
Brynne Lazarus - Botanist
Jake Price - Ecologist
Contractors/Volunteers/Associates
Austin Davis
Toby Maxwell
Jayna Thompson
Chloe Watt
Science Themes of the FRESC Plant-Soil-Environment Laboratory are highlighted below.
If you are unable to access or download a product, email fresc_outreach@usgs.gov a request, including the full citation, or call (541) 750-1030.
Relationship of greater sage-grouse to natural and assisted recovery of key vegetation types following wildfire: Insights from scat
Statistical consideration of nonrandom treatment applications reveal region-wide benefits of widespread post-fire restoration action
A haploid pseudo-chromosome genome assembly for a keystone sagebrush species of western North American rangelands
How do accuracy and model agreement vary with versioning, scale, and landscape heterogeneity for satellite-derived vegetation maps in sagebrush steppe?
Plant community context controls short- vs. medium-term effects of pre-emergent herbicides on target and non-target species after fire
Greater sage-grouse respond positively to intensive post-fire restoration treatments
Monitoring for adaptive management of burned sagebrush-steppe rangelands: addressing variability and uncertainty on the 2015 Soda Megafire
Patterns of post-fire invasion of semiarid shrub-steppe reveals a diversity of invasion niches within an exotic annual grass community
Are drought indices and climate data good indicators of ecologically relevant soil moisture dynamics in drylands?
Bayesian modeling can facilitate adaptive management in restoration
Intraspecific variation mediates density dependence in a genetically diverse plant species
Weather affects post‐fire recovery of sagebrush‐steppe communities and model transferability among sites
If you are unable to access or download a product, email fresc_outreach@usgs.gov a request, including the full citation, or call (541) 750-1030.
The news stories below are short summaries of FIREss Team publications.
New Invasive Annual Grass Book Addresses Critical Questions for the Western U.S.
We produce basic and applied science needed to manage landscapes in ways that make them resistant and resilient to stressors such as wildfire, exotic plant invasions, drought, and temperature extremes. These stressors impact ecosystem productivity and functioning and pose costly risks to human health and safety in the western United States. We team with other state and federal agencies to find efficient and effective ways of mitigating their impacts.
Our program integrates biophysical ecology, ecophysiology, ecohydrology, and biogeomorphology at scales ranging from plants to populations, communities, ecosystems and landscapes. Current projects evaluate emerging approaches for soil stabilization, control of exotic annual grasses, and restoration of desirable native perennials following wildfire in sagebrush steppe. Understanding plant adaptation to temperature and water limitation, and applying this knowledge to management practices such as post-fire restoration seeding or landscape vulnerability assessments, is a major focus.
Principal Investigator
Matt Germino - Supervisory Research Ecologist
Federal Staff
Cara Applestein - Ecologist
Krystal Busby - Ecologist
Bill Davidson - Ecologist
Scott Fordham - Biologist
Chad Kluender - Ecologist
Darius Liles - Biologist
Andrew Lague - Ecologist
Brynne Lazarus - Botanist
Jake Price - Ecologist
Contractors/Volunteers/Associates
Austin Davis
Toby Maxwell
Jayna Thompson
Chloe Watt
Science Themes of the FRESC Plant-Soil-Environment Laboratory are highlighted below.
If you are unable to access or download a product, email fresc_outreach@usgs.gov a request, including the full citation, or call (541) 750-1030.
Relationship of greater sage-grouse to natural and assisted recovery of key vegetation types following wildfire: Insights from scat
Statistical consideration of nonrandom treatment applications reveal region-wide benefits of widespread post-fire restoration action
A haploid pseudo-chromosome genome assembly for a keystone sagebrush species of western North American rangelands
How do accuracy and model agreement vary with versioning, scale, and landscape heterogeneity for satellite-derived vegetation maps in sagebrush steppe?
Plant community context controls short- vs. medium-term effects of pre-emergent herbicides on target and non-target species after fire
Greater sage-grouse respond positively to intensive post-fire restoration treatments
Monitoring for adaptive management of burned sagebrush-steppe rangelands: addressing variability and uncertainty on the 2015 Soda Megafire
Patterns of post-fire invasion of semiarid shrub-steppe reveals a diversity of invasion niches within an exotic annual grass community
Are drought indices and climate data good indicators of ecologically relevant soil moisture dynamics in drylands?
Bayesian modeling can facilitate adaptive management in restoration
Intraspecific variation mediates density dependence in a genetically diverse plant species
Weather affects post‐fire recovery of sagebrush‐steppe communities and model transferability among sites
If you are unable to access or download a product, email fresc_outreach@usgs.gov a request, including the full citation, or call (541) 750-1030.
The news stories below are short summaries of FIREss Team publications.