Salt Kill Revegetation Field Day

Story by John Paclik, NRCS District Conservationist
Graham Service Center, Graham, Texas

Approximately 40 people attended a field day, Nov. 1, 2006, at the J.W. Guinn Ranch southwest of Olney, Texas, to see the results of a salt kill revegation project in Young County.

There are many unproductive salt-scarred areas in north central Texas which are occurring naturally or from oil field activity. The loss of vegetation causes water quality degradation and sedimentation downstream.

“Our intention was to do a turn-key job trying to reclaim 10 acres of land gullied from saltwater, and in this case, caused by old oilfield activity,” said John Paclik, NRCS district conservationist in Graham. “Last winter this area was shaped, fertilized, and disked a couple times and then seeded with a mixture of 14 different species of plants to see which would be the most adaptive to the saline soils. A layer of switchgrass hay was applied as a mulch to provide protection from intensive rainfall, and to keep the soil shaded and moist to allow for better germination of the seeds.”

Guinn explained that his objective was to reclaim the area, and eventually, get a cover of vegetation. Gerald Voss, NRCS conservation technician at Throckmorton, talked about the shaping and smoothing process utilized in changing an extensive gullied area to a tillable area so a seedbed could be prepared. Sidney Paulson and Byron Lorenz, NRCS soil scientists, discussed soils information and the amount of salt in the soils.

Other speakers included Troy Reinke, NRCS range management specialist, who gave an overview of the 14 different species of seeds planted, and conducted a walking tour of the plants growing within the site. NRCS Agronomist Andy Spencer followed up with possible alternatives that are working at different levels of salt damage in the soil.

“We did not have the best spring and summer rains as we had hoped to make this a success,” Paclik said. “However, part of the project required fencing the area to protect it from grazing; therefore, allowing existing plants to get a good root system. With time, the area should have a decent plant cover that will eliminate the erosion problem and drastically improve the water quality downstream.”

Grant funds were received last fall through the 319 demonstration project program. These funds are set aside by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and funneled through the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and partnered with a local sponsor. Texas State Board Project Manager Lee Munz discussed the 319 project funds available through EPA during the field day.

The Young County Soil and Water Conservation District teamed up with other sponsors, including the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Young County Extension Service, and Turner Seed Company for the field day.
 

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