From the Proceedings of the 1977 Meetings of the Arizona Section - American Water Resources Assn. and the Hydrology Section - Arizona Academy of Science - April 15-16, 1977, Las Vegas, Nevada / The root system of shrub live oak (Quercus turbinella) was studied in an initial effort to classify the major Arizona chaparral shrubs as potential users of soil water based on root system characteristics. The root system was of the generalized type with a taproot, many deeply penetrating roots, and a strong lateral root system. Roots penetrated 21 feet to bedrock through cracks and fractures in the rocky regolith. A dense network of small surface laterals radiated from the root crown and permeated the upper foot of soil. Because of its root system, shrub live oak is well adapted to utilize both ephemeral surface soil moisture as well as deeply stored moisture. Emphasis is placed on the importance of a knowledge of the root systems of chaparral shrubs and depth of the regolith in planning vegetation conversions to increase water yield.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:arizona.edu/oai:arizona.openrepository.com:10150/300998 |
| Date | 16 April 1977 |
| Creators | Davis, Edwin A. |
| Contributors | USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Forestry Sciences Laboratory, Tempe, Arizona |
| Publisher | Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science |
| Source Sets | University of Arizona |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text, Proceedings |
| Rights | Copyright ©, where appropriate, is held by the author. |
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