Knowra Prairie Prairie A North American grassland dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants, with few trees. Prairies range from tallgrass to shortgrass communities according to rainfall, soils, and disturbance.
Grassland fire ecology : The study of how fire shapes grassland organisms, processes, and landscapes. Periodic fires suppress many woody plants while favoring fire-adapted prairie grasses.
Grassland : An ecosystem dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants, with few trees. Prairie is the North American expression of this broad ecosystem type.
Prairie restoration : The practice of reestablishing native prairie plants and ecological processes on degraded or converted land. Restoration aims to recover prairie communities where cultivation or development removed them.
Prairie soil degradation : The decline of prairie soil quality through erosion, nutrient loss, compaction, or reduced organic matter. Cultivation and erosion have degraded soils once built by prairie vegetation.
Rain shadow : A dry region on the leeward side of a mountain range, created as descending air warms. The Rocky Mountains contribute to the westward decline in precipitation across the Great Plains.
Tallgrass prairie : A prairie community of tall grasses associated with relatively high rainfall in central North America. It represents the wetter, eastern end of the Great Plains grassland gradient.
Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve : A protected area in Kansas preserving a remnant of tallgrass prairie. It protects one of the largest surviving tallgrass prairie remnants.
Dust Bowl : A severe 1930s drought and dust-storm disaster in the Great Plains, intensified by agricultural practices. Plowing native grassland left exposed soil vulnerable during drought.
Grassland soil : Soil formed under grass-dominated vegetation, often enriched by roots and decomposing plant matter. Deep prairie roots help build the dark, organic-rich soils of the central plains.
Mixed grass prairie : A central Great Plains grassland containing both tall and short grasses. Its intermediate vegetation reflects conditions between wetter tallgrass and drier shortgrass prairie.
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