Does Wildfire and Cheatgrass Invasion in a Sage- steppe Ecosystem Change Soil Texture?

Fire and land-use changes influence vegetation types and alter below-ground carbon storage and soil characteristics; additionally, shrub-steppe environments are prone to cheatgrass invasion and subsequent alterations in soil morphology and characteristics following fire. We compared soil particle size, texture, consistence, structure, color and pH among adjacent but distinct sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp.), cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum) communities established following a 1983 fire in the Kuna Butte area of southwestern Idaho, a site underlain by basalt and mantled with loess. Soil characteristics were compared in qualitative field soil profiles (two pits per vegetation type) and laboratory hydrometer analyses from paired sites in different vegetation types. Our data does not support differences in soil particle size (silt, clay, sand) among vegetation types; however, particle size and distribution varied with depth within a single soil pit. Field texture classifications and hydrometer results indicate silt-loam was the most common soil type. We found no substantive change in soil texture with change in vegetation type. Does wildfire and cheatgrass invasion in a sage-steppe ecosystem change soil texture