A Descriptive Survey of the Woody Phreatophytes on the Arkansas River in Kansas

The study was conducted to determine the distribution, structural characteristics, and total and relative amounts of woody phreatophytes which occurred along 250 miles of the Arkansas River Valley in Western Kansas. Floodplain phreatophytes in the arid and semiarid regions of the Western states present a dual problem; through transpiration they waste large quantities of water in river basins, and by choking river channels they create a flood hazard. Three types or communities of woody phreatophyte vegetation, based on dominant species, were arbitrarily established and mapped on aerial photographs. Seventeen line transects, spaced approximately two townships apart, were systematically located along the river. The lines were positioned perpendicular to the river channel and extended through the entire band of woody vegetation on both sides. Foliage cover, height, intercept crown depth, and volume density were determined for each woody species along each transect. The woody vegetation consisted primarily of three species: cottonwood (Populus sargentii), salt cedar (Tamarix ramosissima), and willow (Salix spp). In the extreme Western counties salt cedar dominated the woody vegetation while cottonwood became increasingly important eastward. Willow was less abundant, but quite consistent throughout the entire area. In the extreme Eastern region there was an increase in various “other” woody species; however, cottonwood still remained the dominant