Wildflower Trails of Mississippi Sarah Kountouris Wildflower Trails

Wildflower Trails of Mississippi Sarah Kountouris

Wildflower Trails of Mississippi

Presentation • Overview of project • Steps to successfully establish wildflower areas • Current project sites • Field day/research

Wildflower Trail 1. Increase awareness and education of the importance of pollinators and their role in the environment 2. Increase awareness and education of the importance of native plants and their role in the environment 3. Enhance aesthetics through the natural beauty of wildflowers 4. Generate tourism through economic development

Wildflowers and rights-of-way • Lady Bird Johnson • Wildflower Center (1982) • > 30% of world’s native flora was at risk of extinction • Center was intended to help preserve and restore beauty and species richness in NA • Introduce people to beauty and diversity of native plants

Wildflowers and rights-of-way

Wildflowers and rights-of-way • 4, 092, 730 miles of roadways across US (Federal Highway Administration) • Estimated 11. 9 million acres in roadside right-of-ways • 77% regularly treated with herbicides • 75, 181 centerline road lane miles in Mississippi • 29, 640 miles or 139, 290 acres of right-of-ways maintained by MDOT – $44. 58/acre (MDOT maintenance) – $33. 21/acre (contract maintenance) – $4. 6 -6. 2 million in maintenance/year • Remainder maintained by other state, city, or county agencies

Right of way miles by state and function (adapted from Byrd 2015). State Roadwaya Railroadb Transmissionc Pipelined Alabama Mississippi 101, 811 75, 181 3, 194 2, 452 17, 404 9, 443 39, 612 30, 278 a. Source http: //www. fhwa. dot. gov/policyinformation/statistics/2012/hm 10. cfm 2011 STB Waybill Sample, American Association of Railroads c. Source EEI Statistical Handbook, 2012 Data, Edison Electric Institute d. Source US Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration http: //primis. phmsa. dot. gov/comm/States. htm? nocache=6839 accessed online 09/22/2014 b. Source

Florida DOT Study • • • March 2014 study 186, 121 ROW acres $33. 5 million (2011 -12) 25% mowing costs Economic value of ecosystem services

Ecosystem Service Value Additional Value if Including Sustainable ROW Practices Plus Wildflower Area 1 Minus Wildflower Area Aesthetics $2, 233, 425 $3, 200, 498 $967, 073 Pollination services $34, 246, 264 $49, 074, 896 $14, 828, 632 Carbon sequestration $39, 457, 650 $56, 542, 810 $17, 085, 160 Invasive species resistance $388, 380 $1, 011, 082 $622, 696 Runoff reduction $465, 300, 000 $939, 636, 000 $702, 468, 000 $5, 955, 872 $11, 113, 657 $8, 534, 765 $547, 581, 618 $1, 060, 578, 943 $744, 506, 326 Air quality Total *Adapted from: Harrison, G. L. 2014. “Economic impact of ecosystem services provided by ecologically sustainable roadside right-of-way vegetation management practices” 1 Based on 1000 acres of wildflower areas, which is about 1% of the total vegetated FL ROW system

Florida DOT Study • Aesthetics and Economic Impact – Paul Bunyan Scenic Byway (MN) – 2010 • $12. 7 million • 199 jobs • $4. 3 million in labor income – Blue Ridge Parkway (NC) – 1987 • $1. 3 billion in adjacent counties • $98 million in tax revenues • 26, 500 jobs

Florida DOT Study • Ecosystem services provided by FL ROW estimated at about half billion dollars • Utilizing sustainable vegetation management practices doubles total value • Incorporating wildflowers nearly triples total value of these benefits

Presentation • Overview of project • Steps to successfully establish wildflower areas • Current project sites • Field day/research

Why use native plants? • Sense of place • Beautification • Storm-water management • Educational opportunities • Erosion control • Wildlife habitat • Less maintenance

Where do they fit in municipal landscapes?

5 Steps to installing Wildflower Areas 1) Pregame 2) Site preparation – Weed control – Soils 3) Species selection 4) Planting 5) Maintenance

1) Pregame • • Existing vegetation Sunlight Soil type/fertility Moisture availability Erosion potential Visibility Resource availability COMMUNICATION!

2) Site preparation – weed control

2) Site preparation – soils

3) Species selection

Seed Name Purple coneflower False sunflower Spiked blazing star Virginia wildrye Indiangrass Common milkweed Swamp milkweed Little bluestem Butterfly milkweed Switchgrass Lance leaved coreopsis Blackeyed susan New England aster Bergamot Joe-pye weed Rigid goldenrod Royal catchfly Great blue lobelia Cardinal flower Genus Species Echinacea purpurea Heliopsis helianthoides Liatris spicata Elymus virginicus Sorghastrum nutans Asclepias syriaca Asclepias incarnate Schizachyrium scoparium Asclepias tuberosa Panicum virgatum Coreopsis lanceolata Rudbeckia hirta Aster novae-angliae Monarda fistulosa Eupatorium fistulosum Solidago rigida Silene regia Lobelia siphilitica Lobelia cardinalis 3. 7 -6. 1 PLS lbs. /Acre Color Lavender Yellow Pink Green Orange Green Yellow Purple Lavender Yellow Red Blue Red $125. 17/lb. PLS Weight (oz) 2. 456 1. 894 1. 774 1. 674 1. 125 1. 024 0. 807 0. 788 0. 757 0. 656 0. 646 0. 328 0. 315 0. 297 0. 270 0. 232 0. 119 0. 080 16 oz = 1. 0 PLS lb.

Herbicide tolerant – imazapic (Plateau®) Common Name Genus Species New Seeding (oz/A) Established (oz/A) Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii 2 -12 Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium 2 -12 Sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula 2 -8 Eastern gamagrass Tripsacum dactyloides 2 -6 2 -8 Wildflower/Legume (Tolerance to 4 oz/A) Common Name New England aster Blackeyed Susan Illinois bundleflower Genus Species Aster novae angliae Rudbeckia hirta Desmanthus illinoensis Purple coneflower Echinacea purpurea Upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera Lance leaved coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata Plains coreopsis Coreopsis tinctoria Partridge pea Cassia fasiculata

4) Planting – broadcasting • Disadvantages – Requires more seed – Requires optimum moisture or rain event – Hard with light/fluffy seed • Advantages – Cheapest – More random seeding (if that’s what you want…) +

4) Planting – no-till drilling • Advantages – Larger areas can be notill drilled – More uniform/even spacing – Less seed • Disadvantages – More expensive – May require custom services – Equipment availability

4) Planting – plugs and transplants • Advantages – – Faster establishment Easier maintenance More uniform Site specific • Disadvantages – More expensive materials – More labor – Less random

5) Maintenance • Mechanical weed control – Manual removal (hoe, shovel, etc. ) • Chemical weed control – Broadleaf control in grasses – Grass control in broadleaves – Spot treatment – Pre-emerge options

5) Maintenance • Or…. prescribed burns – Cheap – Extremely beneficial – Controls woody encroachment – Prairie species fire loving – Encourages germination – Removes litter

Presentation • Overview of project • Steps to successfully establish wildflower areas • Current project sites • Field day/research

What have we done so far? • Sites established in 2016 – Mendenhall, Clinton, Crystal Springs, Madison, Newton • Sites established in 2017 – Ridgeland, Vicksburg, Brookhaven • Site preparation for planting 2018 – Winona, Cleveland, Columbus, Southaven, Belzoni, Jackson – Hinds Community College – Copiah-Lincoln Community College

Seed Name Grasses Little bluestem Side oats grama Splitbeard bluestem Legumes Illinois bundleflower Partridge pea Purple prairie clover White prairie clover Forbs Purple coneflower Mexican hat Plains coreopsis Lance-leaved coreopsis Dwarf red plains coreopsis Cosmos Sulphur cosmos Shasta daisy Wild blue lupine Corn poppy Genus Species Schizachyrium scoparium Bouteloua curtipendula Andropogon ternarius Desmanthus illinoensis Chamaecrista fasciculate Dalea purpurea Dalea candida Echinacea purpurea Ratibida peduncularis Coreopsis tinctoria Coreopsis lanceolata Coreopsis tinctoria Cosmos bipinnatus Cosmos suphureus Leucanthemum x superbum Lupinus perennis Papaver rhoeas % of Mix by Weight 10. 56 7. 04 3. 52 5. 28 14. 08 3. 52 1. 76 5. 28 2. 64 5. 28 4. 40 10. 56 5. 28 3. 52 1. 41

Presentation • Overview of project • Steps to successfully establish wildflower areas • Current project sites • Field day/research

Wildflower Demonstration Area

Information mswildflowers. org facebook. com/mswildflowers/ extension. msstate. edu

Questions? Brett Rushing 601 -683 -2084 brett. rushing@msstate. edu Sarah Kountouris 601 -853 -4210 sarah@keepmsbeautiful. com