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Investigating the performance of rangeland restoration with the forage species Astaragalus podolobus in Golestan Province (Case study: Turkman Sahra Rangelands - Gonbad Kavous County)
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Mohammad Farangi   , Majid Mohammad-Esmaeili * , Abolfazl Tahmasebi , Hojat Ghorbani Vaghei |
| , ma_456@yahoo.com |
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Abstract: (15 Views) |
Planting using native species is one of the key strategies for restoring degraded rangelands in arid and semi-arid regions of Iran. The native species Astragalus podolobus is an important vegetation cover of the Turkmen Sahara rangelands, however, sufficient field information on the efficiency of its different propagation methods, especially comparing seeds and cuttings, is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the ecological performance of plants obtained from two propagation methods, seed and cuttings, in the Dashli-Brun rangelands located in the Turkmen Sahara during two consecutive years (2021 and 2022). In this study, 20 plants (10 seed plants and 10 cutting plants) were selected as sample units and ecological indices including plant height, crown cover, dry forage production, and number of seed pods were measured. The normality of the data was checked with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the means were compared using the independent t-test in Minitab 16 software. The results showed that the effect of growth year, propagation method, and their interaction on all studied traits was significant. Plants grown from seeds had better performance than cuttings in the first year, but no significant difference was observed between the two methods in the second year. The average height (91 cm), crown cover (0.5 m2 per plant), dry forage production (810 g), and seed production (600 seeds per plant) in the second year indicated proper establishment of the plant and gradual improvement in its performance. The overall results indicate that the use of this species can potentially play a role in reducing the risk of biological projects, increasing the ecological and economic sustainability of rangelands, and helping to reduce the intensity of phenomena such as dust. However, the extent of this impact depends on ecological conditions, rangeland management, and the continuation of conservation measures.
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Article number: 3 |
| Keywords: Desertification, Increasing ecological sustainability, Shrub planting, Cuttings, Turkmen Sahara. |
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Full-Text [PDF 1341 kb]
(13 Downloads)
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Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2025/09/8 | Accepted: 2025/12/26 | Published: 2026/09/17
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