Abstract:
Attempts to rehabilitate degraded arid rangelands do not always succeed, and we perceived a need forsome simple ecological indicators which would help determine whether mechanical intervention waslikely to be useful. In this first of two papers, we largely focus on the effect of pitting and opposeddiscing, although we consider ripping and exclosure briefly, at 26 locations in central Australia.Pits and furrows successfully trapped erosion products and supported more basal cover and a greaternumber of plants than inter-furrow mounds or untreated areas. In addition, a number of soil variableswere altered by the treatments. However, economic returns were unlikely to exceed outlays in most ofthe cases we considered. The best returns are predicted where degradation is minor, where livestockare of high quality and where landholders collect their own seed. Exclusion of grazing in the initialstages will enhance the amount of plant cover.