SPILYAY TYM OO
PAGE 8 AUGUST 20,1981
Range conservation being taken seriously
by Martha Shewczyk
In 1926, 6,000 sheep grazed
the Warm Springs reservation.
A total of 174 head belonged to
Indians. It did not occur to
residents at that time to be
concerned about overgrazing
the land. Overgrazing could
quickly deplete the land of its
forage.
N o w , in 1 9 8 1 , ra n g e
management has become a
concern to all. With land being
such a valuable resource and
the ec o n o m y d em an d in g
stretching the dollar every
square inch of land must
produce to its fullest.
Unfortunately the condition
of the Warm Springs range is
nothing to boast about. In
almost any direction Medussa
Head and Cheat Grass cover
the ground. These are annual
plants producing seeds which
germinate yearly.
These annuals are dependent
on surface moisture and are
quick to dry up when the
summer temperatures rise.In a
drought year a small number of
seeds may germinate. Possibly
no new growth will occur.
Livestock will eat these
plants enjoying them in the
spring when they are green and
tasty. They will also ea t C h e a t
Grass and Medussa Head after
they dry up if there is nothing
else, but the plant is not very
p a la ta b le or n u tr itio u s .
Livestock begin looking pretty
thin if they are dependent on
th e a n n u a ls f o r f o o d
throughout the fall and the
winter months.
moisture. They are green much
longer than the annuals. Those
that remain in this area are still
green where annuals have
already dried, up.
Overgrazing continues to
keep these perennials from
establishing themselves on the
range, according to range
conservationist Brian Spears.
He says,“It’s too late for a lot of
these areas.” Medussa head
and cheat grass is everywhere.
Attempts have been made to
see how some non-native
perennials will take root. An
experimental plot put in by
Oregon State extension agent
C lin t J a c k s a n d s o i l
conservationist Dean Elliott
give evidence that perennials
will take root. The experi
mental area, however, is fenced
to keep livestock out. The same
plants cultivated on the
opposite side of this fence
where livestock are free to
graze at will are nowhere to be
seen.
Efforts have been made to
control grazing in the past.
Ordinance 15, adopted in 1945,
and Ordinance 37, adopted in
1962, sought to establish range
units where grazing could be
controlled. There was little
group interest at that time.
Ordinance 48, adopted June
o f 1971, encouraged formation
o f range units and the
rmation of groups which use
the areas for grazing to form
grazing associations in an
effort to rejuvenate the range.
The advantage of these range
units and associations, says
range conservationist Spears, is
At one time the range in this “making a plan to utilize
area was covered with native forage” to its utmost. The
p e r e n n ia l b u n c h g r a s s e s people involved though, “have
including blue bunchgrass, to decide what they want to do
w heatgrass, Idaho fescue, with their units,” Spears says.
sq uirrel ta il, w ith som e “My job is to follow through
S andberg’s bluegrass and and get the units going,
needle grasses also growing. providing assistance in range
These perenials which came up development and improve
each year from deeply-planted ments.”
-T w o -range units have
roots had a high carbohydrate
level and much nutritive value. already been formed, the 4-H
Perennials are found to be a unit located on Highway 26 at
better quality of forage and S id w a lter F la t and The
sustain yield on a more W a p in itia u n it on th e
con stant basis. They are McQuinn Strip, Miller Flat,
deeper-rooted than annuals Dry Creek, Webster Flat,
using soil moisture to a greater Boulder Creek unit and
depth along with stored Sidwalter have a grazing plant
Range conservationist Brian Spears poin ts out a bunch o f
Medussa Head, an annual that covers much o f the ground in and
around Warm Springs.
Spifyay Tym oo p h oto by Shewczyk
but it has not yet been be charged for the grazing of
approved by Tribal Council, livestock on Tribal land. Fees
are a u th o r iz e d u n d er
according to Spears.
Ordinance 48.
Grazing plans in a range unit
The hold-up on approval of
these units results from getting might include cross fencing
ownership records of the land. providing a summer and a fall
People owning the land used pasture, reversing them every
for livestock must be paid a fee. year. This would give plants,
The Tribe, according the particularly perennials, the
Spears, has been picking up the chance to grow.
Another plan might allow
bill so far. It is up to Tribal
Council whether or not fees will livestock to graze on cheat
grass while it is fresh and then
close the area off allowing
perennials to grow. Spears
says, “A pasture doesn’t have to
rest all year, just long enough
for the plants to develop leaf
tissue.”
He also says, “There are a lot
of areas where there are just too
many stock.” When all the
leaves of the plants are eaten
there is not enough leaf tissue
to start them growing again in
the spring. After two or three
years of this the plant will die.
This is the reason most of the
native perennials have virtually
disappeared. These grasses do
remain in areas with a steep
incline or in places, livestock
cannot get to easily.
Reseeding in some areas is
essential to return perennials to
the range. Native grasses
would, of course, reseed best.
Seed of this type is generally
unavailable. Some of the other
types of range grasses have
been tried that have proved to
adapt well which is a possibility
in further developing the range.
Spears says he is looking into
reseeding some areas and the
grazing asso cia tio n w ould
have this as one of their
concerns.
At least 80% of the Warm
Springs reservation is range
land. With an estimated 1,549
head of cattle and well over
3,000 horses having grazed the
land in the recent past, it is
necessary to look at range
management in every aspect.
The program developed for
ridding the reservation of
Equine Infectious Anemia has
provided the opportunity to
greatly reduce the number of
stock dependent on the range
through culling. Spears says
with the reduced number of
horses the range is in better
shape than it has been for a
long time.
With proper management,
modern techniques and a
concern by everyone for their
land, the range may someday
be replenished. Getting is in
good condition “is up to the
people who use the range,” says
S p ea rs. “ It they a re n ’t
interested it will stay like it is. If
they are, “it will take a lot of
work.”
K N T Employee of the m onth-------------------------------------------------------- ---------- ----------- —
Hidden talent promotes him from kitchen to malntenence
Kah-Nee-Ta has recently
reinstated its Employee of the
Month program. The selection
of Employee of the Month is
made by department managers
as an incentive for staff
members to continue doing a
good job. A $50 cash award is
presented to each winning
employee.
According to Kah-Nee-Ta’s
executive assistant manager,
Jerry Schaeffer, the Employee
of the Month program was
restored after being discussed
at one of the staff meetings. He
said, “It’s always been done
before but evidently it was let
slide for a while.”
The first Employee of the
Month selected after reinstkt-
ment of the program was
Georgia Duncan who works in
the V illage h ousekeeping
department. She was selected
for the m onth o f June.
J u ly ’s recently selected
X
employee of the month is
Manuel Banda who is a
m e m b e r o f t h e lo d g e
m a in ten a n ce d ep a rtm en t.
Manuel came from Chihua
hua, Mexico to Kah-Nee-Ta in
1979. He joined some of his
friends who already worked
there.
Beginning as a dishwasher,
Manuel became a part of the
m a in te n a n c e d e p a r tm e n t
when it was time to paint the
lodge in 1980 during its two
m o n th w in te r c l o s u r e .
Manuel’s talent for woodwork
and carp en try rem ained
undiscovered until some of his
friends saw some of his work.
A number of his woodcravings
were circulated aorund Kah-
Nee-Ta. He says he has none of
his own» wood sculptures
because .he’s always giving
friends.
M an u el’s proficiency in
woodwork developed while he
was still in Mexico, he says.
Carpentry was his occupation.
Working a t’ Kah-Nee-Ta is
enjoyable for Manuel. He says,
“I would like to stay here for a
long time. It’s a pretty good
place.”
He also enjoys the remote
location of the resort, he says.
Until he was 18 years old
Manuel lived on a ranch. He
comments, “There is not much
n o is e or tr a ffic h e r e .”
Manuel says he has learned
much while in the maintenance
department at Kah-Nee-Ta.
Some things he is unfamiliar
with, such as elevators, they are
apparently scarce where he
comes Yromf But Manuel says
he. is willing to try to fix
anything he is asked to. His
speciality is working with
wood, however, and he most
enjoys doing that.