Desert Weeds : Personal Narrative on Botanical First Responders / by Garry Rogers.

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Desert Weeds : Personal Narrative on Botanical First Responders / by Garry Rogers.

1st ed. 2020.

3030458547
9783030458546
3030458539
9783030458539

Cham : Springer International Publishing : Imprint: Springer, 2020.

English

1 online resource (XIII, 353 pages) : illustrations.

10.1007/978-3-030-45854-6 doi

QK900-989

581.7

In their rapid colonization of soil exposed by fires, floods, and grazing animals, weeds resemble the human specialists we label Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs). Weeds are the first responders when disasters occur in nature. They occupy bare soil and prevent erosion by wind and water. In extreme cases such as a landslide, weeds are essential to the healing processes that replace the lost soil. Like a Band-Aid on a skinned knee, weeds protect the land while it recovers. Besides protecting the soil after disaster, weeds provide food for wildlife, and some of them provide food and medicine for people. Able to withstand harsh conditions, weeds will proliferate as global warming and other human impacts intensify. Thus, nature's EMTs will increase while all other plants decline. The book provides a succinct definition of weeds according to their form and function in ecosystem processes. The narrative uses a representative set of weed species from a desert location to illustrate the full range of weed characteristics.

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