If data is available, this is where you find Ecoregion Descriptions, Plant Communities of that ecoregion, and Species Lists/Recommendations for both. If you know the community types at your project site, use community recommendations as the species will be more appropriate and more specifically geared to your site.
If species recommendations are not available for your project area, try searching seed for sale in your ecoregion.
Where does NSN get species lists and recommendations?
Arizona/New Mexico Plateau Ecoregion
The Arizona/New Mexico Plateau represents a large transitional region between the semiarid grasslands and low relief tablelands of the Southwestern Tablelands ecoregion in the east, the drier shrublands and woodland covered higher relief tablelands of the Colorado Plateau in the north, and the lower, hotter, less vegetated Mojave Basin and Range in the west and Chihuahuan Deserts in the south. Higher, more forest covered, mountainous ecoregions border the region on the northeast and southwest. Local relief in the region varies from a few meters on plains and mesa tops to well over 300 meters along tableland side slopes.Get Species List
Arizona/New Mexico Plateau Plant Communities
Black greasewood
Black greasewood occupies considerable acreages on salty valley bottoms. This plant also occurs on salt-bearing shale outcrops in canyons and on foothills. Sites vary in respect to soil texture and availability of ground water. Some areas are wet with high water tables, and others are dry with welldrained soils. Black greasewood occurs in pure or mixed stands. Livestock can safely consume moderate amounts of greasewood when it is eaten in conjunction with other forage. Black greasewood is not known to be poisonous to game animals and, in fact, has some forage value.Get Species List
Juniper-pinyon
Juniper-pinyon ranges from 10,000 ft (3,280 m) elevation on the crest of the Sierra to a low of 3,200 ft (1,050 m) along the Utah-Arizona border. Pinyon tends to favor higher elevations, and Utah juniper becomes more dominant at lower elevations. Annual precipitation in the juniper-pinyon type ranges from 8 to 22 inches (200 to 560 mm), with the best stand development occurring between 12 and 17 inches (300 and 430 mm).Get Species List
Mountain brush
The chief components are Gambel oak, bigtooth maple, Rocky Mountain maple, mountain big sagebrush, Saskatoon serviceberry, and Utah serviceberry. Associated with the above species, in various geographic areas, are ninebark, chokecherry, bitter cherry, skunkbush sumac, antelope bitterbrush, cliffrose, true mountain mahogany, and curlleaf mountain mahogany. The type is rich in diversity of forbs and associated grasses. Mountain brush communities occur between 5,000 and 9,000 ft (1,524 and 2,743 m). Annual precipitation varies from a low of 15 inches (380 mm) to 26 inches (660 mm).Get Species List
Shadscale saltbush
Shadscale-saltbush communities dominate broad valley bottoms and adjacent foothills where they merge with big sagebrush and juniper-pinyon. Shadscale is the most common and abundant shrub of the salt desert shrubland. Shadscale is found in heavy soils; on highly alkaline soils, shadscale occurs in nearly pure stands. Annual precipitation on these areas is generally less than 10 inches (250 mm), with many areas receiving from 3 to 8 inches (80 to 200 mm). Shadscale exists as nearly pure stands with large open spaces among plants in valley bottoms. On higher slopes it exists in fairly complex mixtures with other low shrubs and some grasses.Get Species List
Wyoming big sagebrush
This subspecies can be found throughout the Intermountain West on xeric sites, foothills, valleys, and mesas between 2,500 and 7,000 ft (760 and 2,100 m). Annual precipitation varies from 7 to 15 inches (180 to 280 mm). Soils on which Wyoming big sagebrush occurs are usually well drained, gravelly to stony, and may have low water-holding capacity. Soils are shallow, usually less than about 18 inches (46 cm) deep. Fewer herbaceous species are associated with Wyoming big sagebrush than with basin or mountain big sagebrush. Native bunchgrasses are often important understory species in Wyoming big sagebrush communities.Get Species List