Postfire Invasion Potential of Rush Skeletonweed (Chondrilla Juncea)

North American sagebrush steppe communities have been transformed by the introduction of invasive annual grasses and subsequent increase in fire size and frequency. We examined the effects of wildfires and environmental conditions on the ability of rush skeletonweed (Chondrilla juncea L.), a perennial Eurasian composite, to invade degraded sagebrush steppe communities, largely dominated by cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.). Recruitment of rush skeletonweed from seed and root buds was investigated on 11 burned and unburned plot pairs on Idaho's Snake River Plain following summer 2003 wildfires. Emergence from soil seedbanks was similar on burned and unburned plots in 2003 and 2004 (P = 0.37). Soils from recently burned plots (P = 0.05) and sterilized field soil (P