Semi-natural Communities
Rice
Rice is considered at the community level in the PCCP because of its large extent in the Valley and its relationship to historic vernal pool complex lands and potential vernal pool restoration. Mapped rice fields include fields that are under current cultivation and fields that are temporarily fallow but have water control structures in place. Rice is planted in April and May and harvested in September and October. Fields are flooded at the time of setting the rice seedlings in the spring and often again after harvest to control pests and to provide waterfowl habitat for hunting clubs. Rice is grown as a monoculture, using flooding, tillage, and/or herbicides to eliminate unwanted vegetation; remaining vegetation is generally confined to the berms, ditches, and canals between and around fields and is dominated by wetland plants, both native and non-native.
Rice is considered at the community level in the PCCP because of its large extent in the Valley and its relationship to historic vernal pool complex lands and potential vernal pool restoration. Mapped rice fields include fields that are under current cultivation and fields that are temporarily fallow but have water control structures in place. Rice is planted in April and May and harvested in September and October. Fields are flooded at the time of setting the rice seedlings in the spring and often again after harvest to control pests and to provide waterfowl habitat for hunting clubs. Rice is grown as a monoculture, using flooding, tillage, and/or herbicides to eliminate unwanted vegetation; remaining vegetation is generally confined to the berms, ditches, and canals between and around fields and is dominated by wetland plants, both native and non-native.
Field Crop
Field agriculture is represented by three land-cover types: alfalfa, croplands, and the geographically associated eucalyptus woodlands. Small amounts of alfalfa are grown in western Placer County as a hay crop in irrigated fields. Any vegetation remaining on field margins may include a variety of introduced grasses and legumes, but noxious weeds and other non-native invasive plants may also be present. Row crops or croplands are generally monotypic agricultural fields of herbaceous species, varying in height from 1 to 6 feet. Major row crops in western Placer County are grain, vegetable crops, and miscellaneous crops (e.g., corn and oats). Row crops generally occur on deep, fertile soils in alluvial valley bottoms or gently rolling terrain in the low to mid-elevations of western Placer County. Eucalyptus woodland is lumped with the field agriculture community because of its geographic affiliation. Eucalyptus groves have been planted as windbreaks and for firewood in various rural-residential forested and agricultural areas in western Placer County. Small amounts of alfalfa are grown in western Placer County as a hay crop in irrigated fields. Any vegetation remaining on field margins may include a variety of introduced grasses and legumes, but noxious weeds and other non-native invasive plants may also be present.
Field agriculture is represented by three land-cover types: alfalfa, croplands, and the geographically associated eucalyptus woodlands. Small amounts of alfalfa are grown in western Placer County as a hay crop in irrigated fields. Any vegetation remaining on field margins may include a variety of introduced grasses and legumes, but noxious weeds and other non-native invasive plants may also be present. Row crops or croplands are generally monotypic agricultural fields of herbaceous species, varying in height from 1 to 6 feet. Major row crops in western Placer County are grain, vegetable crops, and miscellaneous crops (e.g., corn and oats). Row crops generally occur on deep, fertile soils in alluvial valley bottoms or gently rolling terrain in the low to mid-elevations of western Placer County. Eucalyptus woodland is lumped with the field agriculture community because of its geographic affiliation. Eucalyptus groves have been planted as windbreaks and for firewood in various rural-residential forested and agricultural areas in western Placer County. Small amounts of alfalfa are grown in western Placer County as a hay crop in irrigated fields. Any vegetation remaining on field margins may include a variety of introduced grasses and legumes, but noxious weeds and other non-native invasive plants may also be present.
