Middle Yellowstone and Musselshell Saltcedar
Management Plan

Montana Bureau of Mines & Geology and Lower Musselshell Conservation District

        Early in the 19^th century saltcedar was introduced in the southwestern region of the United States. Saltcedar was originally used to provide wind breaks, shade, stream bank stabilization, and landscape decoration. It is an invasive species, has rapidly spread from the southwest, and currently exists in most of the contiguous United States. Today, saltcedar has become one of the largest competitors for water in the arid west. A mature tree can typically reach 15–20 feet and can consume 200 gallons of water per day. In a land where water is scarce and vital to the regional economy, a stand of saltcedar can dry up reservoirs and create monocultures that overwhelm riparian waterway ecosystems.

        Saltcedar, also known as Tamarisk or Tamarix, is abundant along many of the major river systems in eastern Montana. On the Musselshell there are an estimated 24,500 tamarisks over a 240-kilometer stretch (Pearce and Smith, 2002). Many stock ponds and large reservoirs such as the Fort Peck, Dead Man’s Basin, and Tongue River Reservoirs are also becoming infected with large stands of saltcedar. 

         The Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology (MBMG) in cooperation with the Lower Musselshell Conservation District (LMCD) initiated a research project to identify impairments that are exacerbated by the presence of saltcedar. The goal of this project was to educate the public and increase awareness of the problems caused by saltcedar. The Middle Yellowstone and Musselshell River Saltcedar Demonstration Project Technical Report describes the activities and results of this research project.  A GIS map (Plate 1 of the Technical Report) shows the location of wells and demo plots as well as providing geology, hydrology, topography, land use, and soils data. In addition to the technical report an annotated bibliography was compiled in order to consolidate the most recent information pertaining to saltcedar. 

Thanks to Bureau personnel Teresa Donato, Clay Schwartz, Shawn Reddish, Rye Svingen, and John Wheaton for their excellent work on this project. Special thanks to Bob Church and Dan Sullivan, Montana Department of Agriculture for their assistance with soil and ground-water sampling.

 Introductory Video of research project.

Interview with Scott Bockness,
Yellowstone County Weed District Coordinator
Yellowstone County Noxious Weed Association