There are many species that "suit" rangeland with less than 200 mm. The question is what is the purpose of these species. If you are trying to introduce new species to an environment you need to consider not only their suitability but their potential to compete with native species and become invasive. Other question to consider is their water use efficiency as some species might perform better with limited amounts of water. If the new plants are needed for forage or soil stabilization or carbon sequestration, these are all important characteristics to consider. Some of my experience in North America with some species and their efficiency is here, Evans et al. Growth, water productivity, and biomass allocation of Great Basin plants as affected by summer watering. Ecohydrology. In press.
If your trying to add plant materials to a place that receives less than 250 mm of precip, then hope for a wet (above average) spring or irrigate. The majority of revegetation efforts below this point result in seedling failure.
Yahya, I'm not sure if these are readily used introduced rehabilitation species in your region? Crested Wheatgrass Agropyron cristatumX , Siberian wheatgrass Agropyron fragile, and (shrub) Forage Kochia Kochia prostrata ALL perform very well under 200mm precipitation.
I suggest to strictly protect sample-areas (a few 100 sqm) against human and animal-impacts and stimulate germination of the many "hidden" seeds in the ground, also by some occasional irrigation. Then you might get additional info about adapted species.
Dear Imed is their a certain species of salicornia suit dry lands without irrigation?
Dear Yahya, I can't respond you exactly but you can see these links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salicornia
http://www.bashanis.org/gmaweb/pdfs/growth.pdf
In the Cape Verde Islands there are some well adapted plants to very arid environments, like several species of the genera Diplotaxis, Lotus and Lavandula, which can survive in sites with less than 200 and even 100 mm of annual rainfall. There is also an interesting grass, Eremopogon foveolatus (= Dichanthium foveolatum), locally common in desert and semi-desert environments, both in the Cape Verdes and the Canaries.
Hi again. In the Canary Islands (e.g. in lowland areas of the south of Tenerife) we have several succulent plants which usually grow in sites with less than 200 mm of annual precipitation. Some of them are Chenopodiaceae (Salsola divaricata and Traganum moquinii, between others), but there are also Solanaceae (Lycium intricatum), Euphorbiaceae (Euphorbia balsamifera), Asclepiadaceae (Ceropegia fusca), Zygophyllaceae (Tetraena fontanesii), etc.
And what about Opuntia ficus indica, nopal in spanish, and akanri in the moroccan desert fringes....
In the Canary Islands we have other interesting succulent plants adapted to grow in sites with less than 200 mm of annual rainfall, among them:
- Caralluma burchardii
- Euphorbia handiensis
- Gymnocarpos decandrus
The second one is endemic from Fuerteventura Island.
Best regards.
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