This file contains data descriptions for the Shannon Nelson Dissertation Supplementary Files 1 and 2. 

Supplementary Material 1

Weekly soil matric potential (MP, kPa) and temperature (o C) averages for the Reduced SAP Rate field trial at the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR) conducted from Mar 2019 to Sept 2021. Superabsorbent polymer (SAP) was placed in bands at rates of 11, 330, 750, or 1500 kg ha-1 at depths of 3 (s), 8 (m), and 15 (d) cm below the soil surface with either bottlebrush squirreltail (BB) or Siberian wheatgrass (SW) seeded above it. The sensors were placed next to the dry SAP band in treated rows and at 8 cm depth directly below the seeds in control rows. Bolded and highlighted numbers are treatment ? larger than the control and higher than the wilting point (WP). No MP from Dec to Feb were bolded or highlighted even if the met those metrics because of probe limitations when soil moisture is frozen. Soil MP and temperature were measured in one row of each treatment within one block every 2 h using a Teros 21 probe (formerly Decagon MPS-6; METER Group, Inc., Pullman, Washington, USA) with a ZL6 Advanced datalogger (METER Group, Inc., Pullman, Washington, USA). These probes were installed at UTTR Mar 23, 2019. Data was averaged over each week. Malfunctions in the data loggers occasionally resulted in no data being collected. Those weeks are left blank.

A) Year: year the data was collected
B) Month: month within that year that data was collected
C) Week: week of the year the data was collected
D) BBcont MP, kPa: Bottlebrush squirreltail control (no SAP) matric potential measured in kPa

E) BBcont Soil Temp, oC: Bottlebrush squirreltail control soil temperature measured in o C 

F) BB11m MP, kPa: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

G) BB11m Soil Temp, oC: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

H) BB330m MP, kPa: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

I) BB330m Soil Temp, oC: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

J) BB750m MP, kPa: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

K) BB750m Soil Temp, oC: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

L) BB1500m MP, kPa: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa
M) BB1500m Soil Temp, oC: Bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

N) SWcont MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass control matric potential measured in kPa

O) SWcont Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass control (no SAP) soil temperature measured in o C

P) SW11m MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

Q) SW11m Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

R) SW330m MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

S) SW330m Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

T) SW750m MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

U) SW750m Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

V) SW1500m MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm matric potential measured in kPa

W) SW1500m Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm soil temperature measured in o C

X) SW11s MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 3 cm matric potential measured in kPa

Y) SW11s Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 3 cm soil temperature measured in o C
Z) SW1500d MP, kPa: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 15 cm matric potential measured in kPa

AA) SW1500d Soil Temp, oC: Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 15 cm soil temperature measured in o C


Supplementary File 2

P-values for pairwise t-tests comparing soil temperatures to the controls in the Reduced SAP Rate field trial at the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR) conducted from Mar 2019 to Sept 2021. Superabsorbent polymer (SAP) was placed in bands at rates of 11, 330, 750, and 1500 kg ha-1 at depths of 3(s), 8 (m), or 15(d) cm and seeded with bottlebrush squirreltail (BB) or Siberian wheatgrass (SW).  The limit for practical significance in temperature difference was set at a minimum of +/- 2o C or differences that would round to +/- 2o C. The sensors were placed next to the dry SAP band in treated rows and at 8 cm depth directly below the seeds in control rows. Soil temperature was measured in one row of each treatment within one block every 2 h using a Teros 21 probe (formerly Decagon MPS-6; METER Group, Inc., Pullman, Washington, USA) with a ZL6 Advanced datalogger (METER Group, Inc., Pullman, Washington, USA). These probes were installed at UTTR Mar 23, 2019. Data was averaged over each week. Malfunctions in the data loggers occasionally resulted in no data being collected. Those weeks are left blank. 

A) Year: year the data was collected
B) Month: month within that year that data was collected
c) Week: week of the year the data was collected
D) BB11mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

E) BB11mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control   

F) BB330mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

G) BB330mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control

H) BB750mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

I) BB750mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control

J) BB1500mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

K) BB1500mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between bottlebrush squirreltail with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control

L) SW11mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C
M) SW11mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control

N) SW330mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

O) SW330mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 330 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control

P) SW750mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

Q) SW750mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 750 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control

R) SW1500mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control measured in o C

S) SW1500mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 8 cm and the control


T) SW11sTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 3 cm and the control measured in o C

U) SW11mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 11 kg ha-1 at a depth of 3 cm and the control


V) SW1500mTempDiffC: Soil temperature difference between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 15 cm and the control measured in o C

W) SW1500mpval: P-value of the pairwise comparison between Siberian wheatgrass with SAP at a rate of 1500 kg ha-1 at a depth of 15 cm and the control