Reestablishment of Woody Browse Species for Mined Land Reclamation Year 2 (1990) Results

Abstract

Revegetation of coal-mined land with plant species suitable for the desired post-mining land use is required by state and federal regulations. The most common postmining land use in Alaska is wildlife habitat, especially browse production for moose. However, few data are available on growth of woody browse plants on reclaimed sites or effects of different soils on plant species. Another unknown is how much bluejoint reedgrass (Calamagrostis canadensis) suppresses the desired woody browse species. Bluejoint reestablishes from seeds and rhizomes (underground stems in the soil) and is a major problem in establishing moose browse on the Matanuska Valley Moose Range near Palmer. Study plots have been established for the Wishbone Hill coal project to investigate plant species and soil relationships for establishing moose browse in this area. Seven woody species were selected based on ease of propagation, desirability for browse or hiding or thermal cover for moose, and presence on the site prior to disturbance: balsam poplar (Populus balsamifem), feltleaf willow (Salix alaxensis), barclay willow (Salix barclayi), Bebb willow {Salix bebbiana), paper birch (Betula papyrifera), alder (Alnus tenuifolia), and white spruce (Picea glauca) (Helm 1990). Four soils were selected based on their biological properties which are governed by the pre-disturbance vegetation: paper birch-white spruce (contained m ycorrhizae for white spruce), upland meadow (dominated by bluejoint), lowland meadow (has diversity of herbaceous species), and overburden (had gravels from beneath the developed soil and had negligible biological activity). Hereafter birch-spruce soils or plots will be used to refer to those plots and soils from the paper birch-white spruce vegetation type. Similarly the upland meadow and lowland meadow soils refer to those soils disturbed within those vegetation types. The most important biological properties examined were the propagule bank (seeds, rhizomes, roots) from which native species could regenerate and the mycorrhizal fungal propagules which are needed to establish mycorrhizae on the roots of plants. Mycorrhizae are symbioses between plants and fungi in which the fungi increase soil moisture and nutrient absorption for the plant and, in turn, receive carbon (energy) from the plant. Most plant species have mycorrhizae when growing under field conditions. This relationship is essential for some species such as the coniferous trees, including white spruce. More details on the rationale behind the species and soil selections are included in Helm (1990). This study was designed to determine: 1. Survival and growth of woody species on soils from three different vegetation types and overburden. 2. Species of plants which colonize a site from propagule banks in these disturbed soils.