Interactions between soil covers and rainfall affect post-mining plant restoration in a semi-arid Banded Iron Formation

Soil moisture and physical characteristics strongly influence plant-available water and surface crust strength, which affect seedling emergence. We test interactions between rainfall amount and topsoil and waste rock blends and their impact on restoration outcomes in a semi-arid environment. Seedlin...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ecological engineering 2021-01, Vol.159, p.106101, Article 106101
Main Authors: Golos, Peter J., Merino-Martín, Luis, Commander, Lucy E., Elliott, Carole P., Williams, Matthew R., Miller, Ben P., Dixon, Kingsley, Stevens, Jason
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Arid environments
Arid zones
Aridity
Climate change
Emergence
Germination
Mining restoration
Physical characteristics
Physical properties
Rain
Rainfall
Rainfall deficit
Restoration
Rocks
Seedling emergence
Seedlings
Semi arid environments
Semiarid environments
Soil
Soil moisture
Soil treatment
Topsoil
Waste rock
Waste treatment
Winter
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Summary:Soil moisture and physical characteristics strongly influence plant-available water and surface crust strength, which affect seedling emergence. We test interactions between rainfall amount and topsoil and waste rock blends and their impact on restoration outcomes in a semi-arid environment. Seedling emergence was evaluated in eight species across three winter rainfall treatments (low (ambient) 68 mm, equivalent to 1st decile; median 144 mm; and high 182 mm, 8th decile) and three soil cover treatments (topsoil, waste rock and topsoil+waste rock blend (3:1)) to assess the effect of rainfall amounts, soil cover blend, and their interactions on plant recruitment in restoration. Seedling emergence for all species was
ISSN:0925-8574
1872-6992
DOI:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2020.106101