Comparing the Response of Red Spruce Plantings on Legacy Coal Mines and Old-Field Restoration Sites in the West Virginia Highlands

Red spruce (Picea rubens) is the keystone species of the red spruce–northern hardwood forest, a unique high-elevation plant community that supports high biodiversity in the Central Appalachian mountains. These forests were drastically reduced by the Industrial Logging Era of the late 1800s and early 1900s, and the few remaining patches of this forest type remain in a degraded and fragmented state. Efforts to restore this ecosystem in West Virginia have been ongoing for over a decade and include red spruce plantings on old-field agricultural sites and on legacy coal mines. This project seeks to examine restoration outcomes for vegetation and soils along a 10 year chronosequence of planting sites. Significant differences in seedling height were observed for each year examined with old-fields exhibiting higher early (Year 1) heights, while legacy mines were significantly taller in Years 7 and 10. Annual growth rates did not differ between the two planting treatments. Soil chemical differences between treatments may have influenced seedling response. Although comparison of soil characteristics from the reforested sites to those from relatively undisturbed reference red spruce stands exhibited some statistical similarities, it was clear that mining and agricultural practices altered the soil environment greatly. As such, additional research to further examine practices that could improve soil health on these disturbed lands is recommended.