The Use of Native Plants for Revegetation along West Virginia ...

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Much research has been done on using native plants on roadsides (Ahern et al. 1992, Barton et al. 2002, Corley 1995, Fiedler et al. 1990, Harper 1988, Morrison 1981, Swan et al. 1993). Many have found it to be a viable and economical option. The goals of this research are: 1) To identify native plants suitable for seeding along highways and document the growth and establishment of these species on highway cut and fill sites. 2) To develop methods to enhance native species establishment in roadside 2. Literature Review environments. 3) To correlate the establishment of native plants used for highway revegetation to physical and chemical soil properties. 2.1. Current West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOT) Revegetation Practices Most state highway departments have developed revegetation strategies through years of testing. The mountainous nature of West Virginia makes the construction of highways very similar to surface mining. To maintain moderate grades, the mountainous topography is blasted and the blasted rock material is then used to backfill lower areas. The topsoil is removed and kept separate to be placed only when the entire roadway is finished. Topsoil may also be obtained and hauled from sites outside of the construction area. Before placement, the subsoil is scarified to promote bonding with the topsoil. After spreading the soil, it is raked to remove all large clods, brush, litter, or other foreign material, and rocks larger than 2 inches (Facemire et al., 2000). The application of limestone is determined prior to seeding and is based on a lime requirement test. The area to be seeded is scarified to create a seed bed and seed is sown immediately. All legume seed is inoculated with appropriate cultures and when a hydroseeder is to be used, the inoculant is increased five times the normal rate. Rates and seeding combinations used by the WVDOT can be found in Table 1. Fertilizer is typically applied concurrently with the seeding at a rate of 1,120 kg/ha of 10-20-10. An additional 336 kg/ha of slow release urea 2
Table 1. Species, mixtures and rates used by the WVDOT for revegetation after highway construction. Units are kg/ha. Variety of Seed Area of Use Kentucky 31 fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) Red fescue var. Pennlawn (F. rubra L.) Crownvetch (Coronilla varia L.) 3 Medians, Shoulders, Waterways, and Mowable Areas of Interchange Cut and Fill Slopes (Including Benches and Bifurcated Median) 73 22 22 22 -- 22 Hard fescue Mix* -- -- White Dutch Clover (Trifolium repens L.) Annual Ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) August 1 to May 15 or Weeping lovegrass (Eragrostis curvula (Schrad.) Nees) May 15 to August 1 3 -- 8 8 3 3 *A combination of varieties with no one variety exceeding 50% of the total.
Page 1 and 2: The Use of Native Plants for Revege
Page 3 and 4: TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract………
Page 5 and 6: Table 15. Total plant cover of Spri
Page 7: 1. Introduction Due to the mountain
Page 11 and 12: cost more than $5.00 per pound of p
Page 13 and 14: (1987) found good stands of Switchg
Page 15 and 16: Brown-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia triloba
Page 17 and 18: high temperatures, drought, or poor
Page 19 and 20: Figure 1. Map of research sites inc
Page 21 and 22: Table 2. Seeded species and seeding
Page 23 and 24: Table 4. Seeded species and seeding
Page 25 and 26: Table 5. Total plant cover of Sprin
Page 31 and 32: Table 11. Seeded native cover of Fa
Page 33 and 34: Table 13. Seeded native cover of Fa
Page 35 and 36: Results indicate that one cannot se
Page 37 and 38: Table 16. Total plant cover of Spri
Page 39 and 40: Table 18. Total plant cover and see
Page 41 and 42: Table 20. Seeded native cover of Sp
Page 43 and 44: Table 22. Individual species respon
Page 45 and 46: cover prior to plot establishment c
Page 47 and 48: Table 23. Chemical properties of th
Page 49 and 50: native cover. Some of the younger s
Page 51 and 52: program. The disturbance of a strip
Page 53 and 54: Hsu, F.H., C.J. Nelson, and A.G. Ma
Page 55 and 56: Vassey, T.L., J.R. George, and R.E.
Page 57 and 58: Table 27. Total plant cover of Fall
Page 59 and 60:
Table 29. Total plant cover of Fall
Page 61 and 62:
Table 31. Seeded native cover of Sp
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Table 37. Total plant cover of Spri
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The Use of Native Plants for Revegetation along West Virginia ...

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