Author
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Belesky, David |
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Submitted to: American Society of Agronomy Monograph Series
Publication Type: Monograph Publication Acceptance Date: 4/13/1995 Publication Date: N/A Citation: N/A Interpretive Summary: Some plant species are valuable resources in the revegetation of disturbed land areas. A review of the literature and practical experience with the legume grouping that includes birdsfoot trefoil has shown that restoration of disturbed sites by revegetation is a complicated process that can take place naturally or be aided by human intervention. Plant communities must be established quickly in order to minimize soil loss and water resource degradation resulting from erosion on sites devoid of plant cover. Diverse plant communities offer the most promise in revegetation of a site because various species can endure differing conditions over time. Legume, species that can acquire nitrogen from the atmosphere, can contribute to the plant diversity and are highly desirable as components of revegetation seed mixtures. Legumes add nitrogen to the system and are often high value feed sources for domestic livestock and wildlife. Unfortunately, disturbed landscapes are often hostile environments for plant establishment and present a range of physical and chemical challenges to growth and survival. Legumes of the trefoil group occur naturally after disturbance such as fire and are widely used in commercial revegetation seed mixes on surface-mine sites in humid, temperate regions. Changing attitudes and preference for "native" species may restrict the use of trefoil as a conservation resource in some situations. Technical Abstract: Lotus spp. possess a range of morphological and physiological attributes that make the genus well suited for use in the restoration of disturbed or marginal land areas. Among these features are low relative growth rate and subsequent conservation of nutrients, nitrogen fixing ability, tolerance of extremes in soil water availability and soil chemical stresses, and palatibility to grazing livestock. Representatives of the genus occur as natural, as well as introduced components of the plant community in various revegetation processes. Natural populations of Lotus spp. can occur as a result of fire, while introduced representatives of the species are regularly used in pasture renovation and mined or disturbed land revegetation. The growth characteristics of a plant such as L. corniculatus make it a suitable choice for use in mixtures, whereby it can contribute to diversity and stability of plant communities used in restoration efforts as well as provide understory growth and nitrogen in developing forest plantations. Extensive use of L. corniculatus in reclamation efforts in North America can be attributed to successful, practical, and applied experience with the species. While many of the previously mentioned characteristics make representatives of the genus well suited to use in reclamation/restoration efforts, changing attitudes and concepts in ecological/environmental thinking may restrict or reduce the use of 'non-native' Lotus species. |
