Vegetation development and species assemblages in a long-term reclamation project on mine spoil

Waste materials made by humans and heaped up in the landscape offer the opportunity to investigate the process of primary succession. In order to improve reclamation, the relationship between plant species themselves and environmental factors during vegetation development must be taken into account. For detecting these interactions, a study was set up on virgin colliery mine spoil using a seed mixture of 49 ruderal species based on phytosociological considerations. The restoration treatments applied were the application of sand and fertilizer. The research area comprised 10 000 m(2), including different exposures and two kinds of mine spoil. Cover is thought to be an indicator for the state of vegetation development but it varied with site conditions and time. Life history traits of certain species and weather conditions also interfered during 10 years of investigation. Total species number resulted from sown and airborne propagules. Comparing its changing value with the development of cover degree revealed that neither cover nor species diversity seems to be suited to assess the state of vegetation with respect to succession. Species composition and dominance of certain species, however, represented the process in a more precise way. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.