United States ^ 

 Department of 

 Agriculture 



Forest Service 



Northeastern Forest 

 Experiment Station 



Research Note NE-320 

 1984 



Effect of Minesoil Compaction 

 on Growth and Yield of KY-31 

 Tall Fescue and 

 Sericea Lespedeza 



Jerry T. Crews 



Abstract 



Kentucky 31 tall fescue and sericea lespedeza were sown on clay and 

 loam minesoils that had been screened through a No. 10 sieve and 

 compacted to densities of 1.6, 1.8, and 2.0 g/cm 3 . Stands of sericea 

 lespedeza were more difficult to establish than fescue on both minesoils and 

 were more susceptible than fescue to increased levels of compaction. Dry 

 matter yields averaged over all densities were greater on the clay than on 

 the loan minesoil. 



Introduction 



In the reclamation of surface- 

 mined lands, the surface of the 

 restored minesoil is often compac- 

 ted by the machinery used to trans- 

 port and shape the various geologic 

 materials. Additional compaction 

 may be caused by equipment used 

 to apply fertilizer and seed. The 

 surface of the restored minesoil 

 may be either a mix of topsoil and 

 overburden materials or primarily 

 topsoil or subsoil materials. Nat- 

 ural vegetation processes can seldom 

 restore surface cover rapidly enough 

 to prevent severe erosion from the 

 compacted surface. The bulk den- 

 sities of clay, clay loam, and silt 

 loam agricultural soils normally 

 range from 1.00 to as high as 1.6 

 g/cm 3 . They may range from 1.20 

 to 1.80 g/cm 3 in sands and sandy 

 loam agricultural soils (Brady 1974). 

 This study was conducted to quan- 

 tify the effects of compaction (1.6 

 to 2.0 g/cm 3 ) on establishment, 



growth, and yield of two species 

 commonly planted on surface- 

 mined areas. The effects of tex- 

 ture on the moisture-supplying 

 capacity of minesoils and on root 

 development patterns also were 

 investigated. 



The study showed that sericea 

 lespedeza was difficult to establish 

 on both minesoils at all levels of 

 compaction, but fescue proved 

 comparatively easy to establish. 

 Results also indicate that compac- 

 tion of a loam minesoil to a density 

 of 2.0 g/cm 3 may not be detrimen- 

 tal to the growth and yield of fescue, 

 but such compaction may drastical- 

 ly reduce the growth of sericea. 

 Texture was found to affect the 

 growth of fescue and sericea signif- 

 icantly. The finer textured mine- 

 soil yielded significantly more dry 

 matter, averaged over all densities, 

 than did the coarser textured one. 



Methods 



One heavy and one medium 

 textured minesoil found in the coal 

 fields of eastern Kentucky were 

 used in the study. Neither minesoil 

 had developed horizon differentia- 

 tion at time of collection. They 

 were texturally classified as a clay 

 and a loam. The clay was collect- 

 ed from an orphan mine site in 

 Owsley County, where soils had 

 been mapped in the Tilsit soil series 

 before mining began. The loam 

 was collected from an orphan mine 

 site in Jackson County. Before 

 mining, soils on this site had been 

 mapped in the Rigley series. 



Minesoils from each site were 

 sieved to separate the particles. 

 These materials measuring 1.3 cm 

 or smaller were saved and crushed 

 to pass a No. 10 sieve; then each 

 was blended to insure textural 

 uniformity. 



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