Topsoil Seed Bank of an Oak-Hickory Forest in Eastern Kentucky as a Restoration Tool on Surface Mines

Typical reclamation practices in the central Appalachian coal region often use compacted spoils as a topsoil replacement, and these soils are revegetated with aggressive grasses and legumes. This restoration approach results in an herbaceous-dominated landscape with limited natural succession by native flora. An alternative restoration method is to save topsoil prior to mining, stockpile it during mining, and then replace it on uncompacted...