Innovation Anthology #677:
Much like a gardener might apply mulch to keep down the weeds, Eckehart Marenholtz did the same to give his young trees a head start at Genesee’s East Wetland reclamation site.
After comparing four different types over mulch over the summer of 2014, Eckehart found that a mulch of wood chips offered several advantages.
ECKEHART MARENHOLTZ: It looked sort of the most natural at the end of the season. It had the best suppression effect. And there were also were some other benefits in the sense that the material that we used was from another area on the mine where there was a forest that had to be removed. And so it was mulched and then we moved it over onto this reclamation site. We also brought some forest species seeds with that material. So I saw some Saskatoon and rose that had clearly come with the wood mulch. And the idea of using material that needs to be cleared away anyway, because as the mine progresses, it will move through forest patches, and salvaging that material and using it in the reclamation process.
To optimize the success of establishing tree seedlings, Eckehart Marenholtz also tried different planting methods.
Thanks today to Capital Power.
FOR INNOVATION ANTHOLOGY,
I’M CHERYL CROUCHER
Guest
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Sponsor
Capital Power
Program Date: 2015-03-31