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• Study Design <br />The goal of this research was to identify operational effective planting and control of <br />competing vegetation techniques to reestablish self-sustaining woody perennials on <br />reclaimed mine lands that sustained native trees and shrubs before mining. Findings from <br />this study are applicable throughout the U.S. where planting machines are commonly <br />available and woody perennials are grown on reclaimed surface mine lands. Our previous <br />research found that fencing to prevent browsing, control of competing vegetation, and <br />sufficient water availability are critical factors for ensuring adequate survival and growth <br />of planted aspen trees. This study tested the effectiveness of commercially available <br />techniques used in high volume planting systems, adapted to account for the critical <br />factors identified in our previous research. These questions are being investigated in <br />experiments conducted on reclaimed Seneca Coal Company land south of Hayden, CO. <br />The preliminary study was conducted on the Seneca II-W mine with aspen trees <br />transplanted from the Seneca Yoast mine (Figure 1). This experiment is examining if <br />standard tree planting techniques and equipment used for machine planting of trees for <br />farming, conservation, and reforestation, as recommended by the state forest nurseries, <br />are advantageous to the growth and survival of aspen trees and serviceberry shrubs on <br />mine reclamation sites. The method could be used as a cost-effective method to <br />reproduce woody perennial vegetation on large areas of reclaimed lands. The experiment <br />is being conducted on reclaimed sites on the Seneca Coal Company Yoast and IIW coal <br />mines. Surface mining activity has been discontinued at both mines and both sites are <br />being re-vegetated.