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. A large portion of the Seneca mines was covered with aspen, serviceberry, and <br />other native plants prior to mining. Aspen is unique in that it is a common species in the <br />western United States, but it has not been planted successfully in wildland <br />environments. Developing methods to do so and gaining a better understanding of <br />factors that limit planting success of woody perennials in high - altitude semi -arid <br />environments will be of great benefit to the mining industry in the West and should aid <br />State regulatory authorities in permitting and enforcement of coal mine activities. <br />Aspen and serviceberry were planted using standard landscape fabric designed <br />for machine planting as recommend by the Colorado State Forest Nursery. This <br />experiment hand planted the trees and shrubs, using the same landscape fabric (6 ft <br />wide) and tree /shrub spacing (5 ft) as used with machine planting. This particular <br />experiment was hand planted since the study was too small to warrant the economics of <br />contracting for a planting machine, and students were available to assist with the <br />planting. However, the experiment was planted with the same type of techniques used <br />• in machine planting where trees and shrubs are planted followed by laying, slitting, and <br />pinning the fabric around and over the planted trees. <br />The experiment included a total of six plots, three at the Yoast Mine and three at <br />the IIW Mine. All of the plots were located within two fenced areas at each mine to <br />exclude elk, deer, and cattle browsing. At each mine, one of the fenced areas includes <br />one experimental plot and the other fenced area includes two experimental plots. <br />Aspen and serviceberry were planted with or without the landscape fabric. Rows with or <br />without landscape fabric were randomized within each plot (Figure 2). Water supply was <br />from a nearby potable water source to avoid salinity problems. One -half of the planted <br />aspen and serviceberry received water every other week by watering from a bulk <br />storage tank. The other half received no supplemental irrigation water. The single <br />fenced plot at the IIW mine was abandoned after grasshoppers defoliated all the plants <br />by the end of June 2008 (Figure 3) and data were not included in the first year growth <br />analysis. The plot was re- examined for survival in the spring of 2009 and confirmed that <br />few plants survived. <br />• <br />is$] <br />