SPECIES AND PROVENANCE TRIAL FOR ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION OF MINE TAILINGS AT TLALPUJAHUA, MICHOACÁN, MEXICO

Abstract

The objective of this study was to test the ability of tree species to survive and grow at an early age (two years after transplant to the field) in soil with mine tailings. In this study, the performance of five species (Pinus pseudostrobus, P. martinezii, P. leiophylla, P. devoniana and Juniperus deppeana) and a variable number of provenances was evaluated in a site with mining substrate in Tlalpujahua, Michoacán, in central-west Mexico. An experimental design of seven complete randomized blocks with up to four provenances per each tree species was used. Plant total height, height increase, and relative growth were significantly different (p£0.001) among species. P. pseudostrobus and P. devoniana had the highest growth at two years (133 and 94 cm), and J. deppeana had the highest survival rate (96%). Pinus devoniana is exotic to the test site and it grows naturally at a lower altitude than the plantation (2596 m), thus, this species might be useful for compensating the effects of climate change.