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Article: Topsoil Is Alive: Keep It Fresh.
- Article from:
- Agricultural Research
- Article date:
- February 1, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 U.S. Government Printing Office. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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As anyone finds after moving into a newly built home, a yard full of "sterile" subsoil is a poor substitute for healthy topsoil when it comes to growing a lawn, shrubs, or a garden. Topsoil brims with worms, microorganisms, and organic matter. Subsoil -- material from below the topsoil -- usually spells subpar greenery.
Mining companies face a similar problem when reclaiming strip-mined Western rangeland. But their problem is far more serious: Federal and, often, state laws require them to replant and establish native vegetation. New research points to a way to give their efforts a better chance of success.
While rangeland vegetation like sagebrush may ...