2007 Volume 11 Issue 2 Pages 205-216
Mires and peatlands have become the focus of nature conservation and restoration management policy due to their multiple ecological functions such as accumulation, disposal, retention and conservation, as well as their possible role in global climate regulation. In this paper we present the results of four long-term studies on spontaneous as well as directed revegetation of peat-mining areas in raised bogs situated in the foothills of the Alps in southern Germany. The results clearly show that
(1) peat mining techniques affect spontaneous revegetation, peat-cutting being a technique which may allow peat-forming vegetation to reestablish itself after abandonment of peat-mining. In contrast, peat milling leads to mono-dominant successional stages of certain species that remain stable in their respective stages over decades,
(2) hydrological conditions after renewed inundation (rewetting) affect the reestablishment of peat-forming vegetation. In our case study, rewetting caused the flooding of large peat-mined areas, resulting in the extinction of trees, shrubs and dwarf shrubs. However, it also supported the establishment of floating mats consisting mainly of fen species which may initiate, in the long-term, the reestablishment of the former peat-forming raised bog vegetation and
(3) reintroduction of vascular plants typical of raised and transitional bogs by sowing and planting may accelerate the establishment of a dense vegetation cover as a prerequisite for the establishment of other species. However, the establishment of a Sphagnum cover with typical peat-forming species such as Sphagnum magellanicum has not been successful on a short- or mid-term basis and remains a major challenge in restoring cut-over raised bogs.
