Benefits of Fertilization for White Spruce and Lodgepole Pine Trees Depend on the Reclamation Substrate – Overburden vs Tailings Sand

Nitrogen and complete fertilizer applications both improved growth of the white spruce on sites with an overburden substrate. Because the white spruce responded the same way to both fertilizer treatments, it  confirms that nitrogen was the limiting factor for growth on the reclaimed site.

Fertilization did not, however, have an effect on lodgepole pine growth on sites with a tailings sand substrate. This suggests that other factors, such as water availability, were limiting lodgepole pine growth. A companion study confirmed that water availability limited the growth of lodgepole pines on the studied sites.