Establishing peat-forming plant communities: A comparison of wetland reclamation methods in Alberta's oil sands region

The Sandhill Wetland (SW) and Nikanotee Fen (NF) are two wetland research projects designed to test the viability of peatland reclamation in the Alberta oil sands post-mining landscape. To identify effective approaches for establishing peat-forming vegetation in reclaimed wetlands, we evaluated how plant introduction approaches and water level gradients influence species distribution, plant community development, and establishment of bryophyte and peatland species richness and cover. Plant introduction approaches included seeding with a Carex aquatilis-dominated seed mix, planting C. aquatilis and J. balticus seedlings, and spreading a harvested moss layer transfer. Establishment was assessed six years after introduction at SW and five years after introduction at NF. A total of 51 species were introduced to the reclaimed wetlands, and 122 species were observed after five and six years. The most abundant species in both reclaimed wetlands was C. aquatilis, which produced dense canopies a...