How Vegetation Reinforces Soil on Slopes

Stokes, Alexia; Norris, Joanne E.; Beek, L. P. H. van; Bogaard, Thom; Cammeraat, Erik; Mickovski, Slobodan B.; Jenner, Anthony; Iorio, Antonino Di; Fourcaud, Thierry

doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-6676-4_4

Cited by 95 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 121 publications

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“…An extensive literature exists on the benefits of trees, shrubs and grasses for reinforcing soils to control or reduce both surficial and shallow mass-movement erosion (e.g. Phillips et al 1990;Marden & Rowan 1993;Stokes et al 2008Stokes et al , 2009). Root reinforcement is now recognised as an important factor affecting several hydro-mechanical processes that give rise to the hazards mentioned above (Schwarz et al 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of “coarse” root development in young trees of nine exotic species from a New Zealand plot trial

Phillips

Marden

Lambie

2015

N.Z. j. of For. Sci.

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Background: Forests and wide-spaced trees are used widely in New Zealand to control erosion from shallow landslides. Species that offer similar or better levels of protection to those currently used are sought to meet future needs. Determining what plants to use and when they become effective is important for developing guidelines and policy for land management. This study aimed to obtain data on above-and below-ground plant growth for young exotic tree species considered potential candidates for future 'erosion control forests'. Methods: The above-and below-ground growth of nine exotic tree species was assessed annually for 3 years from planting in a randomised block field trial. Whole trees were excavated and destructively sampled and several below-ground metrics (total root length of all roots > 1 mm in diameter, lateral root spread, total root biomass) assessed. Results: Differences between species for most metrics at the time of planting carried through to Year 3. The best performing species across most metrics was alder, followed by blackwood, cherry, and cypress. Allometric models relating total root length and below-ground biomass to root collar diameter were established. Conclusion: Top performers with regard to root metrics were alder, cherry, and cypress followed by blackwood, radiata, and redwood. Root information contributes to improving our understanding of how and when, and at what planting density, plants become effective for controlling erosion in New Zealand.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of “coarse” root development in young trees of nine exotic species from a New Zealand plot trial

Phillips

Marden

Lambie

2015

N.Z. j. of For. Sci.

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“…Wu (1976) and Wu et al (1979) pioneered a model that was applied in numerous studies for the assessment of how roots contribute to soil shear reinforcement. The impact of root reinforcement on soil is generally expressed as an increase in soil cohesion (Borroughs and Thomas, 1977;Wu et al, 1979;Wu, 1984a, b;Sidle et al, 1985;Sidle, 1992;Wu and Sidle, 1995;Abernethy and Rutherford, 2001;Stokes et al, 2008. A number of factors influence the tensile strength test: species, season, age, soil compaction, deformation of roots, soil and root moisture, root preservation, field or lab test, type and size of testing equipment, root clamping procedure, test speed, and rate of elongation (Rienstenberg, 1994;Cofie and Koolen, 2001;Fan and Su, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Root reinforcement and slope bioengineering stabilization by Spanish Broom (<i>Spartium junceum</i> L.)

Preti

Giadrossich

2009

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. The present paper deals with the root system's characteristics of Spanish Broom (Spartium junceum L.), a species whose capacity for adaptating and resisting to drought is worth investigating. In particular, the aims of the study were 1) to investigate the plant's bio-mechanical aspects and 2) to verify whether root reinforcement and the field rooting ability of stem cuttings enhance its potential for use in slope stabilization and soil bio-engineering techniques, particularly in the Mediterranean areas.Single root specimens were sampled and tested for tensile strength, obtaining classic tensile strength-diameter relationships. Analysis were performed on the root systems in order to assess root density distribution. The Root Area Ratio (RAR) was analyzed by taking both direct and indirect measurements, the latter relying on image processing. The data obtained were used to analyze the stability of an artificial slope (landfill) and the root reinforcement. The measurement and calculation of mean root number, mean root diameter, RAR, root cohesion and Factor of safety are presented in order to distinguish the effect of plant origin and propagation.Furthermore, tests were performed to assess the possibility of agamic propagation (survival rate of root-ball endowed plants, rooting from stem cuttings). These tests confirmed that agamic propagation is difficult, even though roots were produced from some buried stems, and for practical purposes it has been ruled out.Our results show that Spanish Broom has good biomechanical characteristics with regard to slope stabilization, even in critical pedoclimatic conditions and where inclinations are quite steep, and it is effective on soil depths up to about 50 cm, in agreement with other studies on MediterCorrespondence to: F. Preti (federico.preti@unifi.it) ranean species. It is effective in slope stabilization, but less suitable for soil bio-engineering or for triggering natural plant succession.

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“…On the other hand, tensile strength of Geyer's willow (Thomas and Pollen-Bankhead, 2010) growing in North America is similar to that of the studied basket willow, whereas purple willow (Bischetti et al, 2007) has a slightly lower strength. In general, in the light of the results of tests on various plant species, obtained by various research groups and collated in the paper by Stokes et al (2008), it can be stated that tensile strength of the studied black alder is within the lower range of strength values for deciduous trees, whereas the mean strength value of basket willow is basically typical for shrubs. It should be highlighted, however, that test results presented in the paper by Stokes et al (2008) were obtained using various methods differing in the way of preparing samples for tests and also in the tensing procedure itself.…”

Section: Tensile Strengthmentioning

confidence: 94%

The Effect of Root Reinforcement Exemplified by Black Alder (Alnus Glutinosa Gaertn.) and Basket Willow (Salix Viminalis) Root Systems – Case Study in Poland

Zydroń¹

2018

Appl. Ecol. Env. Res.

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Zydroń -Skórski: The effect of root reinforcement exemplified by black alder and basket willow root systems - Abstract. This paper is focused on evaluation of the effect of roots of two species -black alder (Alnus glutinosa Gaerin.) and basket willow (Salix viminalis) on the increase in soil shear strength (root cohesion). The second aim of the paper was to compare the results of calculating root cohesion using the classical Wu/Waldron model and selected fiber bundle models, especially in the context of determining the influence of the criterion of distribution of stresses on calculation results. The research on the studied plant species was conducted on a seven-year plantation of energy crops located in Krakow, Poland, where the test area was modified by covering the natural site by anthropogenic soil. In order to determine the root cohesion site investigations, which included measurements of root area ratio, and laboratory tests, which included determination of root tensile strength, were conducted. The results of root cohesion calculation revealed that the studied species have relatively low values of this parameter. It was also shown that fiber bundle models yield lower values of root cohesion than the classic Wu-Waldron model. Among the fiber bundle models, the lowest values of the investigated parameter were obtained using the deformation model that takes into account the function of probability distribution of root tensile strength.

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How Vegetation Reinforces Soil on Slopes

Cited by 95 publications

References 121 publications

Observations of “coarse” root development in young trees of nine exotic species from a New Zealand plot trial

Observations of “coarse” root development in young trees of nine exotic species from a New Zealand plot trial

Root reinforcement and slope bioengineering stabilization by Spanish Broom (<i>Spartium junceum</i> L.)

The Effect of Root Reinforcement Exemplified by Black Alder (Alnus Glutinosa Gaertn.) and Basket Willow (Salix Viminalis) Root Systems – Case Study in Poland

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How Vegetation Reinforces Soil on Slopes

Cited by 95 publications

References 121 publications

Observations of “coarse” root development in young trees of nine exotic species from a New Zealand plot trial

Observations of “coarse” root development in young trees of nine exotic species from a New Zealand plot trial

Root reinforcement and slope bioengineering stabilization by Spanish Broom (&lt;i&gt;Spartium junceum&lt;/i&gt; L.)

The Effect of Root Reinforcement Exemplified by Black Alder (Alnus Glutinosa Gaertn.) and Basket Willow (Salix Viminalis) Root Systems – Case Study in Poland

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Root reinforcement and slope bioengineering stabilization by Spanish Broom (<i>Spartium junceum</i> L.)