Native plant restoration on the Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park

Abstract

Since 1991, 53 acres of roadside vegetation and soil were removed along sections of the historic Going-to-the-Sun Road during road rehabilitation activities. Restoration strategies used indigenous plant material to re-establish plant cover, prevent erosion, compete with exotics, and improve aesthetics. From several hundred collections, simple seed mixes were created that included early colonizers and late seral species. Native forbs, shrubs, and trees were propagated as bareroot and containerized material. Grass was grown as seed and increased to larger quantities with offsite seed production plantings. Revegetation incorporated a combination of plant and soil salvage, seeding, inplanting, and natural regeneration. Our monitoring program was used to assess results and to help make decisions about species selection, seeding rates, successional strategies, and realistic objectives for restoration.

Parent Publication

• Revegetation with native species: Proceedings, 1997 Society for Ecological Restoration annual meeting; 1997 November 12-15; Fort Lauderdale, FL

Citation

Lange, David E.; Lapp, Joyce. 1999. Native plant restoration on the Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park. In: Holzworth, Larry K.; Brown, Ray W., comps. Revegetation with native species: Proceedings, 1997 Society for Ecological Restoration annual meeting; 1997 November 12-15; Fort Lauderdale, FL. Proc. RMRS-P-8. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 22-27.