Development of a planter for direct seeding of trees in surface mine reclamation.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Richards TW ; Wells LG
• Description:
  Provisions in the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 have renewed interest in reforestation of mined land. In response, the University of Kentucky is conducting reforestation research on surface mines in Kentucky. A commercially available no-till row planter was modified for use in direct seeding hardwood tree species. A pneumatic seed metering system was designed, fabricated, and mounted on the planter frame. Removable modules were fabricated with cells of different sizes corresponding to the various sizes of tree seeds being tested. A centrifugal fan, powered by an auxiliary variable-speed hydraulic motor, was utilized to develop seed metering vacuum. The planter unit was also modified by enlarging the furrow opening disk penetration and adding a 46-in. Parabolic upper tine ahead of the furrow opening disks. The planter performed satisfactorily on regraded sandstone and shale spoil material with an established vegetative cover. Metering efficiencies of 97% were achieved for pin oak seeds at 2.0 Mph and 50% slope. For red oak, 97% efficiency was achieved at 2.5 Mph and 50% slope. Unsatisfactory performance was noted during tests of larger seed, namely Bur Oak and Black Walnut. A redesign of seed cell configuration is expected to result in satisfactory metering of bur oak, whereas preprocessing of Black Walnut seeds to smooth rough seed exterior will probably be required. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Forestry Mining Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Mining; Environmental management; Surface mining; Forestry
• Series:
  Mining Publications
• Subseries:
  Open File Report
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Contract
• Genre:
  Conference Publications ; Final Contract Report
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  WO - Washington Office
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-15
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:10004479
• Citation:
  For Reference Only At Bureau Libraries, 1985; :1-15
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1985
• Performing Organization:
  University of Kentucky
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7dc847c09aedf140bc731323e8446b4703641ae07d6ad9e7b7238120dab30b8f7dcaa9b938d34d035f87873a0fe7fec262d5d13dcaf290925445e82b6de3b57d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/245158/cdc_245158_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 168.02 KB ]