Native Brazilian grass species with potential for revegetation of degraded lands, surveyed from a Ferruginous Campo Rupestre topsoil

ABSTRACT

An alternative to find adequate species to revegetate mined sites is surveying the species that develop from the local topsoil seed bank. In that sense, grass species are usually the most indicated ones, as they contribute to stabilizing soil. We aimed to evaluate the native species that would develop from the seed bank of a ferruginous topsoil and select the grass species with highest importance value indexes (IVI’s) for their potential of use in revegetation programs. The evaluated topsoil was deposited in the Gerdau’s Unit for Research and Innovation on Ferruginous Rocky Outcrops at Ouro Branco, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, where phytosociological studies were conducted upon seed bank development. Eragrostis polytricha Nees showed highest values not only of IVI but also of relative frequency and relative cover, in addition to the second highest value of relative density. Thus, we recommend E. polytricha as a potential species for being used in revegetation programs.

Keywords: Eragrostis polytricha; mining activity; native grass species; revegetation