PurposeQuarrying activities in areas with serpentinized rocks may have a negative impact on plant growth. Quarry soils generally offer hostile environments for plant growth due to their low-nutrient availability, low organic matter, and high-trace metal content.Materials and methodsIn order to determine the factors that can limit plant revegetation, this study was carried out in two serpentine quarries in Galicia (NW Spain): one abandoned in 1999 and the other still active.Results and discussionThe results show that in soils developed in the abandoned quarry, the limitations for revegetation were: moderate alkaline pH (7.87–8.05), strong Ca/Mg (<1) imbalance, low N (<0.42 mg kg?1) and P (<2 mg kg?1) content, and high total heavy-metal content (Co 76–147 mg kg?1; Cr 1370–2600 mg kg?1; and Ni 1340–2040 mg kg?1). The limitations were much less intense in the soils developed in the substratum in the active quarry, which were incipient soils poorly developed and permanently affected by the quarrying activity.ConclusionsRestoration work should be geared toward establishing a stable diverse vegetation cover, including serpentinophile species, which would provide the necessary modifications to correct nutritive imbalances and improve soil quality. |