The lack of remediation of inactive mine sites is a serious global concern, as they pose risks to the environment, human health, and safety. The potential of subsp. to remediate post-mining sites contaminated with copper (Cu) at high altitudes, which is a challenging task for most management strategies, was explored in this study. More than 1300 mg Cu kg in shoots were found in plants collected at the Monte Avanza legacy mine site (Alps). However, it is unclear whether this is due to hyperaccumulation or foliar contamination. To address this gap, field samples were washed with two different protocols, and a controlled Cu-tolerance test was conducted. While very high Cu concentrations, exceeding the Cu hyperaccumulation threshold of 300 mg kg, were found in samples washed with water, results for the plants cleaned with a more rigorous approach with EDTA suggested Cu exclusion strategy. Under controlled conditions, the plant showed Cu hypertolerance but did not hyperaccumulate Cu. Thus presents a Cu exclusion strategy rather than hyperaccumulation potential, making it a suitable candidate for Cu phytostabilization at high altitude legacy mine sites. The study emphasizes the need for experiments under controlled conditions when assessing the phytoremediation potential.

A chronosequence, representing a successional series, was used for the comparison of a hay meadow site managed in an old traditional way for at least a hundred years, and hay meadow sites abandoned for about 10, 20 and 30 years, respectively. Old traditional management included grazing early and late in the growing season, mowing in August and light or no fertilizing. The tree cover was the most important factor deciding the composition of vegetation. Time since abandonment was not completely correlated to tree cover, as some plots had a dense canopy and others were situated in the open. The total species number decreased with number of years since abandonment in plots > 0.001 mand <100 m. The highest species number in 1 m plots was recorded in the managed site, with 38 species of phanerogams. Fourtyeight % of the indicators of traditional management present in the managed site was recorded in the site which had been abandoned for 30 years. Frequency - log area curves made it possible to group species according to persistence in the sward. As a result, a group of functional indicators of rare hay meadows in the region was distinguished.

The aims of this paper are to detect floristic variation within different types of tall-fern dominated vegetation and to interpret these patterns in terms of environmental variables. Numerical approaches have been applied to a large and varied vegetational data-set with associated environmental data from stands dominated by , and in different parts of western Norway. The numerical procedures of two-way indicator species analysis, simple discriminant functions, and canonical correspondence analysis have been used, and the strengths and weaknesses of these as tools in discerning vegetational-environmental relationships are discussed. For each of the 96 quadrats investigated, 17 environmental variables were measured. The investigation shows that some of the observed differences in vegetational composition can be explained in terms of relatively simple soil and climatic variables measured for each quadrat. The ferns appear to be ecologically well separated. stands are mainly characterised by low soil fertility, high January temperature, and high humidity. stands are associated with low winter temperatures, and stands have high soil fertility and high summer temperatures.

The distribution in bogs is outlined for all species occurring in bogs only in part of their SE Fennoscandian area. The patterns displayed by these species are diverse, and different explanations are applicable to different patterns. Regional variation in SE Fennoscandian bog and extremely poor fen vegetation is described, based on all available published material. Carpets, lawns, and hummocks are considered separately. Four regional vegetational gradients are identified: (1) W-E, (2) S-N, (3) SW-NE, and (4) NW-SE. These are related to different underlying climatic gradients: (1) humidity (precipitation surplus), (2) temperature, (3) and (4) combinations of humidity and temperature. Effects of climatic gradients on the ground water regime are outlined. The decisive factor for the SW-NE gradient is probably frequency of ground water table fluctuations, the NW-SE gradient is likely to be caused by differences in water supply and ground water flow rates. The main gradient of carpets is S-N (SE-NW), of lawns SW-NE (W-E), and of hummocks partly SW-NE, partly S-N. The effects of the underlying ecological factors on the different plant groups are discussed in order to explain the patterns of regional variation in vegetation.