Montana Tech’s Native Plant program: Cultivating roots for restoration on the Butte Hill
For the history buffs in Butte, a journey through the town’s 10,000 miles of tunnels offers a unique glimpse into the past. However, a group of faculty and students at Montana Technological University is looking even further back, aiming to understand and re-establish the native ecosystems that could have taken shape here if more than a century of mining had not changed the land so dramatically.
When Montana Tech’s Native Plant Program began in 2008, it started with a single grant proposal to the Natural Resource Damage Program (NRDP) written by Kriss Douglas. Nearly 18 years later, the program has grown into a cornerstone of ecological restoration on the Butte Hill—an area stripped bare by mining and now undergoing a huge reclamation effort. Since 2015, under the leadership of Dr. Robert Pal, the program has also become an essential part of Montana Tech’s broader Ecological Restoration Program.
The Native Plant Program’s first grant cycle ran from 2008–2012, with additional funding secured in 2013 by NRDP. Since then, faculty, staff, and students have combined research with hands-on greenhouse work to improve the survival of native species planted on reclaimed land.
“On the Butte Hill in 1878, there weren’t many trees left,” said Krystal Weilage, who helps run the program. She has historical photos that show what the land looked like as a mining camp. “This land had been a hunting ground for Native American tribes, but when mining arrived, we lost much of our knowledge about the plants that once grew here.”
The program’s mission is to restore biodiversity to a landscape long dominated by mine waste. For years, seed mixes used in reclamation lacked variety, but in 2016, Dr. Pal developed the first native seed mix specifically for Butte Hill.
“The reason we grow plants is to create more diversity on the mine caps in Butte,” Weilage said.
The program operates with two greenhouses and additional overwintering sheds, where over 5,000 plants are grown each year. Seeds are carefully collected from local sources to ensure they are adapted to Butte’s harsh conditions.
“We’ve found that survivability increases quite a bit when we have seed collected and grown in Butte,” Weilage said.
Some seed collection requires years of persistence. It took seven years, for example, for Weilage to obtain curly leaf mountain mahogany seed. The collection of seeds from a roadside near Whitehall was not an easy one, but was worth it after so many years of trying. In total, staff and students have collected more than 150 species.
The work doesn’t stop at collection. Seeds undergo cleaning, germination testing, and stratification—cold treatments that mimic Montana winters—before they are sown. Students and community volunteers play a central role in this process, from preparing soil mixes to thinning seedlings to participating in fall community plantings.
Research remains a defining feature of the program. Studies have tested everything from cardboard plant collars to using locally adapted mycorrhizal fungi in hopes of improving survival rates. Graduate and undergraduate students contribute to ongoing projects, while the program collaborates closely with Butte-Silver Bow and the Natural Resource Damage Program, which funds the work through settlements with ARCO.
Beyond science, stewardship is central. Weilage and her colleagues speak with local groups, such as the Whitehall Garden Club, to share the importance of native plants and how the public can get involved.
“Talking to the community about what we do, why it’s important, and how you can be involved is a huge part of this program,” she said.
As the current grant cycle winds down, the program is looking to the future. Possibilities include expanding community access to plants, similar to programs at other universities. Whatever the next steps, the vision remains clear: restoring the Butte Hill with the resilient, locally adapted species that once called it home.
“We never know exactly what was here before mining,” Weilage said. “But by growing and planting native species, we’re helping bring biodiversity back to the Hill.”
A community planting will take place Sunday, September 28, 2025 from noon to 4:30 p.m. at Buffalo Street and Bell Street in Butte. All ages are welcome. Volunteers are asked to wear closed toed shoes and bring water to drink. The group will have gloves and trowels available, though participants are free to bring their own.