Planting

Planting Methods and Guidelines

It is important to plant each species in it’s preferred zone, to maximize survival and growth, as well as restoration success. Planting in the soft, muddy saltmarsh soils is easily achieved with a planting tool called a dibber, commonly sold as “potato dibber” or “dibble bar” in hardware stores. The weight of the tool makes it easy to create a 6-10” deep hole, into which individual plugs or the root-ball of small (up to 4” pots) plants can be inserted. It can be beneficial to add a small amount of slow release pellet fertilizer into the hole prior to adding the plant.

The ideal planting season in the northern Gulf is considered to be late spring, after the last frost. Typically this is mid-March or later on the Mississippi coast. This allows the young plants a few months to recover before the summer heat sets in. Alternatively early-mid fall, from late September through mid-November, is also acceptable. However, cold winter temperatures and short day length discourage plants from growing actively until the following year. Summer plantings are not encouraged because of heat stress on the young plants and the potential risk of heavy losses from tropical storms.

Volunteers assisting ACE personnel during large-scale planting in April 2005.

Volunteers or contract labor can greatly speed up the planting rate. One person should be able to plant from 30-60 plants per hour. Planting densities can vary from low density on 3 ft centers (=5’000 plants/acre) up to high density on 1 ft centers (=43’500 plants/acre). Alternatively, “islands” of dense plantings can be used as starter patches for future natural seed-based colonization or vegetative expansion. Coalescence of fast growing grasses into dense cover can occur 1-3 years post-planting under optimal conditions. At Deer Island, we found Spartina patens and some Spartina alterniflorareached near 100% cover in that time frame. Less success was observed with Juncus roemerianus.

Spartina plants 1 month (left) and 1 year (right) after planting in April 2005. Note dead pine trees in background, killed by saltwater during hurricane Katrina, 29 Aug 2005.