Guidelines for the Revegetation of Native Plants

• Denali National Park is managed under native plant revegetation guidelines. Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images

  Native plant habitats are frequently disturbed by human activity such as logging, road building and development. Plants which may grow back in disturbed areas are often invasive or alien species rather than the local flora, especially in fragile ecosystems. Guidelines for the revegetation of native plants include strategies for vanquishing invasive and non-native species, and replanting disturbed sites with local species that prevent erosion and provide ecologically appropriate habitat.

Native Plants

• Native plant species provide more suitable habitat for local insects and wildlife and are well-adapted to be hardy and thrive in the local growing environments. However, the plant species growing in many regions include dozens of non-native plants brought by settlers and travelers over many generations, according to the Colorado Parks Department's Native Plant Revegetation Guide for Colorado. Land managers involved in native plant revegetation must first determine which species will be considered native, including deciding whether plants brought by settlers several hundred years ago will be included in native plantings or eradicated.

Plant Communities

• Native plants grow in grouped communities which vary depending on the soil and micro-climate conditions at the site where native revegetation is being considered. Native plant revegetation guidelines describe the types of plant communities found within a region. Land managers must then assess the site location and determine which is the best collection of native plant species for the area, and in which proportions and patterns to plant them on the site. The U.S. Geological Society native plant revegetation guidelines for Denali National Park and Preserve include descriptions of boreal forest, riparian areas and tundra vegetation communities, while the Colorado State Parks Department revegetation guidelines distinguishes between grasslands, shrublands, woodlands, forests and wetlands.

Succession

• Plant communities change over time and adapt to site-specific factors, advises the roadside revegetation portal presented by the Coordinated Technology Implementation Program of the Federal Highway Administration. Native plant revegetation guidelines help land managers to consider which species are appropriate early in the plant community succession for the site being revegetated. Installing plants that cannot thrive until earlier species have been established will diminish the odds of a successful native plant revegetation project.

Banishing Invasive Species

• Before native plant communities can be successfully established, invasive plants must be removed and the soil amended with weed-free enhancements like well-rotted local leaf compost, advises Reed College of Portland, Oregon. Local native plant revegetation guidelines will assist in determining the best method for removing invasive species, taking into consideration factors like whether the species create toxic reactions on touch, have particularly deep roots, or can sprout from any remaining parts of the plant.

Monitoring and Maintenance

• Native revegetation project sites must be monitored to ensure the continual success of the plantings, with an eye towards keeping invasive species at bay and preventing erosion or damaging use that might interfere with native plant community development. Native plant revegetation guidelines include specification for frequency and types of monitoring, advises the Federal Highway Adminstration's roadside revegetation portal. Maintenance activities may include replanting, weeding or planting later successional species.