Evaluating Your Project
The speed at which the plant community establishes itself in your wetland will be the most important change to evaluate. The plants that colonize the site can be used as a measure of progress toward achieving restoration goals. Primary objectives include restoring historic hydrology at the site and colonization by a high number of native plant species. As water levels stabilize and the plants become established, birds, amphibians, and mammals will make greater use of the wetland. You can monitor your wetland through a variety of activities.

Take Photos. If you haven’t already done so in the planning phase of your project, set up one or several permanent photo points on your site where you can view a large portion of the wetland. Use of a landmark or stake can help you maintain photo consistency. Take photos before restoration, immediately after restoration and, at a minimum, annually thereafter in the same season. For more detail, take a photo from each point each season. Carefully label the photos with the date and exact location.

Look for Invasive Plants. Monitoring for the invasive plants is critical to the health of your wetland. In particular, look for reed canary grass and purple loosestrife. Both plant species aggressively invade a wetland after a disturbance. Immediately remove any invasive plants before they become a larger problem. These plants can be effectively eliminated if discovered and treated early in the restoration process.

Revisit Your Project Goals and Objectives. Refer to your original goals and "vision" plan occasionally to evaluate your restoration. Many sites take several years before beginning to achieve the vision. Upon project completion, and for subsequent years, review the site map you drew before construction. Draw a new map outlining major plant community types, areas dominated by open water, cattails, sedges, grasses, shrubs, or trees. Compare this to your project goal and use it over time to plan additional site management activities.

Inspect the Plantings. Keep close watch over any plantings. This is particularly critical in the first year when plants are growing root systems and are under stress. Wilting plants may need mulch or water. You can expect a certain percentage of loss, and may want to fill in gaps where plants or rootstock did not survive. Rapidly growing "colonizer" plant species may quickly dominate a site and overwhelm your plantings. Mowing 6 to 8 inches high after plants begin to grow may discourage unwanted species.

Notice Bare Ground. In the first year of restoration you may notice spots with little vegetative cover. These should fill in by the second year. If these areas remain without vegetation for several years, especially if they are not flooded, then it may indicate poor soil in that area. You may need to bring in organic topsoil from elsewhere on your site and re-seed the area with appropriate species.

Measure Water Depths. During site construction drive several lengths of hollow and uncapped PVC piping, marked with permanent markings at 1-foot intervals, into the ground at several points in the wetland. Three pipes set in a line over an area anticipated to be covered with water provides a good range. At different times over the years, this will allow you to record the depth of the water at each point following construction. Read the marks with binoculars or, if accessible, measure with a ruler from the ground surface to the height of the water. If you have the time and interest, take a reading every other week during the spring, summer, and early fall. Even infrequent data collection can be important. Be aware that frost heaving can raise and lower pipes affecting year-to-year comparisons of data. You may observe seasonal or annual fluctuations that are normal to wetlands, or you may document that your site has a hydrologic problem that you may need to discuss with a wetland specialist.

Simple Conservation Activities
A variety of relatively inexpensive and simple conservation activities may improve the health of your wetland. You need to be aware of which factors contribute to the degradation of a wetland in order to help correct them. The following conservation and management recommendations target the negative effects of past and present disturbance to your wetland.

Develop a Buffer Area. Before human activities altered the landscape, a continual expanse of uninterrupted vegetation linked uplands and wetlands. Historically, land use practices have tended to alter or develop upland areas, creating abrupt boundaries between upland and wetland at the wetland edge. By establishing a buffer zone, you can recreate the vegetation continuum and minimize the abrupt boundary between cultivated or grazed lands and wetlands. A buffer area can protect wetlands from siltation, excess nutrients, and pollution from chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides applied to neighboring agricultural fields. We recommend that you establish an unmowed swath of vegetation at least 100 feet wide around your wetland. If you cannot maintain 100 feet, a narrower buffer is better than none at all. If reed canary grass occurs or becomes established in the buffer area, this may pose a management problem that may require a mowing schedule to manage the stand. Landscape the buffer with native plants. High quality uplands can provide important habitat for many wetland wildlife species. Planting a buffer around your restored wetland is also an important way to protect it from the impact of nutrients and sediments over time. Consult with a native plant nursery in your area to select the best plantings for your site.

Avoid Mowing to the Edges of Lakes or Streams. The vegetated wetland edge of a lake or stream is important habitat for fish, reptiles, amphibians, songbirds, waterfowl, and mammals. The shoreline of all waterbodies should not be disturbed or mowed. Native plants along the shoreline will buffer wave action and help cool shallow water, while their roots bind the soil to resist erosion. This unmowed shoreline edge also protects water quality by filtering and slowing runoff from the upland areas.

Delay Mowing until after the Nesting Season. Many species of birds and butterflies depend upon tall grassy areas for feeding and breeding. If the adjacent land must be mowed for hay or brush removal, we suggest that you wait to mow until after the grassland-bird nesting season. Blue-winged Teal and mallards nest in grassy uplands near ponds and wetlands and can suffer tremendous nest failure and mortality when fields are mowed before eggs hatch. Do not mow before mid-July; if possible, hold off until August to allow fledging of young birds.

Fence Out Livestock. If cattle, horses, or other livestock graze in or near the wetland, fence them out 100 or more feet from the wetland’s edge. If a pond or the wetland serves as drinking water for livestock, find an alternative water source. Cattle trampling can destroy sensitive wetland plants and break wetland sod, providing an opportunity for invasive species to become established. Additionally, invasive plant seeds can hitchhike into the area by clinging to the hooves of livestock. Some species of wetland grasses and wildflowers are favorite food items of grazing livestock and quickly disappear under grazing pressure. Manure can quickly become a source of excess nutrients and unwanted seeds. Undesirable plants, like reed canary grass, often establish themselves in grazed wetlands and along their edges.