The role of riparian planting is critical to the survival of your land. If you have riparian areas or wetlands in your property, you can use them to enhance that piece of land to your advantage. A riparian system provides fresh water and irrigation necessary for the development of your property.

Riparian planting and management is the restoration, enhancement and the construction of wetlands, rivers or streams inside a property.

It plays an important part because it stabilizes your land in many ways. Some of the benefits of riparian planting include:

● Protects riparian systems from livestock. It acts as a deterrent from any cattle that could destroy or pollute its waterways.
● Filters the water. Riparian plants help clean the water running through your property.
● Prevents erosion. It minimizes erosion problems, especially if you plant native trees such as cabbages, it helps strengthen the land.
● Filters pollution. Riparians systems can carry pollutants along the way, plants help filter out most of these pollutants.
● Moderates water flow. Using a riparian system moderates flow of water in your property, which helps prevent flooding.
● Riparians also moderate water temperature. Improved water condition allows fishes and other water creatures to thrive.
● They also provide food to aquatic insects and fishes.Riparian system also bring a wider variety of water species with commercial value, giving landowner alternative sources of income.

Riparian planting not only helps boost the look of your land, it also sustains it. Aside from the aesthetic benefit, it has environmental and developmental benefits as well. Many subdivision owners use wetlands for their wastewater treatment management system. They use wetlands to control the effects of livestock productions or some damages from septic tanks.

So if you are looking to enhance your property, you might want to start with riparian planting.

As a start, these are a few steps that you need to do with your riparian planting.

● First, you need to do some fencing, particularly with the riparian margin. This will protect the riparian area, as well as the plants and other creature living in that area.
● After which, you need to establish the appropriate vegetation for your wetland. The manukas and kanukas can be used in the process, as these plants not only help improve the look of your wetland but also provides the soil added nutrients to support the growth of other native plants.
● After planting the native plants, be sure to have maintenance plan in place. Your wetland should have constant monitoring to ensure that your plants and the environment around it are thriving.
● You also have to minimize any adverse effect on those waterways, especially around the margin. This means minimizing or avoiding any development around the area or keeping livestock away from the margins during planting.
● And if possible, you need to install protective measures or any controlling system for you to manage your wetland. This may mean asking for support from your local government for added protections, especially if your riparian area supports protected animal and/or plant species.

Riparian planting is with the initiative of a landowner and done with minimal planning. But there other ways where you can make  riparian planting and management more effective to ensure success riparian restoration and to minimize the impact on your property and livestock.

This is where Rural Design comes in. We provide you with easy, cost effective design solutions, riparian planting and restoration services, as well as an extensive native plant supply. We help you plan, facilitate and implement your wetland planting for a sustainable and effective riparian system.

For more on riparian planting and management, you can visit our website, http://ruraldesign.co.nz/contact/, or visit us at our office at 300 Kaiwaka-Mangawhai Road, Kaiwaka, Northland