Use covers/barriers to control problematic plants: freshwater marshes
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Overall effectiveness category Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)
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Number of studies: 1
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Supporting evidence from individual studies
A replicated, randomized, paired, controlled, before-and-after study in 2014–2015 in two lakeshore marshes cleared of yellow flag iris Iris pseudacorus in British Columbia, Canada (Tarasoff et al. 2016) reported that the effect of covering plots on recolonizing vegetation depended on the water level. Statistical significance was not assessed. Initially, all study plots were completely covered by invasive yellow flag iris. This was clipped to ground level. One year later, in the intermittently flooded marsh, covered plots had approximately 7% vegetation cover (yellow flag iris seedlings and broadleaf cattail Typha latifolia; species cover not quantified). In contrast, open plots had 100% cover of yellow flag iris. Meanwhile, in the permanently flooded marsh, both covered and open plots had approximately 5% vegetation cover (yellow flag iris seedlings and broadleaf cattail; species cover not quantified). Methods: Nine pairs of plots (approximately 1 m2) were established in iris-dominated marshes on the shores of two lakes. In June 2014, yellow flag iris was cut to 0–4 cm above the sediment in all plots. Cuttings were removed. Then, one random plot/pair was covered with an impermeable rubber sheet for 150 days. Vegetation cover was surveyed in July 2015.
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This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:
Marsh and Swamp Conservation
Marsh and Swamp Conservation - Published 2021
Marsh and Swamp Synopsis