By: Samantha Porzelt, Water Resource Agent
On September 25th Clemson Extension hosted a pond buffer workshop in partnership with Dorchester County Parks & Rec and Friends of Dorchester County Parks at Ashley River Park in Summerville. The workshop began with a presentation by Water Resources Agent Ellen Sturup Comeau introducing stormwater ponds, recreational ponds, and shoreline buffers to the 31 workshop participants. Water Resources Agent Samantha Porzelt then led the participants in a hands-on planting of a shoreline buffer with assistance from Water Resources Agent Bea Calhoun and Natural Resources Program Team Director Derrick Phinney. The buffer was installed along the pond bank where erosion was beginning. The newly planted buffer included two sections that were each 65 feet long and 3 feet wide. The buffer was planted with soft rush (Juncus effusus), pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata), and blue flag iris (Iris versicolor). These are all native wetland plants that grow well in saturated soils and have root structures that can hold soil in place. The plants will not only help stabilize the pond’s bank, but they will also provide improved water quality and wildlife value. To learn more about pond shoreline buffers, please visit: https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/shorescaping-freshwater-shorelines/
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