This website, which is sponsored by the Colorado Native Plant Master Program, is designed to help people find research-based information about plants that grow in the wilds of Colorado. Plants can be searched for by name, specific characteristics, and blooming season. 

This 57-page guide from the Salt Lake County Watershed Planning & Restoration Program  explores the basics of protecting water quality, streamside habitat, and property values. While written for the Salt Lake area, the information contained in this guide is applicable to a wide range of landowners. 

In this guide you’ll find out how you and your neighbors can:

• Prevent or minimize erosion problems
• Avoid flood losses
• Protect property values
• Preserve water quality
• Contribute to the survival of fish and wildlife

Written by 44 of the field's most prominent scholars and scientists, this volume compiles 25 essays on tamarisk--its biology, ecology, politics, management, and the ethical issues involved with designating a particular species as "good" or "bad". The book analyzes the controversy surrounding tamarisk's role in our ecosystems and what should be done about it.

This video details other considerations that should be taken into account during a restoration project including: groundwater well installation, soil testing, and protection from herbivory. This video was funded by the Walton Family Foundation. 

The purpose of this beautifully illustrated guide is to cultivate awareness of native riparian vegetation and appreciation for its role in proper riparian function. 

This video demonstrates how to properly install containerized plant materials at a restoration site. The type of container selected for your particular site should be based on your site access, access to water, soil conditions and available equipment. This video was funded by the Walton Family Foundation. 

This site allows users to enter their zip code to view a list of the best plants for birds in their area, as well as local resources and links to more information. 

Karen Schlatter gives an Update on The Vegetation Response to Environmental Flows and Restoration Treatments in the Colorado River Delta at TC's 2016 Annual Conference. 

Many people have an interest in landscaping with native plants, and the purpose of this booklet is to help people make the most successful choices, based on their location in Colorado. 

This document is primarily intended to provide restoration guidance for land owners and land managers. Emphasis is placed on the use of planning, evaluation, and removal techniques that can minimize active revegetation efforts.  Information about species and planting methods appropriate to this watershed is also included.  In addition, some suggestions about Russian olive removal techniques and/or land management practices that facilitate native plant regeneration are also provided.

This document profiles restoration success stories from New Mexico. Projects were funded through the River Ecosystem Restoration Initiative.

A presentation by Dr. Anna Sher on Weed Control and Native Plant Community Recovery after Tamarix Removal by Three Methods Over Five Years: Findings of Monitoring 40 Sites of the Dolores River Restoration Partnership.  Presented at Tamarisk Coalition's 2016 Conference.

Gonzalez et al. 2018

Human activities on floodplains have severely disrupted the regeneration of foundation riparian shrub and tree species of the Salicaceae family (Populus and Salix spp.) throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Restoration ecologists initially tackled this problem from a terrestrial perspective that emphasized planting. More recently, floodplain restoration activities have embraced an aquatic perspective, inspired by the expanding practice of managing river flows to improve river health (environmental flows). However, riparian Salicaceae species occupy floodplain and riparian areas, which lie at the interface of both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems along watercourses. Thus, their regeneration depends on a complex interaction of hydrologic and geomorphic processes that have shaped key life-cycle requirements for seedling establishment. Ultimately, restoration needs to integrate these concepts to succeed. However, while regeneration of Salicaceae is now reasonably well-understood, the literature reporting restoration actions on Salicaceae regeneration is sparse, and a specific theoretical framework is still missing. Here, we have reviewed 105 peer-reviewed published experiences in restoration of Salicaceae forests, including 91 projects in 10 world regions, to construct a decision tree to inform restoration planning through explicit links between the well-studied biophysical requirements of Salicaceae regeneration and 17 specific restoration actions, the most popular being planting (in 55% of the projects), land contouring (30%), removal of competing vegetation (30%), site selection (26%), and irrigation (24%). We also identified research gaps related to Salicaceae forest restoration and discuss alternative, innovative and feasible approaches that incorporate the human component.

This manual details the very basics of restoration planning, techniques like planting, seeding, and preparing soil, and will also cover topics such as basic trail maintenance techniques that can be used in conjunction with common restoration ideas, as well as mechanized restoration, and more.  This manual, originally developed at Grand Canyon National Park (GRCA), applies to a broad range of environments. The techniques discussed were used in elevations ranging from 1500 to 9000 feet. Those elevations include the following major vegetation types: Mojave Desert Scrub, Sonoran Desert Scrub, Great Basin Desert Scrub, Pinyon Juniper Woodland, Ponderosa Pine Forest, and Spruce-Fir Forest. Many projects were completed in or near desert riparian areas, while many others were completed on the dry North and South Rims of the park.

AL Henry et al. 2021

Abstract: Invasive species are a major cause of biodiversity loss worldwide, but their impact on communities and the mechanisms driving those impacts are varied and not well understood. This study employs functional diversity metrics and guilds—suites of species with similar traits—to assess the influence of an invasive tree (Tamarix spp.) on riparian plant communities in the southwestern United States. We asked: (1) What traits define riparian plant guilds in this system? (2) How do the abundances of guilds vary along gradients of Tamarix cover and abiotic conditions? (3) How does the functional diversity of the plant community respond to the gradients of Tamarix cover and abiotic conditions? We found nine distinct guilds primarily defined by reproductive strategy, as well as growth form, height, seed weight, specific leaf area, drought and anaerobic tolerance. Guild abundance varied along a covarying gradient of local and regional environmental factors and Tamarix cover. Guilds relying on sexual reproduction, in particular, those producing many light seeds over a long period of time were more strongly associated with drier sites and higher Tamarix cover. Tamarix itself appeared to facilitate more shade-tolerant species with higher specific leaf areas than would be expected in resource-poor environments. Additionally, we found a high degree of specialization (low functional diversity) in the wettest, most flood-prone, lowest Tamarix  cover sites as well as in the driest, most stable, highest Tamarix cover sites. These guilds can be used to anticipate plant community response to restoration efforts and in selecting appropriate species for revegetation.

A prescription for drug-free rivers: uptake of pharmaceuticals by a widespread streamside willow

Carmen Franks, David Pearce, Stewart Rood

Abstract:

Following human excretion and limited removal with wastewater treatment, pharmaceuticals are accumulating in rivers worldwide. These chemicals can challenge the health of fish and aquatic organisms and since rivers provide drinking water sources, there is concern for cumulative exposure to humans. In this study, we discovered that sandbar willow (Salix exigua), a predominant riparian shrub along streams throughout North America, has the capacity to quickly remove pharmaceuticals from aqueous solutions. Our study tracked [3 H]- or [14C]-labeled substances including 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2), a synthetic estrogen in oral contraceptives; the antihypertensive, diltiazem (DTZ); and the anti-anxiety drug, diazepam (DZP); and for comparison, atrazine (ATZ), a root-absorbed herbicide. In growth chambers, willow saplings removed 40–80% of the substances from solutions in 24 h. Following uptake, the EE2 and DTZ were retained within the roots, while DZP and ATZ were partly passed on to the shoots. The absorbed EE2 was unextractable and apparently bound to the root tissue, while DTZ, DZP, and ATZ remained largely soluble (extractable). The uptake and translocation of the pharmaceuticals, reflected in the transpiration stream and root concentration factors, were reasonably predicted from their physicochemical properties, including octanol-water partitioning coefficients. These findings suggest the removal of pharmaceuticals as an unrecognized ecosystem service provided by riparian vegetation and especially the inundation tolerant sandbar willow. This encourages the conservation of riparian willows that line riverbanks, to remove pharmaceuticals and other contaminants. This phytoremediation also encourages the preservation of complex, braided channels and islands, which increase the extent of stream shorelines and riparian willows.

This brochure, created by the Boulder Community Alliance, describes the differences between invasive Russian olive and native silverleaf buffaloberry - two plants which are often mistaken. 

The U.S. Forest Service, Oregon State University, and the Conservation Biology Institute have launched a free web-based decision-support tool to help natural resource managers match seedlots (seed collections from a known origin) with planting sites based on climatic information.  The new web-based mapping application, called the Seedlot Selection Tool (SST), can be used to map either current climates or future climates based on selected climate scenarios. The tool is particularly valuable for considering options for responding to climate change. Because plant populations are generally considered to be locally adapted, climate change will likely lead to declines in health and productivity of native ecosystems. The SST will allow consideration of seedlots that may be adapted to future climates, a management option often referred to as assisted migration or assisted gene flow.

Following the eradication of invasive phreatophytes on floodplain areas in the Southwest, plant establishment by direct seeding is problematic on many sites because of deep water tables, fine-textured saline soils, aridity, and no flooding potential. Techniques to maximize success with direct seeding on these sites include appropriate species and ecotype selections, seeding depth control, and mulch application. An overview of seedbed ecology is presented to elucidate the factors that control germination and establishment in arid regions.

This document lists plants that provide various benefits to wildlife in Colorado. 

This guide describes techniques for harvesting, storing, and planting various types of plant materials, including dormant cottonwood pole cuttings, willow whip cuttings, and longstem products. This guide was prepared by Tamarisk Coalition, based on input provided by Los Lunas Plant Materials Center.  

This video demonstrates techniques for planting dormant cottonwood and willow cuttings. Techniques utilized have been shown to improve the efficacy and survival of unrooted materials used in restoration projects. This video was funded by the Walton Family Foundation. 

This guide, produced by Wildlands Restoration  Volunteers, describes appropriate techniques for gathering, storing and planting dormant willow cuttings for revegetation and bank stabilization projects.