sediment , and surrounding waters is usually adequate to maintain moderate 

 growth, at least, and this is often sufficient for stabilization purposes. 

 However, the application of fertilizer can be very helpful to marsh plants in 

 tolerating or overcoming stress where the nutrient supply is below optimum. 

 Garbish, Woller, and McCallum (1975) states that maintenance fertilization is, 

 at times, essential to enable established marsh stands to persist under high- 

 energy conditions. Woodhouse, Seneca, and Broome (1976) found fertilizer to 

 be very effective in overcoming the stunting effects of periodic salt buildup 

 on smooth cordgrass. Broome, Seneca, and Woodhouse (in preparation, 1983) 

 showed that the second year fertilization was essential to the establishment 

 of a fully protective cover on a highly deficient, rapidly eroding, high- 

 energy site. 



Fertilization through the second year and perhaps in some succeeding years 

 should always be considered where slow establishment and stress conditions 

 threaten the maintenance of protective marshes. The amounts needed in such 

 cases are likely to be less, no more than half, that required for marsh estab- 

 lishment. Such applications should consist of soluble materials and be broad- 

 cast in early spring. Fertilizers should always be applied when the soil 

 surface is exposed by low tide. 



5. Summary . 



a. Types of Fertilizers ; 



(1) Ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate, osmocote, and mag-amp 

 are good sources of nitrogen. 



(2) Concentrated superphosphate, diammonium phosphate, osmocote, 

 and mag-amp are satisfactory sources of phosphorus. 



b. Placement ; Place in planting hole or furrow during planting or top- 

 dress at low tide, 1 month after planting when new roots have developed. 



c. Rate ; 1 to 3 kilonewtons of nitrogen (N) and 1 kilonewton of 

 phosphate (PoOc) per hectare. 



d. Maintenance ; Not usually necessary but may improve a planting's 

 resistance to wave stress. 



VI. PLANTING SPECIFICATIONS FOR PRINCIPAL SPECIES 



This section summarizes specifications for planting each of the principal 

 species (smooth cordgrass. Pacific cordgrass, Lyngbye's sedge, and tufted 

 hairgrass) used for shore stabilization and describes suitable planting 

 techniques for each species. A brief summary of specifications is included 

 following each section. 



1. Smooth Cordgrass {Spavtina dltemifLova) ■> Atlantic and Gulf Coasts . 



Smooth cordgrass is the dominant flowering plant in the regularly flooded 

 intertidal zone along the Atlantic coast from Newfoundland to about central 

 Florida and along much of the gulf coast (Fig. 20). These marshes are 

 essentially pure stands of smooth cordgrass. There are distinct geographic 



48 



