Vegetation Management for Restored Ecosystems

Restored and degraded ecosystems may take many years to recover. During that time, they need ongoing management because most restorations receive continuous pressure from invasive species. Natural disturbance events like fire, floods, or bison grazing no longer happen as they once did. Techniques used in two broad categories of management strategies are presented in this course: reestablishing natural disturbances and controlling invasive species. These strategies are useful for managing vegetation in restored ecosystems after initial establishment and in ecosystems that can be restored solely by implementing management practices, for example, restoring natural communities that do not require planting or seeding.

The course covers how to:
• Determine the kinds of natural disturbances that may need to be re-established on a site and the invasive species that may require management
• Use non-chemical management techniques to control invasive species and promote a self-regenerating native plant community
• Use chemical management (i.e., herbicides) to control invasive species in natural and restored ecosystems
• Develop strategies for sites with many vegetation challenges that require the use of multiple methods

It is strongly recommended, but not required, that students complete the Site Assessment and Setting Restoration Goals course before taking the other courses in the series, as the Site Assessment course lays the groundwork for the subsequent courses.

Find out more about the Ecological Restoration series