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Included among the attractions of a trip to the beach are the sun,
the surf, the water, the warmth, the breeze, the sand--and the dunes.
Specialists with the Natural Resources Conservation Service are doing
their part to make sure that we all can keep enjoying the dunes, far
into the future, as part of our treks to the beach.
Specifically, employees at NRCS's Plant Materials Center in Galliano,
La., recently released a new plant designed for sand dune enhancement
and stabilization on coastal beaches and barrier islands--especially the
beaches of Louisiana and Mississippi and the barrier islands of the Gulf
of Mexico. "It's called Timbalier Germplasm gulf bluestem, and it's the
latest plant release in our fight against coastal erosion," explained
Don Gohmert, NRCS's Louisiana State Conservationist based in Alexandria,
La.
He noted that, after years of evaluating a number of native plants,
specialists at the NRCS Center in Galliano concluded that Timbalier
Germplasm gulf bluestem has demonstrated that it is a superior plant for
holding sand in place and helping to enhance and protect sand dunes by
trapping blowing sand.
Michael Trusclair is an NRCS district conservationist based in
Thibodaux, La., about 30 miles from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. He
said that the barrier islands, which are located in the Gulf of Mexico
just offshore from the mainland of Louisiana and Mississippi, are left
over from shifts of the Mississippi River Delta centuries ago. "The
islands," he explained, "act as buffers against storm surges from
hurricanes and tropical storms by absorbing some of the storm's energy."
He added that the barrier islands are also important as resting and
refueling habitat for migratory birds, and can serve as vital nesting
areas for many other birds such as the brown pelican.
"So the stability of healthy barrier islands," Trusclair affirmed, "is
vital to many coastal communities. And Timbalier is now playing an
important role in the long-term health and stabilization of barrier
islands by trapping sand and building dunes."
"Timbalier's robust top growth is now trapping sand, and its massive
root system is now holding it in place--thereby building dunes over
time," said Center Manager Richard Neill. "As the dunes build, they
enable the islands to sustain themselves as they buffer the Gulf's
storms. The plant is also being used on shorelines and beaches along the
Gulf coast."
Neill clarified that he and his staff don't develop plant species, but
rather evaluate plants that they have found in nature. "We try to
determine what are the best plant choices--from the plants we've
gathered from around the region--which would be the most useful in
different situations and locales," he pointed out.
And, he added, the release of this latest plant means that private
nurseries and plant growers can obtain its vegetative rootstock from the
Center and grow the plant for coastal restoration projects.
Neill noted that Timbalier is the third such plant evaluated and
released by the Center specifically to deal with dunes protection. The
other plants include Caminada seaoats and Fourchon bitter panicum.
Gohmert pointed out that NRCS has 27 Plant Materials Centers located in
a total of 25 states. "They are all designed to evaluate and transfer
effective state-of-the-art plant science technology to meet the needs of
our customers," he underscored.
And, concerning the focus on Timbalier by specialists at the Plant
Materials Center in Galliano, it's yet another part of the overall
effort by USDA to help rebuild the Gulf coast.
--Herb Bourque
Article from "U. S. Department of Agriculture."
USDA News - January February 2007 Volume 66 No. 1
(used with permision)
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The robust top growth on this
Timbalier Germplasm gulf bluestem does a great job of
trapping sand, and its massive root system
holds the plant in place—so that all helps to
build and stabilize sand dunes,” affirms
Richard Neill (center), Manager of NRCS’s
Plant Materials Center in Galliano, La., as he
examines three pots of the plant with NRCS
soil conservationist Garret Thomassie (right)
and office automation assistant Alexis
Luke.—PHOTO BY SHAUN HARRIS |
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