Riparian wetland restoration of disturbed landscapes is
essential to ensure the sustainable health of watersheds.
Wetlands provide vital habitat and food for a variety of
wildlife as well as serve an important function in filtering
overland runoff. This study measured the diversity of wetland
plants in a 20-acre riparian wetland, which was previously a
golf course between 1968 and 1983, and introduces the
application of dendrochronology as a potential tool to
investigate the impact of climate, hydrology and historical land
use on tree growth. Wetland plants were surveyed in late spring
and early fall at ten plots randomly located throughout the
wetland. Herbaceous vegetation was identified within a 1 m2
subplot and saplings within a 10 m2 subplot at each plot. Two
increment cores per mature tree were collected from the riparian
wetland and along the wetland boundary for tree ring analyses.
For each tree, significant changes from the average background
tree ring width were compared against temperature, precipi