Modifications should be installed in phases. This will limit the amount of disturbance to soil and existing vegetation. Large areas of disturbed land create erosion problems when it rains and during periods of seasonally high water. Trees and shrubs should be selected from The Sustainable Trees and Shrubs for Southern New England . This publication is a list of more than two hundred trees and shrubs that will flourish with minimal use of water, pesticides, and fertilizers.
Every landscape has unique characteristics sun, shade, wet, or dry.
Evaluate each area on an individual basis to take advantage of local conditions. The following pages are graphic representations of four sites with landscape problems in the Southern New England area, followed by suggested solutions. The roof runoff is so substantial that it has created eroded gullies in the lawn, carrying sediment to the adjacent wetland. The driveway and sidewalk surfaces are not buffered with vegetation. This creates rapid runoff with a minimum of groundwater recharge and it contributes to the erosion problem.