Lake-friendly lakeshores have a wide strip — at last 15 to 25 feet — of trees, bushes, tall grasses, wildflowers and other native plants to slow down and filter rainwater draining to the lake. These filter strips offer several advantages:

• Plants absorb phosphorus and other nutrients that harm a lake
• Trees use vast amounts of water, reducing the impact to the lake
• Trees and other deep-rooted plants hold the soil in place, preventing erosion
• A wide strip of plants also breaks up the velocity of runoff, helping prevent erosion
• The trees and plants also provide food and habitat for wildlife
• While providing food and habitat, tall grasses and other plants do deter geese
• The filter strips keeps chemical use away from the water
• The trees and plants add beauty and a natural privacy fence
• The vegetation strip reduces maintenance and expenses by reducing the amount of mowing

It’s important to use native plants, to prevent the infestation of invasive species such as purple loosestrife. Purple loosestrife was introduced as an ornamental flower and has taken over several wetlands in the watershed, depriving wildlife of food and habitat.

These filter strips important for all shoreland, whether along a ditch, stream, river or lake. And the wide the buffer strip, the better. It can even be the whole back yard with a small space mowed for access to the water.

It can be as simple as not mowing the last several feet of your yard along the water, or as complicated as establishing plants in the water and along the shore.

For more information:

• "Lakescaping for Wildlife and Water Quality"
• New Visions for Lakeshore
• $500 grants available for lakescaping projects!