The saga of the Spartina that fell over continues

This week, we surveyed restored marsh mounds at Port Arthur. Last July, some of the mounds appeared to be overgrown with Spartina, and the plants were growing over the edges of the mound and falling over. All of the plant material eventually senesced during the winter, but the centers of those mounds now have dense new green growth. Decomposing senesced material around the edges will probably raise the elevation of the mound edges and facilitate the outward spread of the marsh plants. To quantify this spreading potential, we will assess accretion rates to determine the rate of marsh growth.
This observation suggests a hidden benefit to using this strain of Spartina: Maybe its rapid growth will increase marsh spreading rates?

Some of our research "fleet": a pirogue and a towed inflatable for samples.