BACKYARDS ON THE BAY  A yard care guide for the coastal homeowner

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• TABLE OF CONTENTS
  
  

• SECTION 1: Diagram of good vs. bad backyard on the bay

• SECTION 1A: Salt Marsh Diagram

• SECTION 2: Evaluation of your yard's impact on the Bay.

• SECTION 3: Bay friendly yard care tips

• SECTION 4: Coastal Erosion and Seawalls

• SECTION 5: Septic Systems

• SECTION 6: How to create a buffer of Native Plants

• SECTION 7: How to determine if you need a permit

• APPENDIX 1: Coastal Buffer
  Site Plan
• APPENDIX 2: 
  Native Plant List
• APPENDIX 3: Invasive Plants
• APPENDIX 4: Planting Guidelines
• APPENDIX 5: Sources of Native Plants
• APPENDIX 6: Technical Assistance
• APPENDIX 7: References and Sources of Information

Introduction

          Do you want to save time and money on caring for your yard?

Do you want to protect your shoreline property from erosion?

Are you concerned about the water quality and the health of the Bay?

Would you like to create a habitat for bird and wildlife in your backyard?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, this guide will help you. Backyards on the Bay is a guide for the coastal homeowner on how to create a "coastal friendly" yard while saving time and money.

As a coastal homeowner, you can play a vital role in improving the quality of the salt marshes and waters of Narragansett Bay. By including simple "Bay friendly" steps in your yard care routine such as proper watering, fertilizing and mowing, you can create a landscape that is in harmony with the Bay. Other steps such as creating or restoring a buffer of native coastal plants between your yard and the natural shoreline can enhance your yard’s natural beauty and stabilize your shoreline while improving the health of the Bay.

At first glance, your yard might be the last place you would look for pollution sources to the Bay. However, manicured landscapes ­ if improperly managed ­ can have a harmful effect on the health of the Bay’s salt marshes and the water quality of the Bay. Excess fertilizer and pesticide can run off your yard and flow directly to the Bay. This runoff ends up over-fertilizing the Bay and contributing to those smelly, summertime algae (seaweed) blooms. The algae blooms can make the water too cloudy for valuable underwater plants, such as eelgrass and can lead to fish kills. These thick, dense mats of green algae also make the Bay less enjoyable for swimming.

What You Can Do

If your lawn extends to the edge of the shoreline or salt marsh, you can restore or re-establish a natural area along the shore by simply not mowing down to the shoreline edge or by planting native shrubs that can tolerate coastal conditions. A buffer of native shrubs and plants provides many benefits to the homeowner and to the Bay. Buffers help prevent erosion, attract wildlife by providing shelter for wading birds such as egrets and herons, and protect water quality by filtering pollutants that can wash off your yard. (use color to emphasize bolded text here)

This guide will provide you with the tools to:

• enhance the natural beauty of your yard
• save time and money on yard maintenance
• help prevent erosion of your shoreline
• protect and restore the Bay’s water quality and salt marshes

| TABLE OF CONTENTS | INTRODUCTION | SECTION 1 | SECTION 2 | SECTION 3 | SECTION 4 | SECTION 5 | SECTION 6 |
SECTION 7 | APPENDIX 1 | APPENDIX 2 | APPENDIX 3 | APPENDIX 4 | APPENDIX 5 | APPENDIX 6 | APPENDIX 7 |