Riparian Buffer Zones
At every river’s edge is a buffer zone, the barrier between the waterways and land. The plants that grow on this small strip of land are the protectors of clean waters, a shelter for wildlife, and stabilizers for the shoreline. Having a riparian buffer zone if your farm is on a waterway is critical for conservation, as runoff from excess manure and compost can affect water quality. Riparian buffer zones are part of an agroforestry system that transitions upland ecosystems into water system ecosystems for the health of all. Aside from the ecological benefits that riparian buffer zones bring, there is much potential in the usage of the shoreline space for agriculture. These resources give examples of ways you can blend ecology and economics for smarter and healthier land use.
To begin, there are two guides to get you started on growing riparian buffer zones for an agroforestry system. Grow Agriculturally Productive Buffers is a fact sheet by the University of Massachusetts on how to grow buffer zones that can be productive for agriculture. By going over which plants are best for different zones and their purposes, farmers can get an idea of how to incorporate buffer zones with different crops. Establishing & Managing Riparian Forest Buffers is a guide by the University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry that goes over riparian buffer management zones, the benefits, how to plan and manage a riparian buffer zone, as well as financial considerations that may come into play.
If you are interested in videos to see what riparian buffer zones look like on farms, check out Riparian Zone Buffer Benefits on Farms. This short video, created by a pork and hemp farmer, shows how they use riparian buffer zones to manage rainwater and runoff from their farm. Livestock Grazing Management: Riparian Buffer Basics goes over the basics, such as different types of buffer zones, and is one of two videos by the Texas Water Resources Institute that cover how to use riparian buffer zones on livestock operations. The Livestock Grazing Management: Riparian Buffer Implementation & Maintenance is the next in the Texas Water Resources Institute series, going over how to put riparian buffer zones into practice.
The USDA & Forest Service Riparian Forest Buffers page is a great resource for all riparian forest buffer zone questions, with connections to publications and resources curated by the USDA and Forest Service on agroforestry. Another agroforestry-based resource is the Savannah Institute Riparian Buffers page, which includes a video resource, an infosheet, and example farms that are using riparian buffer zones on thier opperation.
By taking care of the waterways, you take care of your community, your farm, your environment, and yourself. Working with natural processes, such as buffer zones, can take critical ecological infrastructure and turn it into an economically beneficial system. Make sure to check out other agroforestry styles throughout the organic production blogs, such as Agroforestry, Silvopasture, and Windbreaks.
This resource was funded in partnership with the Transition to Organic Partnership Program