The New Indian Exprss 08.09.2009
Gardening along the water
The backwater areas of Kerala are blessed in that you can maintain perennial greenery and a pure merging of greenery with water. The shape of the bank, however, is important. Any angle above 45 degrees will retain its structure for long. Vertical earth is usually washed away by the tidal currents and will ultimately reach a safer slope. But such naturally formed slopes may not be uniform and are best avoided. The best time to work out the shaping of the earth is during the low tide. You can use gunny bags along the bank by inserting their lower side in trenches and fixing them with wooden nails.
Slightly curve the gunny bag and merge it along the slope to make the final shape. The top portion of the bag must be deposited into another shallow trench above the high tide level. Planting must be done on the top of the gunny bag directly. Or you can put the planting media on the gunny bag to form a thin layer. You can plant any kind of hydrophilic plants on this, whether they area a cluster or low lying ones.
Buffalo grass is an option to make shallow greenery along the banks. A temporary submerging in water will not affect this grass, but care must be taken during summer as most backwater areas have higher salinity and a pure water washing is essential to retain its freshness.
Bamboo planted on river banks will disturb the land structure, but are essential along areas which face severe soil erosion. Once the roots are established, the land will be totally protected from erosion.
It even absorbs decayed organic matter flowing along the river and improves soil fertility and facilitates better growth.
Vetiver is a bush with the highest soil holding power. It can be planted along places which are little affected by low water table and will thrive better in fresh water. Once Vetiver is established, it prevents other weeds from growing along with it. They will ultimately dominate the entire area and give way to a nice look.
There are quite a few amphibian plants (not purely amphibian but able to stand a temporary water submersion) in nature. Try to locate them along the banks of water and group plant them for newer themes.
