Growing Atlantic White Cedars for Wetland Restoration Sites

On a bright late-August day, our team returned to the newly restored Upper Coonamessett River Wetland Complex to take another important step in supporting the American White Cedar (AWC) planting block experiment. This effort is part of Living Observatory’s collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Ecological Restoration (DER) Monitoring Plan, focused on linking age at planting and hydrology with plant survival in restored wetlands.

American White Cedar seedlings are particularly sensitive to water conditions, too dry and they will desiccate, too wet and they will drown. By monitoring soil moisture and shallow groundwater at each planting block we can adjust our interpretation of growth and survivorship data.

Christine Hatch led the installation of piezometers following the standard protocol, while Brian Mayton shared a newly built EC-5 hand-held probe that helped us identify "representative moisture” locations in each block where we could place deploy the sensors. Alongside Lyn Watts, Glorianna Davenport, and a group of students, we installed sensors, updated the Living Observatory database, and documented conditions with photos and notes.

By the end of the day, eight soil moisture sensors and three piezometers were in place, linked to a MicroRX station streaming live data. With these tools now quietly logging beneath the soil, we’ve begun building the record that will connect water patterns with the growth of AWC seedlings in the years to come.

• Soil Moisture Sensors: Eight total, installed across four planting blocks (two per block, at 5 cm and 15 cm depth).
• Water Level Monitoring: Three piezometers following Christine’s standard protocol.
• MicroRX Station: Mounted near the stream in Cell B for live data transmission.
• Documentation: Photos, GPS points, field notes, and LO asset database updated for each installation.

Click here to view the live data.