North Carolina ’s stormwater design manual gives proficient guidance to professionals on stormwater controller measures ( SCM ) . SCM are structures that treat and make do the H2O that runs off parking lots , cap tops , and other impermeable control surface during and after a rainwater event .

unripened stormwater base measures like bioretention cells and stormwater wetland use plant , soil , and natural systems to slow and collect runoff , trickle out pollutants , and increase water supply percolation .

In North Carolina , the individuals who design these gullible SCM tend to stick around to industrial plant list in the land ’s stormwater design manual . In many casing , the designers are engineer or landscape architects who have little or no familiarity with the plants . As one stormwater engineer told us , “ I just pick plants off the list in the manual of arms . ” Otherwise , they consider they pass the risk of their intent not amaze favorable reception from the country .

Until latterly , the plant choices in the manual were limited . For bioretention cells , there were eight tree species , 22 bush species , and 26 herbaceous perennial metal money . There were similarly scant lists for stormwater wetlands , another SCM that relies heavily on plants . The modified palette made it difficult to create diverse and attractive planting . It also made it unlikely designers would habituate other plants that were appropriate for the projects if the plant were n’t listed in the manual .

In 2016 , the NC Stormwater Program begin revise the pattern manual of arms at the behest of the land legislature . Debbie Hamrick , a light-green industry veteran and advocate for green base , saw an opportunity . She approached Annette Lucas , the NC Stormwater Program Supervisor , and helped her understand the limitations of the plant life lists . Lucas welcome the input and was very heart-to-heart to bringing in external experts to reexamine the plant data .

In a serial of meeting in 2017 , a group of glasshouse and gullible manufacture professional knead with Annette Lucas and members of NC State ’s Stormwater Engineering Group . They critique subdivision of the manual of arms that pertained to plant textile and made suggestions for changes . The guidelines for bioretention cells and stormwater wetland received the most attention , as they are the most plant - heavy SCM in the manual .

Hoffman Nursery participated in the pattern manual review radical and aid expand the recommend planting lists . They were already growing many grasses and sedges that would be appropriate — they just had not been included in the manual of arms up to then . The rescript also included clearing . For example , earliest flora tilt let in , “ Carex spp . ” With one C of Carex species native to North Carolina , that guidance was n’t particularly helpful . In the case of bioretention cells , Hoffman specified 15 Carex species that will do well .

alternatively of just listing genus , the belated variation lists item-by-item Carex species .

The radical ’s input more than doubled the number of tree , bush , and herbaceous industrial plant metal money on the listing . The revisions add together information on which plants bring home the bacon backup for birds and pollinators and update guideline on installation and industrial plant specifications . The revisions have given locomotive engineer , landscape painting architect , and SCM designers good entropy and more choices . country officials gestate it to meliorate the functionality and appearance of SCM in the state . Hoffman also hopes it will increase requirement for green infrastructure plant regionally .

The update plant lists include more tree , shrub , and perennial species for bioretention cells .

To see which grass , sedges , and rushes are in the NC Stormwater Design Manual and which ones we grow , download the PDFs :

To see the full lists , go to theNC Stormwater Design Manual webpage .

For more information : Hoffman Nursery5520 Bahama RoadRougemont , NC 27572Phone ( 919 ) 479 - 6620Toll - Free 1 ( 800 ) 203 - 8590Fax ( 919 ) 471–3100[email   protected]hoffmannursery.com