Kahler et al. (2011)and Kahler (2010) found that wild rice populations in lakes and rivers at the landscape scale tend to behighly distinct from one another and that the St. Louis River estuary may have its own “genetic identity”(Kern and Kahler 2014).

Successful seeding efforts are the result of proper seed handling, timing, and frequency. The seedingshould occur annually over a three to four-year period. Multi-year seedings allow for the seed bank toestablish and to cover variations in growing conditions between years. The outcome of a successful wildrice seeding and stand establishment may not be apparent until after five years from the initial seeding.Therefore, resource agencies involved in wild rice restoration should commit to working and maintaining arestored area for three to five years.

In areas with dense vegetation, especially cattails or floating mats, vegetation removal may be required toprepare a site for wild rice seeding. FdLNR has used different pieces of equipment to effectively removevegetation for wild rice restoration. The “cookie cutter” or “sedge mat cutter” has blades on the front thatcan effectively chop up vegetation. The removed vegetation is dispersed behind the boat. The aquaticplant harvester has blades that cut the vegetation and roots and collects the removed material at the backof the boat using a conveyor system (Figure 10). Removed material can then be transported to acollection area and disposed of on land. Both pieces of equipment effectively remove the existingvegetation and a significant portion of the root system so that other vegetation such as wild rice has theopportunity to grow. Vegetation removal typically occurs in the late summer or early fall prior to seedingand is effective for three to five years before it needs to be repeated. Because there is the potential foradditional handling of the removed vegetation, this option is slightly more expensive; however, the longerlasting effect and the ability to address cattail stands may make up for the increased cost.

Vegetation reduction or vegetation removal is appropriate for sites where the vegetation component is theonly factor that needs to be manipulated prior to wild rice seeding, because the current water depth andsubstrate type are suitable for wild rice. In low potential areas, water depth and/or substrate may need tobe manipulated to make the site more suitable for wild rice establishment. Water depth should bebetween 0.5 and 3 feet with a gradual slope across the area. This range of depth with a gradual slopemay allow wild rice to respond to changing water levels across a several year period. For example, duringlow water periods, wild rice can have favorable habitat in the deeper areas and vice versa during a highwater period. When substrate manipulation is required, the focus should be on providing at least 6 inchesof a soft substrate, primarily silt and organic material, with a high nutrient content. Material for substratemanipulation could come from a terrestrial source outside of the estuary, or more likely it could result froma sediment removal (dredging) project within the estuary being completed as part of other habitatrestoration projects or navigational maintenance.