Detention Basin Requirements and Plant Lists

​Size: The size varies according to the area to be drained.

Light: Full sun of six or more hours per day in the growing season is best.

Water: No additional watering is necessary once plants are established.

Elevation/Topography: A flat basin with gently sloping sides, lower than the area to be drained, is preferred.

Soil: Loose, well drained loam soil is best. Placing in a detention basin in clay soil is not recommended. Soil moisture conditions will vary from completely saturated to dry.

Planting Materials: A variety of native plants that are adaptable to a wide range of growing conditions is preferred. Most of these plants should grow well in damp soil but can also tolerate dry periods. If the sides are steep, consider using an erosion mat, a nurse crop to stabilize sides and plants that set down roots quickly for erosion control. Consult the plant list and also those for bioswales and rain gardens.

Planting and Maintenance: Follow the guidelines given on the Web page, "How to Plant and Maintain Native Plants." If prescribed burns are allowed, they would be best to insure the health of the basin. Otherwise, mowing and raking off would be the alternative process.

​Wildlife: This area may be especially attractive to wildlife, so take that into consideration when selecting plants for food (seeds, nectar, leaves, flowers), nest building and perches.

Winter Interest: Leave dried plants for aesthetics, animal shelters and food for winter creatures.

​common ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata)
Culver’s-root (Veronicastrum virginicum)
cup-plant (Siliphium perfoliatum)
downy phlox (Phlox pilosa)
fox sedge (Carex vulpinoidea)
great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans)
New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae)
Ohio goldenrod (Solidago ohioensis)
prairie avens (Geum triflorum)
palm sedge (Carex muskingum)
smooth phlox (Phlox glaberrima)
swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
sweet black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia subtomentosa)
white wild indigo (Baptisa alba)
wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
wild senna (Cassia hebecarpa)

big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)
black-eyed susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
blue flag iris (Iris versicolor)
blue vervain (Verbena hastata)
brown-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia triloba)
showy tick trefoil (Desmodium canadense) 
nodding wild rye (Elymus canadensis)
common ironweed (Vernonia fasciculate)
Culver’s-root (Veronicastrum virginicum)
cup-plant (Siliphium perfoliatum)
dark green bulrush (Scirpus atrovirens)
fox sedge (Carex vulpinoidea)
golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea)
great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans)
Indian plantain (Amoglossum atriplicifolium)
marsh blazing-star (Liatris spicata)
Ohio goldenrod (Solidago ohioensis)
ox-eye sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides)
perfoliate boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
porcupine sedge (Carex hystericina)
prairie blazing-star (Liatris pycnostachya)
cord grass (Spartina pectinata)
porcupine sedge (Carex comosa)
porcupine sedge (Carex hystericina)
prairie dock (Siliphium terebinthinaceum)
rosinweed (Siliphium integrifolium)
spongy sedge (Carex stipata)
spotted Joe-pye-weed (Eutrochium maculatum)
stiff goldenrod (Oligoneuron rigidum)
swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
switch grass (Panicum virgatum)
Virginia wild rye (Elymus virginicus)
wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
wild blue iris (Iris shrevei)
wild senna (Cassia hebecarpa)
yellow coneflower (Ratibida pinnata)
yellow sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)