Sample Landscape Plan for a Coastal Dune

Find a detailed landscape plan and illustration, along with recommended plants, tips, and additional information.

Beachgrass and other native plants can stabilize sandy soils and catch sand to help build dunes, providing storm-damage protection for your property. Planting a buffer between your house and the dune provides additional benefits—filtering sediments and pollutants, providing habitat and food for wildlife, and reducing lawn (which needs a lot of maintenance, fertilizer, and water in coastal areas).

Please note: Projects near salt marsh, beaches, dunes, and other protected areas may require a permit through the local Conservation Commission. See Coastal Landscaping in Massachusetts - Do You Need a Permit? for details.

Unless otherwise noted, all plants in the landscape plan, illustration, and plant key below are native species. For more detailed descriptions of each plant, see Grasses/Perennials, Shrubs/Groundcovers/Vines, and Trees.  For more coastal landscape plans, see Coastal BankCoastal Bank with an Existing Seawall, and Meadow Buffer to Salt Marsh.

Landscape Plan for Coastal Dune

This landscape plan shows a proposed arrangement of hardy plants within a coastal dune (for details, see descriptive text below this image).

This design incorporates a variety of native grasses, perennials, groundcovers, and shrubs that are well suited for a coastal dune environment. The recommended plants are well adapted to sunny areas and are resistant to dry conditions, wind, salt spray, and sand-overtopping. Because coastal homeowners often want to maintain some lawn area, a lawn is included in this plan. However, lawn grasses provide very little storm-damage protection and wildlife benefit, and are therefore not recommended in dune environments and should be kept as small as possible.

Illustration of a Landscape Plan for Coastal Dune

This landscape illustration presents a view of the landscape plan at maturity (for details, see text below this image).

Plants in this design were selected for their ability to effectively cover, bind, and build sediments. For example, the spreading roots of beachgrass and dunegrass help stabilize sediments, while groundcover like beach pea and bearberry protect against wind erosion. Larger shrubs, such as red chokeberry and beach plum, spread to form a network of stabilizing roots. Many of these recommended plants also provide attractive spring or summer flowers and fruits and colorful fall foliage.

Plant Key

For a printer-friendly version of this plant key, see the Coastal Dune Plan Plant Key (PDF, 689 KB).

Download the pdf linked above for a version of this coastal dune plant list that is accessible to screen readers.

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