There is land near by my house that is considered a floodway and a floodplain up for sale for very cheap. To fix the issue to build a house would costs hundreds of thousands of dollars but what if I bought it and grew food on it? Wood plant roots just rot? Theres no visible “flooding” any time I’ve walked passed it. Currently grass and a couple of trees are growing on the area without trouble.
2 Likes
Depends on the risk you are willing to take. It may never flood while you own it or it may flood right after you buy it or several times in just a few years.
If the flooding that occurs there is not fast moving water, there are some rootstocks that might be OK with an occasional flood. If it’s moving water flooding you’d likely uproot the trees with a flood.
There is a reason the land is cheap. It’s a high risk area, though I’d imagine the soils would be great for farming.
There is a reason most floodplain areas are farmed.
1 Like
We bought a 7-acre piece partly in floodplain on foreclosure. I have the fruit trees in the highest part and honeyberries near a lower area. The very bottom is left wooded. My concern is mainly late frosts in the low areas. Honey berries can handle that. Our bigger danger ended up to be ag drift of farm herbicides. I don’t know if there is a place you can find flood history. Also there are probably chemicals in the drainage from cultivated fields that may drain unseen across your area. The weeds get much higher for us in that area. If it is cheap and you mostly want it to play around with, it could be a fun project. If you already have a busy life, it could also end up a ball and chain, though land is probably a safer investment than the stock market. The distance from your home is also an important factor as gasoline rises in price.
5 Likes
Some trees will do fine even if you do get a flood. Here the river has risen 15-20 foot and totally submerged pawpaw trees for days. They survive just fine. I would say the best route would be tap root trees like nuts, persimmon, pawpaw, ect.
Another thought I see people here doing is renting parking space. Big trucks, campers, or whatever. Just have them sign your not resposible.
Great advice. Add some annuals to the mix.
some of the best farmland here is seasonal flood plain. every spring they get fertilized with rich river silt. drawback is they drain poorly, so plant on mounds. fiddleheads (ostrich ferns) grow great on land like that and their roots stabilize the river banks.
2 Likes
As has been said typically some of the most fertile soils are in flood plains. Typically dirt movement in flood plains is highly regulated whether trying to build mounds or even possibly a protective levee.
Persimmon is an upland species, I don’t expect it would take well to having wet feet, let alone being flooded. Around here, the native population is most common along dry ridgelines and in deep sands.
Nuts would depend on the species. I don’t think pecan likes wet feet either, but I’m less sure on that one. Black walnut thrives in riparian zones, not sure about English walnut. Several species of hickory like water, but I don’t know if they’re the one’s worth eating–and the OP might not be young enough to bother with planting one with the expectation of tasting it…
Some blueberry or huckleberry species do best in lowland sites, Elliot’s blueberry is one, and of course cranberry. Some of the minor native grapes are also common along creek beds, as are elderberry–around here at least, elderberry is a nearly obligate wetland species. Ogeechee lime is a true wetland species, not sure if it is hardy to zone 5, or worth eating for that matter.
There are several native hibiscus, sunflower, milkweed, and eutrchium (Joe Pie weed) that are wetland species or nearly so. Most of them should be good into zone 5, except for some of the mallows/hibiscus. Buttonbush, beautyberry, blazing hearts, and a bunch of other small flowering shrubs would be great there with a small amount of shade.
Assuming it isn’t waterlogged, annual vegetables will probably love the site, especially with some pH correction and raised beds. Real question is how high is the water table? If it’s just below the surface, might be an issue.
3 Likes
I don’t know how close the watertable might be to the surface in Greenville, NC–
but in the mountains and hills between where you are and the Mississippi River,
persimmons are quite often found growing in the rich silty soils along small gullies and branches to larger creeks.
After a flood the water recedes quickly and persimmons, pawpaws, and many other trees, including nut trees, happily inhabit these areas that flood sporadically.
2 Likes
Elderberries.
Apples on M111?
Pears on Quince
Persimmons
Do some shovel tests and plot holes…see what the water table looks like.
Build a small pond… to suck in the water table. Also a few trenches that act like small ponds if you cant drain them elsewhere. Lots of things will grow on those trench berms.
Chip drop the heck out of it.
Check into your property taxation. some states charge alot more if a dwelling is not on it. May not be worth it taxation wise…
Perhaps a candidate for a NRCS high tunnel grant?
I have about 1/2 acre that is fed heavily by a natural spring and it stays moist and damp. Nothing was really growable in it until i dug trenches and a small pond… now things are thriving there. Mulberries, Elderberries, wild blackberries and rasps. and blackberries. Going to plant some pears in there on quince as well…also persimmons.
1 Like
I’m not so sure pecans can’t handle some water. They are native to all of the southeast and seem to do fine with our flooding rains.
In New Mexico they grow pecans commercially using flood irrigation from the Rio Grande, though I’d imagine it gets pretty dry between the flooding events every so many days.
2 Likes
That’s really interesting! Maybe it’s the flat land that pushes them up to drier sites, whereas in places with steeper slopes, they can grow in more mesic sites without their roots drowning.
Looking over some descriptions, I’m seeing a lot of “prefers well-drained sandy soil, but can also be found in rich bottomlands.”
Nifty, wonder how that compares to D. kaki.
1 Like
My young orchard is on a flood plain, and I worked up berms to keep the crowns above water when there is heavy rain. No issues so far, but we’ve not had much flooding in the last few years.
Flood plains are flood plains because they’re low lying, which means frost pocket. Plan accordingly. It frequently also means rich but silty soil which can compact easily.
1 Like
Check out the USDA soil maps for the area in question to get a lot of pertinent info. Floodplains can be very fertile. The can also be sand and gravel. Obviously theres going to be some big differences there in what the site can support.
The river corridor itself is typically much wider that the river and its visible floodplain, including areas historically part of the flood plain and areas that will be in the floodplain in the future. There can be a lot of leeway in terms of what is considered “floodplain” River Corridors | Flood Ready
Another consideration is erosion. If the parcel is on an outside bend, it is getting smaller. If on an inside bend, its getting bigger, but is subject to channelization if the river decides to cut a new path, as in an oxbow. Rivers are VERY dynamic.
You dont list your state of residence, but in mine (Vermont) the ANR has publicly viewable maps showing river corridors including floodplains for 100 and 500 yr flood events. Note that these terms are based on probability. We’ve had 2 500 yr flood events in the last 12 years here, for example
4 Likes
I’d be pretty cautious, flood events are becoming more and more common.
2 Likes
Perry and Breathitt counties in Kentucky…record floods in 2023 and in 1957.
But, obviously these are not the only years of floods, as the creek that runs into the Kentucky River was/is known as ‘troublesome creek’ ever since English settlers arrived in these environs.
I can’t say if 16th and 17th centuries had floods in this area, but I bet they did.
Point being, climate ebbs and flows–the current ‘emergency’ could equally have applied in times past if the ability to communicate weather statistics had existed.
Many records of rain happened in 1989 and in 1969…years of hurricanes
Hugo and Camille.
2 Likes
Thank you everyone for all of the input. What do you all thinks about Ribes aureum? I’ve read online their natural habitats often include next to streams. So they would likely be resistant to flooding issues?
1 Like
I get this every spring at my orchard site, which is bowl shaped, there’s no outlet for the melt off. So far, no problems, lasts about a week.
3 Likes
tried it here. they are W.P.B.R magnets so i destroyed them. other Ribes are just as water tolerant. titania is a good black (Ribs Nigrum and rust immune. if you want to grow something that gets rust, spray a few times in spring/ early summer with Spectracide immunox and dont get the leaves wet. i do that with my black, Tiben and its been clean 4 years now. the rust might not even be a issue ibn your area though. gooseberry is another option. i have Jeanne and its very good and very productive. i can send you cuttings of a bunch of stuff in the fall. they are very easy to root over winter in ground with some mulch around them…
Thank you very much! It’s probably a little early for me to start preparing plants, I’m still deciding on if I should purchase the land. I’m surprised to hear you say that ribes aureum is a W.P.B.R magnet. Most sites I read online say they are pretty bullet proof and have read Canada actually tried crossing it with black currants to give them W.P.B.R resistance.
1 Like