Flagship plant communities in restored wetlands exhibited rapid vegetation recovery and substantial gain in surface-water extents

Dataset Description: This dataset comprises the remote sensing and field survey data used to assess the effectiveness of wetland restoration on retired cranberry farms. It includes: - Remote Sensing Data: - Sentinel-2–derived enhanced vegetation index (EVI) and normalized difference water index (NDWI) measurements. - Spatial and temporal metadata detailing image acquisition dates, sensor specifications, and processing parameters. - Field Survey Data: - Ground‐surveyed point locations used for in-situ validation of image‐based plant community identification. - Pre-restoration (May 2019) and post-restoration data corresponding to the same set of ground‐surveyed points. - Study Scope: - Data cover various wetland plant communities, including reference wetlands, and sites restored in 2016 and 2020. - The dataset enables quantification of temporal dynamics in vegetation recovery and surface-water cover, and supports comparisons of spectral distinctions among restored and reference wetland communities. This dataset provides a robust basis for analyzing wetland restoration outcomes, facilitating evidence-based assessments of vegetation recovery and hydrological changes in degraded ecosystems.