Forest and landscape restoration can have significant positive impacts on ecological functions, including biodiversity, carbon storage, local climate, soil erosion, aquatic habitat, and flow regimes. However, concerns about its effectiveness persist due to species selection, the use of monoculture plantations, simplified forest structure, and limited consideration of landscape patterns. These concerns are further exacerbated by a warming climate. This presentation will take a water or hydrological perspective to discuss restoration challenges and lessons. Drawing on more than a century of forest hydrology research, it will summarize major findings and discuss their implications for forest restoration. Finally, it will examine innovation needs, barriers, and the future outlook for restoration.