Landscaping With Native Plants

Overview

Gardening with native plants is a strategy that reduces reliance on chemical fertilizers and increasingly precious water resources. While definitions of "native plant" range from the strict---"Here since Columbus with a historically documented provenance!"---to the informal---"My great-grandmother had that in her yard!"---a little research and common sense can guide you to the plants that grow vigorously and undemandingly in your soil and climate. Make your overall landscape more organic by letting native plants and your environment work together to produce a beautiful, healthy yard.

Step 1

Learn about the origins of the existing plants in your yard. Trees and large shrubs are often self-selecting. Because of their long-term growth span, these large plants either signal their adjustment to local conditions by growing well or become quite demanding in terms of space, water and fertilizer. If your yard appears to contain the same trees and large shrubs you see for blocks of established plantings in every direction, you probably have natives. In areas of new construction, builders may have chosen large plantings based more on vigorous growth than native suitability. Consult online resources (see links below) and local nurseries to get more information on the origins of these large plantings.

Step 2

Investigate the origins of plants that show steady out-of-control growth. Take-over growth is frequently the first sign of an invasive alien plant. USDA lists of invasive plants include vines such as Japanese honeysuckle and weeds such as garlic mustard. Your state environmental department or local County Extension office may have additional lists of local invasive plants. These plants take full advantage of local conditions to overwhelm native plantings---and frequently overwhelm gardeners as well.

Step 3

Test your soil to determine its hospitality to native plants. Previous owners of your property may have taken stringent measures to encourage non-native plant growth. The amounts and kinds of chemicals, pesticides and weed-killers you routinely apply are a good indicator of how far your home environment is out of line with native soil. Soil testing kits are available at nurseries or through your County Extension.

Step 4

Take a step-by-step approach to bringing your yard into more native condition. Remove and dispose of invasive plants first, if possible. Work section by section to add necessary soil amendments and replace current plants with natives. Completing a single flower bed may not be as much as you want to do overall, but it is a considerable accomplishment for a gardening season. As native plants need less of your care than their predecessors, you are likely to find the pace of overall change becoming more rapid.

Step 5

Be flexible in planning your new landscape. Many reliable natives went out of favor among gardeners when plants with larger blooms and instant annual color became widely available. Your new plants may offer smaller blooms, a wider spectrum of foliage and more subtle colors. Consider shape and texture as well as color when planting natives. Your plants will repay you with beauty.