Native Plants Best for Gardens

-
Going native is so important to our sustainable environment. Every native plant you add to your slice of Planet Earth makes a difference, even if you only have window boxes. You can start from seed or purchase plants. I've listed reliable plant sources below with links


 By the purest and purist’s definition, native plants grew here before European settlers arrived. In contrast, plants brought into our area from other places and hybrid plants are non-natives.

Naturalized plants are those that were brought into the region as non-natives but escaped the cultivated area and thrive as weeds.

Wherever they originated, natives are low-maintenance plants that grow well without much assistance after they become established. The benefits to wildlife and to your appreciation of your gardening experience cannot be measured! 
Do as much native planting in the fall as you possibly can. 
Wild Things Nursery (www.wildthingsnursery.com) in Seminole grows and sells OK native plants. Owners Marilyn and Ken Stewart converted their acreage to a butterfly, moth and pollinator sanctuary. It is filled with native plants where they collect caterpillars (to protect them from birds) and raise them in screened containers.  
MaryAnn King of Pine Ridge Gardens in northwest Arkansas organized her paper and online catalogs into handy ways you can find what you are looking for. Herbaceous perennials; Grasses, Sedges and Rushes; Trees, Shrubs, Vines; Butterflies, Nectar, Seeds, Wetlands, and Xeriscape. 
Pine Ridge Gardens has several open nursery days coming up in Sept and Oct. Click over to see them all.
Also, you can research wildflowers by flower color at http://2bnthewild.com/tnxblue.htm if you are going for a certain color, for example, red to bring hummingbirds.
When starting to add native plants, think in terms diverse plant communities that include trees, vines, fruiting shrubs, grasses and flowers for nectar source.

Native plants for OK landscapes include cacti, ferns, annuals, perennials, grasses, shrubs, trees and vines. The complete list is at http://1.usa.gov/10fRIHD and there are photos at www.oknativeplants.org.

If you'd like to see an entire garden of native plants, take a trip to Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Hesson Kansas. Their native plant sale is Sept 8 - 10. This link will take you to a listing of what will be available. 

If you prefer to start from seed try Missouri Wildflower Seeds, Seed Savers Exchange, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, or check out this list from Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Moldy Tulip Bulbs

-
Image
Moldy tulip bulbs are a big disappointment when you are hoping to fill a bed or some pots. It is not that unusual for their skins to have a bit of penicillin mold but these are beyond that tad bit stage. Mold penetrating tulip bulb  Mold on emerging tulip bulb growth  So, what to do? The plant references say to throw them out and buy new ones but I already spent $22 for 50 of these white tulip beauties. First, they got a soak in 1% bleach solution in the kitchen sink in the hope that the bleach would stop the mold from continuing to grow without killing the life force in the bulb itself. After a good slosh around, I wiped them off to see how much damage was beneath the blue and black.  This tulip bulb is soft to the touch and there is little chance it will thrive in the soil. This basal root on these have been ruined by mold. The final step I took to try to salvage part of them  was to spray them thoroughly with fungicide.  They are all planted in the
Read more

Propagate Begonia Stem Cuttings in water - Cane-like Angel Wing Begonia

-
Image
Propagating by stem cuttings is just about the easiest way to make more begonias for next summer's garden. During the fall, I regularly trim off 3-node long cuttings and put them into the growing pots where they take root. Now that cold weather has arrived, I root the stem cuttings in a vase of water. It's a great way to produce more pots of Begonias for next summer's garden. Water the plant well the day before. Take a cutting about 4-inches long, with 3 nodes, from a healthy stem. Use a perfectly clean container. Rinse the container with a drop of bleach if you are uncertain about its spotlessness. Remove all but the top leaf or two. There should be no leaves in the water. The cutting should  have a healthy leaf node at the bottom. Don't leave a stub below the node. Place the cutting into the water, and place the container out of the sun. In a couple of weeks, you will see new roots beginning to form. Check the water periodically to make sure it is still f
Read more

Create Nesting Areas for Birds and Wildlife

-
Image
From the website, Choose Natives , this lovely and instructive article helped remind me to continue to increase the amount of habitat and nesting that we provide in our garden. Many, though not all, are native or considered to be native in Oklahoma. So, I did a little research on each recommended plant and provided a link to more information. You'll see the plant name in italics - those are my links for your edification. Here's the post Derek Stoner, Project Coordinator for the Delaware Nature Society, helped restore the 860-acre Middle Run Natural Area by “intensive habitat management”, including planting 12,000 trees and shrubs.  His lecture, ‘ Native Plants for Nesting Birds: Connecting Flora and Fauna’,  given to a group of enthusiasts at the Millersville Native Plant Conference   in Pennsylvania, focused on his observations. Here are Derek’s landscaping recommendations for attracting birds: Plant shrubs in clusters (“habitat circles”) that will create the dense
Read more