Gardens shouldn't just be about cultivating beautiful spaces; they should be also about fostering a healthy ecosystem. One of the most impactful ways to enhance local biodiversity is by including native plants in your garden.
Here's why incorporating native plants into your garden is crucial:
Supporting Local Wildlife
Native plants play a vital role in supporting local wildlife. Birds, butterflies, bees, and other pollinators have coevolved alongside these plants and rely on them for food and habitat. For instance, many butterfly species lay their eggs exclusively on specific types native plants. By including these plants in your garden, you provide essential resources for these creatures at all stages of their lives, helping to maintain and enhance local biodiversity.
Promoting Healthy Ecosystems
Native plants contribute to healthier ecosystems because they are adapted to local soil, climate, and other environmental conditions, which makes them more resilient and less dependent on artificial inputs like fertilizers and pesticides. This natural resilience helps maintain soil health, supports water conservation, and reduces the need for chemical interventions, leading to a more sustainable garden.
Providing Food and Shelter
Native plants offer food and shelter for various species, from insects to mammals. Native flowering plants not only provide nectar for bees and butterflies but certain native shrubs and trees offer berries and seeds for birds and small mammals. Many migrating birds rely on these early and late season food sources to survive their long migrations. By creating a garden that includes habitat, you are able to support a wide range of species and contribute to the stability and diversity of the local ecosystem.
Conserving Water
As our summers get hotter, water conservation is a critical concern. Native plants are typically well-adapted to the local rainfall patterns and soil conditions, which means they require less supplemental watering compared to non-native species. They are also more adaptable than most cultivated plants, allowing them to withstand hotter, drier conditions. By planting natives, you can significantly reduce your garden's water usage, making it more environmentally friendly and cost-effective.
Reducing Maintenance
Gardening with native plants can reduce maintenance efforts because they are inherently more pest and disease resistant and adaptable to local conditions and require less care once established. This means you can enjoy a beautiful, thriving garden with less time and effort spent on upkeep.
Mitigating Climate Change
Native plants can play a role in mitigating climate change since their deep root systems help sequester carbon, improve soil structure, and reduce erosion. Additionally, native plants can help manage stormwater runoff more effectively, reducing the impact of heavy rains and helping to recharge groundwater supplies.
How to Get Started with Native Plants
Incorporating native plants into your garden is easier than you might think. Start by researching which plants are suitable for your garden's conditions, Satinflower Nursery has great resource lists for exactly this purpose. Local nurseries such as Satinflower and native plant societies can be excellent resources for finding native plants and getting advice on how to care for them. My favorite native plant resources are: - Satinflower Nursery
10 of my favorite beginner native plants to include in gardens are: - Big Leaf Lupin: Nitrogen fixer, soil enhancer, produces colorful flowers that bees love.
- Nootka Rose: Offers fragrant flowers, edible hips, and provides habitat for wildlife.
- Red Flowering Currant: Provides early spring color, attracts wildlife, and is drought-tolerant.
- Salal: Provides year-round greenery, edible berries, and is very climate-resilient.
- Sea Thrift: Low maintenance, attractive flowers, and very drought tolerant. - Sword Fern: Low maintenance, evergreen, shade tolerant, and deer resilient.
- Western Bleeding Heart: Shade-loving, pink heart-shaped flowers that attract pollinators.
- Western Red Columbine: Striking red color to shaded areas and attracts hummingbirds.
- Wooly Sunflower: Loved by pollinators, deer resistant and drought-tolerant.
- Yarrow: Beneficial insect attractor (great for pest management), medicinal properties, drought tolerant, and very low maintenance.
Red Flowering Currant (Source: Bethany Couture)
Gummy Gooseberry (Source: Bethany Couture)
Fawn Lily (Source: Bethany Couture)
Nootka Rose (Source: Bethany Couture)
Stinging Nettle (Source: Bethany Couture)