How to Choose Native Plants for your Garden

First, some myth-busting

Do native plants thrive anywhere they're planted, with no human intervention at all? Not as often as we'd like. Why?

So many landscape settings, especially in urban and surburban areas, are changed significantly by developement. Shade trees are removed. Even the soil itself is removed. The site is anything but "native."

Some plants just don't like being uprooted, potted up and hauled around - typical treatment in the nursery business. Those with long taproots, for example, respond poorly to being moved at all.

Climate change is putting new stresses on all plants, native and nonnative. Longer droughts, more intense rain events, warmer temperatures and other changes are already threatening the existence of state flowers and trees in 28 states.

Indigenous plants now have to compete with immigrants from other parts of the world. They have to contend with imported diseases, too, like the wooly adelgid that's now killing Canadian hemlocks and the anthractnose infestation of dogwoods.

A plant labeled "native" may fail because it's native to an entirely different climatic zone in the U.S. Even in my tiny state, a plant native to Maryland's shoreline isn't going to be happy in my dry, sunny yard.

So what's a gardener to do?

With all plants, whether native or nonnative, the sustainable gardener asks enough questions to be sure it's the right plant for the right place. ·

Look for plant suggestions from designers, garden clubs, nurseries, on-line forums and any really local gardening source you can find.

If your gardening conditions are similar to mine, try the native plants on this site.

Consider creating a "wild" garden in an inconspicuous spot to group plants that don't measure up to garden standards aesthetically, maybe focussing on providing for pollinators.