Native Plant Selection Made Easy

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Scott Vogt

I have found that a beautiful native landscape doesn’t magically appear. It starts with a plan. By choosing the right plants that grow well together in your setting, you will avoid many of the challenges homeowners face after the plants are established. Plant selection is the most important step in the process of developing a native landscape, but it can also be the most challenging. How do you select the best plants for a particular setting? What do you need to do to insure their success? Here are the steps I use to choose the best plants for a site and design a landscape that is both functional and beautiful.

Analyze the Location

You know your garden better than anyone. You know the soil type. Does it stay wet or is it extremely dry or something in between? You know how much sun your area receives during the day and throughout the year. You know where the water flows. Are there areas that you can utilize as a background or backdrop? Is there something you are trying to screen? Is there an area you are trying to develop? These are important questions that ultimately affect the types of plants you will choose.

Prepare the Site

Site preparation doesn’t have much to do with plant selection, but it is an important step to consider as you develop your native landscape. You need to get perennial weeds such as bindweed and Bermuda grass eradicated before you plant your garden. If these weeds are not eliminated, they will overrun and out compete anything you plant. Trust me on this. I am still fighting these weeds in certain areas in my yard because I didn’t complete this step.

It is also good to define the area with some kind of border. I have used metal edging, brick, limestone or landscape stone. Edging makes your native garden look intentional. Develop an area you can manage and fits your lifestyle. You can always expand, but a bed that is too large can quickly become overwhelming.

Choose the Plants

Once you have gathered all this information about your site and all the initial work has been done, you are ready to decide which plants will grow well together. The most important step in the selection process is matching plants to the site. You need to become familiar with every aspect of the plants through investigation, research and experience. I often start with one or two plants I know will grow in this location. Once I have established them as the foundation, the other plant combinations come easier.

I design each landscape with the finished picture in mind. I consider heights, bloom time, habit, forms and textures. We often only think about these plants when they are in bloom, but don’t forget their other qualities, such as seed heads that provide visual interest in the winter months. It provides you an opportunity to highlight these qualities with another perennials or native grasses (e.g. coneflower seed heads against little bluestem). I group plants together for visual affect and stagger blooms throughout the season. You want something coming into bloom and going out of bloom from spring through fall. I include grasses for texture and movement during the winter months.

Why plant a garden if you can’t enjoy it? I predict that your native landscape will be a hub of pollinator and butterfly activity. It will be an important link to other gardens in your neighborhood. It may even inspire you to establish other prairie gardens in your landscape. Your success may influence others to follow your example. A native plant garden should be cherished, because you are helping the natural world in so many far-reaching ways. Believe it or not, your garden will have a positive impact. So get started! Let your imagination and creativity inspire your design.

Bearer of the Ammonite by Paul Friesen-Photo Courtesy of Jen LeFevre

Photo Credit

Plant profile: Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea)

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Scott Vogt

Several years ago as I was preparing for our fall plant sale, I noted that I had a flat of 32 golden alexanders (Zizia aurea) ready for the sale. I went back three days later and could not find the plants anywhere. I thought somebody had moved them, but later discovered the flat of plants had been eaten to the soil line by Swallowtail butterfly caterpillars. They were on several other plants in the gardens as well as a few random plants within the nursery. I was amazed at how voracious those caterpillars were. They literally ate the plants to the ground.

The beautiful bloom of Golden Alexander

Golden alexander (Zizia aurea) is the Kansas Native Plant Society 2016 Wildflower of the Year. They are most often found in prairie savannas, woodland edges, wooded bottomlands, stream banks, moist meadows, and floodplains. They are quite adaptable once established surviving even the driest summers.

The deep green leaves of golden alexanders are distinctly divided and tough. This wildflower grows between 12″ to 36″ tall with yellow flowers in flat topped umbels forming in May and June. The seeds that develop resemble dill seeds. Be careful! If it is happy, it will self-seed and colonize an area.

Zizia aurea is an important plant whether in bloom or not blooming. It is a member of the parsley/carrot family, which are host plants for Swallowtail butterflies. When in bloom, many other pollinators are attracted to the bright yellow flowers. It is a pollinator magnet.

Blue False Indigo with Golden Alexander in the foreground and background

This native wildflower is extremely easy to grow in either full sun or partial shade. I tend to plant it in areas that receive morning sun and then are shaded during the hottest part of the day. It can thrive in clay soils and the shiny foliage and vivid yellow flowers make this a welcome addition to your wildflower garden. Plant a few as an offering to the Swallowtail butterflies. In my opinion, this is a plant that should be in every garden.

The Prairie Paradox

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Scott Vogt

“Reversing deforestation is complicated; planting a tree is simple.”

– Martin O’ Malley, Former Governor of Maryland and Mayor of Baltimore.

When I first read this saying, I automatically changed it in my mind. I changed it to “reversing prairie degradation and loss is complicated; planting a wildflower is simple“. Granted, we appreciate trees in Kansas. But more than trees, we need to plant prairie to reverse the losses to our signature landscape. Only one percent of the original prairie remains—99 percent of prairies are gone. The rich prairie land is now used to produce crops and raise livestock. Only a few pockets of prairie still survive in their original form, including the Flint Hills.

I grew up on a farm and learned so much from farm life. I know the value of the land. I understand how hard it is to eke out a living working the land. There is a richness of the soil precisely because it was once prairie. Conservation of the soil is vital to the success of any farm. Stewardship of the land is understood. We can’t take the land away from the farmers and landowners, but we also can’t let the prairie disappear forever either. We need the food that this land produces and we need to save this almost extinct ecosystem. It is complicated on so many levels.

Big Bluestem growing in the Prairie Window Project

I believe the solution to the prairie paradox is to allow for and encourage individuals to make small steps, such as choosing to plant native wildflowers and grasses in our own yards and landscapes. Just like remnant prairies that dot the landscape, our small gardens can have an impact. This impact can be multiplied with each new wildflower and each new garden that is established. By choosing to establish just a few native plants, we can begin the slow process of reclamation, rejuvenation and renewal of this lost landscape. Large expanses of prairie are never coming back, but a patchwork landscape of our own native plants seems doable.

Larger prairie restorations are a challenge. They can take years to get established and even then the results will almost always fall short of the original prairie. I can remember looking at a prairie restoration in Wisconsin that had been seeded over 20 years earlier. The guide noted that the prairie had just started looking like the original prairie. It took that long to develop into something that resembled a true prairie. I am not saying that we shouldn’t plant new prairie. If anything, we should start now so the transformation can begin. A “new prairie” does not develop overnight. It takes time and is complicated by so many different factors. We should have realistic expectations and be patient.

Burning the Prairie Window Project-Spring 2016

Even our Prairie Window Project is continuing to mature. It is now nearly 10 years old. We have worked hard to keep the trees and yellow sweet clover out of the prairie. We planted the prairie with good diversity of wildflowers and grasses but even that is no guarantee of success. The impact of farming on the land, weed competition with new native seedlings, management regiments and many other influences can have detrimental effects on a prairie reconstruction slowing the transformation. These examples demonstrate how complicated it can be to change a farm field to a prairie. It is costly, time consuming and unpredictable.

Earth Partnership for Schools Native Planting

We should keep planting native plants because it is the right thing to do. Plant a prairie if you can. Reclaim a prairie if you can. The prairie ecosystem, unique to North America, is an important part of our natural heritage. Native pollinators need these plants for their survival. Native wildflowers and grasses create habitat for wildlife. We should be aware of the many benefits of native plants. Obviously, native plants are worth the effort. Remember, planting a wildflower is simple –why not start today?

This is a landscape worth saving!

Native Plant Combinations for the Landscape

Posted on April 20, 2016 by Scott Vogt

Many people who visit our FloraKansas Plant Sale are very interested in converting their gardens to using native plants, but they often are unsure of which plants to put together and in what configurations. Here are a few tried and true combinations that I have enjoyed, both in our plantings at the Arboretum, and at my home. I hope these suggestions start to get your creativity flowing.

(In addition, you may want to check out these other resources: Landscaping Recipe Card, Establishing Native Plants, and Other Native Plant Landscape Designs)

Perennial Gardens Using Natives

Use these native plant combinations in either a foundation or island planting. Each garden can be modified to fit your space. These plant combinations have been carefully selected to provide year around interest with minimal maintenance required, and will attract a diverse group of pollinators.

PERENNIAL BORDER-SUN

Five Panicum ‘Northwind’ and five Baptisia ‘Pink Truffles’ in the back row, alternating
Seven Aster ‘Raydon’s Favorite’, middle back row
Seven Penstemon ‘Dark Towers’, middle front row
Seven Solidago ‘Little Lemon’ and seven Bouteloua gracilis ‘Blonde Ambition’ in the front row, alternating

PERENNIAL BORDER-SUN Less than 36 inches tall

Seven Panicum virgatum Cheyenne Sky’ in the back row
Seven Agastache ‘Summer Love’ in the middle back
Five Echinacea paradoxa and five Schizachryium ‘Standing Ovation’, alternating in the middle front
Five Aster ‘Snow Flurry’, five Callirhoe involucrata and five Bouteloua ‘Blonde Ambition alternating in the front row

Purple Poppy Mallow and Blue Grama

ISLAND PLANTING-SUN

Three Cephalanthus ‘Sugar Shack’ (Center)
Five Schizachyrium ‘Blue Paradise’, five Liatris spicata ‘Alba’, three Butterfly weed, alternating in the middle row back
Five Aster ‘October Skies’’ and three butterfly weed middle row front
Seven Oenothera macrocarpa and seven Prairie Dropseed, alternating front row

Butterfly weed and Shasta Daisy

SHADE

Three Oakleaf Hydrangea, back row
Five Solidago caesia, middle row back
Five Aquilegia canadensis and five Polygonatum biflorum, middle row front, alternating
Nine Carex eburnea, front row

Plants for containers

These combinations will provide interesting colors, textures and blooms throughout the growing season. Each list of plants are for larger pots that are at least 12-18 inches in diameter. Place center plants in pot first, then arrange other perennials evenly around the rim of the container. I really enjoyed my potted native plants last year. It was amazing to watch the pollinators come up to my back deck. It was like having a front row seat.

SUN

Three Coreopsis ‘Cosmic Eye’
Two Heuchera
One Gaura ‘Rosyjane’
One Schizachyrium ‘Twilight Zone’ (Center)

Three Agastache ‘Raspberry Summer’
One Panicum ‘Northwind’ (Center)
Three Monarda ‘Grape Gumball’

One Physocaprus ‘Tiny Wine’
Three Agastache ‘Kudos Yellow’
Three Bouteloua ‘Blonde Ambition’

SHADE

Three Heuchera ‘Autumn Leaves’
Three Carex appalachica
One Solidago odora (Center)

Three Native Ferns
Two Wild Ginger
One Aruncus ‘Misty Lace’ (Center)

PART SUN

One Rhus ‘Tiger Eyes’ (Center)
Two Heuchera ‘Obsidian’
Two Aster divaricatus ‘Eastern Star’

These are do it yourself native plant combinations that will work well, if matched to your landscape. They will provide easy care, attract a wide variety of wildlife, while providing beauty for your garden. Just choose a set of plants that fit your area or pot.

As the saying goes, “…if you build it they will come” or in this case “…if you plant it they will come.” Have fun in your garden this year.

Katie’s Plant Picks: Mint Family

Posted on April 13, 2016 by Katie Schmidt

Working in the Arboretum greenhouse is a terrible temptation. I love my perennial garden at home and I never stop adding new specimens, so our selection of natives and adaptables this year is a treasure trove for me. I must truly exercise some self control to prevent my entire paycheck from turning into wildflowers. Until I win the lottery or inherit a rich uncle’s fortune, I will have to just pick a few favorites!

If you, like me, have a fond eye for every flower, then it may be helpful to guide your shopping this year by selecting a plant family to collect. Researching a scientific plant family and finding those species native to your area can help lend a theme to your garden, add cohesiveness, and curtail your wild garden spirit.

This year I am going to plant from the mint family, Lamiaceae, or formerly, Labiatae. Lucky for me, our upcoming sale has lots of gorgeous options!

A red variety of bee balm shown with solidago (Left) and a light purple Monarda fistulosa (Right). Bee balm is part of the mint family.

Family Traits

Lamiaceae (lame-ee-ay-see-ee or lame-ee-ay-see-ii) is a large plant family with of over 3500 species. In science lingo, families are groupings of plant genera – a fancy way to say that these plants share common traits. A tell-tale sign of a mint family member is a strong aroma from the leaves, be it traditionally minty or not. These plants are some of the most valuable aromatic, culinary and medicinal crops in the world – rosemary, oregano, thyme, basil, salvia, hyssop, bee balm, and lavender are all a part of this big family.

Mint family plants commonly have square stems and flowers with bilateral symmetry (top and bottom do not match but sides mirror each other). The pictures in this post will hopefully help you to recognize some of the common traits shared among the mint family, and soon you will be identifying mint family species on your own!

Following are my top mint family picks from our plant sale, along with a list of varieties available.

Agastache ‘Raspberry Summer’ (left) Salvia azurea (right)

My Plant Picks

One of my top picks from the mint family is agastache, commonly known as hyssop or hummingbird mint. It thrives in sun and heat and its leaves emanate a wonderfully minty scent. Its tubular flowers attract hummingbirds to the garden. We are offering it in yellow, orange, blue, violet, and pink – perfect for whatever color combination you can dream up! Blooming from early summer to late fall, agastache is a showstopper year after year in the landscape.

A. foeniculum – Agastache ‘Kudos Yellow’ ‘Kudos Coral’ ‘Raspberry Summer’ ‘Summer Sunset’
‘Summer Love’ ‘Blue Boa’ ‘Violet Visions’

Salvia is another sun loving flower that I will be adding to my garden this year. Pictured above is a native variety, growing as tall as 5 feet in the right conditions. Salvias come in all shapes and sizes; mound forming, tall and showy, wispy, etc., and many different colors. Their long flowering spikes add nice movement in the breezy garden and are beloved by butterflies. The sale will have saturated deep blues and magenta available, as well as lighter tones, pink and lavender.

S. azurea ‘Grandiflora’ – S. pitcherii ‘Nekan’ – S. greggii ‘ Furman’s Red’ ‘Ultra Violet’ – S. nemerosa Violet Riot’ ‘Pink Dawn’ ‘Crystal Blue’ ‘Caradonna’ – S. macrophylla ‘Hot Lips’ ‘Windwalker Royal Red’

If you love the smell of Earl Grey tea then monarda is for you! Commonly called bee balm or wild bergamot (because of its similar fragrance to Citrus bergamia, source of earl grey tea), the leaves of this plant release their pleasant aroma every time you water or brush past. This year we are offering many different varieties of monarda, some native and others hybridized, in various shades of red and purple.

M. fistulosa – M. didyma ‘Pardon My Pink’ ‘Pardon My Purple’ ‘Pardon My Cerise’ ‘Leading Lady Plum’ ‘Grape Gumball’ ‘Lilac Lolipop ‘ ‘Cotton Candy’ ‘Cherry Pops’ ‘Rockin Raspberry’

It’s hard to only pick a few when we have so many ‘minty’ options! More than just the three discussed here, we also have catmint (Nepeta sp.), Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) and lavender (Lavendula ‘Phenomenol’), and many more. If you come to the sale, you know where to find me – hovering near the mint family plants, sniffing away!

Some information fact checked at http://delta-intkey.com/angio/www/labiatae.htm
Photos from Dyck Arboretum archives and Walter’s Gardens media resources.

Gardening as Entertainment

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Scott Vogt

For me, there’s something fun, exciting, and even entertaining about gardening. It is an adventure every year. I love the journey of taking a plant, any plant, and making it grow. To see a plant transformed into something that produces a crop for me to use or a flower for me to enjoy is extremely gratifying. It’s a very personal journey, because of the time you spend and the choices you make. Actively gardening appeals to the senses. I don’t want to get all sappy, but to touch, see, hear, and watch the landscape change with a little input and time from me is very fulfilling.

How do we make gardening landscaping more enjoyable? I have thought quite a bit about this question – particularly about making landscaping with native plants more appealing to the general public. What would motivate someone to spend time and energy developing a native landscape? Ultimately, it is their choice, but if it were viewed as entertainment, we couldn’t produce enough plants to meet the demand.

So let’s look at gardening as entertainment. We all want to be entertained. At least I do. So here are some ways tending a landscape can entertain you.

Changes throughout the year.

Where else can you go and get year-round beauty? If you go to the Konza Prairie near Manhattan, you can experience the natural beauty that occurs as the seasons progress. Every couple of weeks you will see something new. Subtle changes to the landscape provide surprising beauty. It is no different in our own landscapes. If you have just three to four plants in bloom during each season of the year, combined with some native grasses, you can mimic that larger landscape on a much smaller scale. Think of your landscape as a canvas with constantly changing colors, shapes, patterns and textures. Sounds very attractive, doesn’t it?

Wildlife.

To watch a monarch butterfly flit from flower to flower is amazing. To see a hummingbird sipping the nectar from a tubular flower can be mesmerizing. Blazing stars (Liatris aspera) covered with ten different pollinators at the same time captures your attention. Just think about the many benefits of native plants. One of the most important benefits to pollinators is the symbiotic relationship plants and wildlife have with each other. If you enjoy live entertainment, watching wildlife in your garden can captivate your attention.

Relaxation.

We are all living increasingly busy lives. We don’t have enough time to step back and unwind. Gardens give us the space to relax. Plant a garden that is manageable. If you are really busy focus, on a small area you will use the most or see the most from your home. For me, my garden is entertainment. An oasis from a hectic life. A chance to get my hands in the soil. The smell of freshly turned soil is soothing. My garden draws me away from personalities, stress, and performance and brings me back to my roots. Gardening is about touching things that are real and alive, engaging the senses, and enjoying the journey year after year.

Gardening is a choice worth making. Your landscape can touch your senses, give you a place to go and get the recovery you need and entertain you. A choice to garden and create a landscape for your enjoyment is never unwise. Embrace the journey!

How Do You Learn About Native Plants?

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Scott Vogt

This weekend, I did some reflecting on the past 19 years I have spent at the arboretum. I thought I knew so much when I was hired as the horticulturist. After all, I had just graduated from Kansas State University with a horticulture degree. There wasn’t anything I didn’t know. But after the first week, I was in over my head.

It was July in Kansas. Need I say more?

One of the first things I quickly realized was that I knew virtually nothing about native plants. I had learned about a few native trees and shrubs in my college classes, but I couldn’t identify more than five wildflowers. My learning curve was steep those first few years. I was going to sink or swim at this new job by how much I knew about native plants. So I set out to learn all I could about the plants that grow on the prairie.

Bison-Photo by Craig Freeman

7mS4mWofHolcomb_FinneyCoKS_CFreeman_01Jul1995

Finney County KS-Photo by Craig Freeman

The most formative experiences that I had were the many seed collecting field trips we made throughout the state. It was so enlightening to see the plants growing in their natural environment. Those memories guide how I design gardens today. I became familiar with the plants, but more importantly I learned where they like to grow and who they like to grow with. Just like us, plants need to be in communities that are vibrant, healthy and sustaining. Native plants rely on each other. High quality prairies and even gardens have communities of plants that live harmoniously together.

RusselSprings_LoganCoKS_CFreeman_19May1999

Logan County, KS-Photo by Craig Freeman

Chalk Formations-Photo by Craig Freeman

Collecting seeds forced me to learn the scientific names of the plants. Each seed had a specific set of conditions that it must be subjected to in order for germination to occur. This too was a fascinating process that required me to learn. It was extremely rewarding to take some seed from the wild and get it to germinate in the greenhouse and ultimately place a new plant for the seed we collected into the arboretum for others to enjoy.

CimarronNatlGrassland_CFreeman_26Jun1988

Cimarron National Grassland-Photo by Craig Freeman

RocktownNaturalArea_RusselCoKS_CFreeman_08Oct1988

Rocktown Natural Area-Russel County-Photo by Craig Freeman

I read catalogs and books about native plants. I grew, planted and killed several native plants in an attempt to continue that learning process. I moved plants that were not happy to other areas in the garden where they began to thrive. These exploratory trips – we called it “55 mph botany” – helped me hone my identification skills as we traveled many of the back roads of Kansas in search of unique native plants. Each of these experiences influence plant choices, mixtures and sequences in landscape plans. As native plants have become more mainstream, more information is available. Naturally, I am still learning.

Flint Hills-Photo by Craig Freeman

I say all this to encourage gardeners, specifically native plant enthusiasts, to learn everything you can about at least 25 plants that will grow well in your landscape. From those, there is nearly an infinite number of plant combinations. By matching plants to your sight, the guess-work has been taken out of the equation. This will increase your successes and diminish your failures. If the plants are happy, they will take care of themselves. And that will increase your enjoyment while greatly reducing your upkeep and maintenance.

Challenge: Start with learning about 10 native plants, eight wildflowers and two grasses. As you learn about these plants and incorporate them into your garden where they like to grow, I believe you will be rewarded in time with a landscape that works for you, not against you. You will have a community of plants that flourish together.

Let the learning begin!

Principles of a Sustainable Landscape Design

Posted on March 9, 2016 by Scott Vogt

Through our work in promoting the use of native plants in landscaping, we have observed that homeowners and gardeners are becoming increasingly aware of the positive impacts they can have on the natural world. At the same time, they are looking for ways they can sit back and enjoy the fruits of their labor.

In a weekly article I receive online, landscape architects were asked to rate the expected popularity of a variety of residential outdoor design elements in 2016. Here are the top trends in landscape design, according to the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA):

Rainwater/graywater harvesting-88%
Native plants-86%
Native/adapted drought tolerant plants-85%
Low maintenance landscapes-85%
Permeable paving-77%
Fire pits/fireplaces-75%
Food/vegetable gardens (including orchard, vineyards, etc.)-75%
Rain gardens-73%
Drip irrigation-72%
Reduced lawn area-72%

These trends highlight the importance homeowners place on a functional landscape – landscapes that reflect their values and life style, gardens that center on solutions to problems rather than creating additional problems. Invest your time and energy in something that can make a significant difference. Think about these four principles as your develop your own sustainable landscape design.

Principle #1 – Treat Water as a Valuable Resource

We have seen the dramatic results of the drought in the west. Throughout 2011 and 2012, we endured our own drought here in Kansas. Certainly, the extremes we faced were not as severe as in places like California or Texas, but the impact on our landscapes can still be seen. Water demand was at an all-time high. Our landscapes were losing water faster than it could be replaced. In the aftermath, people began to ask tough questions about water use, irrigation practices, plant material and rainwater collection.

A sustainable design focuses on proper plant selection (i.e. native plants), drip irrigation if necessary and rain gardens or collection points to capture storm water. This new approach to design keeps water in the proper perspective.

Baptisia ‘Purple Smoke’ is a native, drought tolerant perennial

Principle #2 – Value Your Soil

Like water, soil is a finite resource. There are choices we can make to improve our soil and to reduce or eliminate runoff and soil erosion in our landscape.

A sustainable design uses deep rooted perennials and grasses to hold the soil. These plants can be combined in appealing combinations. Beautiful blooms, textures and forms serve functional purposes in the design.

“Twilight Zone” little bluestem Photo courtesy Walters Gardens.

Principle #3 – Choose Native Plants

In my opinion, your first choice in a landscape should always be native plants. There are so many wonderful plants to choose for your landscape. I know there are some amazing adaptable perennials too, but if you start with a base of natives, you will be rewarded year after year.

A sustainable design matches appropriate plants to the site. Right plant, right place.

Native planting at Sunset Elementary in Newton, KS

Principle #4 – Don’t Be Wasteful

Does your landscape add to the landfill? How much waste does it produce each year? Lawns are an important functional element in the landscape. I need a space for my children and pets to roam. They can also generate large quantities of yard waste, especially if you collect grass clippings. Do we need a huge lawn or can it be reduced in size and replaced with beautiful wildflowers, grasses and ornamental trees and shrubs?

A sustainable design evaluates every aspect of the landscape with the goal to reduce your negative environmental impact, while including features that are beneficial to the natural world and beautiful at the same time.

These homeowners chose to reduce lawn by replacing with wildflowers and shrubs.

“It’s simple: By gardening with native plants, no matter where you live or how small or large your space is, you can help sustain wildlife.” – Doug Tallamy, Bringing Nature Home

Still wanting more information? You may find some helpful hints on our “Landscaping with Native Plants” page. Or, you may wish to sign up for a Native Landscaping Class and/or visit with one of our staff at the FloraKansas Native Plant Sale, April 21-25.

Native Plants Are Becoming “The New Normal”

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Scott Vogt

What is normal? A definition I like is “the usual, average, or typical state or condition.” So, what would most mid-Westerners think of as a “normal” landscape? How about a landscape dominated by lawn, a few foundation plantings with uninspiring, “tidy” perennials and shrubs that serve no real purpose other than to take up space? In my opinion, this describes many of the common landscapes we have seen over the past 20-30 years, including some areas around my own house.

The “new normal” reflects a current state of being after some dramatic change has transpired. It replaces the expected, usual, and typical with exciting, productive, purposeful, beneficial and sustainable. I believe that over the past few years we have seen a renewed interest in landscaping that fits this description, and that soon, landscaping with native plants will become the new normal.

Through increased interest in our native plant sales, native landscaping classes and educational programs, we are witnessing a collective realization that there are significant benefits to utilizing natives in the garden, benefits that make sense both for people and for the wildlife that depend on these plants for their survival. We as a society have also come to understand, we don’t have to give anything up in the process of developing an eco-friendly landscape. It is interesting and ironic that this “new normal” of landscaping with native plants is taking us full circle here in Kansas, back to our prairie roots.

Here are three reasons native plants should be the “new normal” in your garden:

#1 Low Maintenance

There is no such thing as a no-maintenance landscape. However, if we emphasize selecting plants that grow naturally in our area and matching them to our site, maintenance will be drastically reduced. Native plants have adapted to local conditions. Once established, the deep roots of the prairie natives will take them through prolonged periods of drought. Healthy plants require less maintenance, are stronger, are less prone to disease, require less water, provide beautiful blooms while growing in the toughest environments, therefore reducing our time in the garden and increasing our enjoyment.

The new normal is to select plants that go naturally with the place we live, rather than planting traditional landscapes that often try to change the place to accommodate the plant.

Native wildflower planting at Denver Botanical Garden at Chatfield

#2 Beautiful Plants

If you have ever walked through a pristine prairie or observed the changing seasons in the Flint Hills, you know the exquisite beauty of wildflowers in bloom coupled with native grasses. It is understated and taken for granted. I am always amazed at the complexity and intricacies of these prairie plants. They create a very unique sense of place.

The new normal is a renewed awareness of the natural beauty of the prairie and a recognition that we can have a part of it in our own gardens.

Summer Wildflowers in the Arboretum

#3 Attract Pollinators and Wildlife

Even in most urban settings, wildlife surrounds us. Pollinators live in our neighborhoods and utilize plants in our landscapes. By strategically planting even a few native wildflowers, grasses and shrubs that bloom at different times throughout the year, you can make a positive impact on their survival. When it comes to helping the natural world, diversity is crucial. Increasing the natural diversity on your property will ultimately benefit wildlife.

The new normal is understanding that we can positively or negatively influence the natural world by the plants we choose. Even a few native plants in your garden, combined with those of your neighbors, will be extremely beneficial.

Painted Lady Butterfly on New England Aster

Over the years, I have learned that there is no right or wrong way to use native plants. If you don’t like something, or if a plant isn’t happy, you can always try something else. In most cases, you can just move it. I have to remind myself that these plants are so much better than a turf lawn. I can’t tell you how many times I have been rewarded for my efforts in observing a beautiful flower covered with lively pollinators. To see them flying from plant to plant makes it all worthwhile.

How to Plan for Pollinators

Posted on January 13, 2016 by Scott Vogt

It is hard to believe, but it is mid-January already. Spring is right around the corner. Yes, it will be here before I am fully prepared. Are you ready for spring? Do you know what your garden needs? Do you know what pollinators need? How can we sync our gardens better with nature? These questions and many more have been rolling around in my head over the past few weeks.

I have been reading articles and reviewing plant catalogs. My brain is in overload. Here is one of the directions I will be taking my garden this year. I am planning for pollinators and not just hoping they will magically appear. So, what does that look like? Here are a few points to consider as you plan for pollinators in your own garden this year:

Establish plants with nectar.

Pollinators depend on nectar throughout their adult life stage. A variety of native wildflowers that grow in a sunny location and bloom at different times throughout the year provide pollinators with a constant nectar source. Not every plant is beneficial to pollinators. If possible, utilize native plants because they offer nectar that many native pollinators seek. Here are some sample landscape designs to get you started.

Bumblebee on Echinacea purpurea – photo by Janelle Flory Schrock

Think of color and form.

Butterflies can see yellow, orange, pink, blue and purple blossoms. Bees are unable to see the color red, but are very attracted to yellow and blue flowers. Darker colors such as black are a warning sign for them to stay away. Bees for the most part are attracted to bright colors. So don’t wear a bright colored shirt in the garden. Flat-topped or clustered flowers provide a place to settle for feeding. We carry many options of native plants at our FloraKansas Plant Sale.

Texan Crescent

Provide puddles.

Butterflies like wet sand and mud left behind by puddles or on the edge of a water feature. They drink the water and extract minerals from damp soil.

Pearl crescent butterflies – Photo by Dave Osborne

Establish host plants.

Host plants provide food for butterfly larvae (caterpillars). Butterflies look for specific plants when they are ready to lay eggs. The host plants for the Monarch butterfly are milkweeds. If you want to help save the Monarch butterfly, include some milkweeds in your garden plan. Here is some additional information on Monarchs.

Great Spangled Fritillary on Sullivant’s Milkweed

Make your garden a pesticide-free zone.

Insecticides kill insects. Herbicides kill plants, but they can be toxic to insects as well. Pesticide-free lawns and gardens allow pollinators to survive and flourish.

Provide habitat.

Small wood piles, old logs and leaves in your garden at strategic areas provide important habitats for many different pollinators. Bees will uses these areas to overwinter because they keep them safe from the elements and predators. Don’t be too quick to get rid of that old rotting log. It is just what pollinators need.

Bee Hotel – Photo by John Regier

Bee Hotel Explanation – Photo by John Regier

Many butterflies, pollinators and native wildflowers have co-evolved over time so that each depends on the other for survival. Wildflowers provide food for all life stages of pollinators. In return, wildflowers and much of the food we eat are pollinated by bees, butterflies, and a host of other pollinators. With a little planning now, pollinators will flock to your garden this year and in years to come.