Gardening with Native Plants
Interesting Reading...
Have you ever wondered why we don't see Maps showing Native Plant ranges?
Where can you purchase Native Plants Locally?
From our members:
They’re a great resource for a wide selection (roughly 200) native plant species.
They’re largely volunteer run, with a couple horticulturalists available to discuss plant requirements or give you various scientific names, care needs and so forth. They also offer seasonally run community seed cleaning events for students, adults and individuals who enjoy participating in community events.
Seed Cleaning Events have a wide diversity of attendees. At the workshops you have the opportunity to connect with other like-minded individuals. You can get the chance to talk to those who enjoy participating in conservation efforts, those who work to do their part in preserving biodiversity or other wildlife enthusiasts.
They have a vast selection of native plants to choose from, and members of staff who are passionate about biodiversity. John DeGroot offers many helpful tips in his posts on the Garden Clippings page.
Cynthia does her thing, and she does it well. Organically grown food and flowers fill her gardens and barn. She has a passion for workshops that teach individuals to work with the products that are grown on the farm. While she isn’t native planting – she does have a selection of native plants but largely focuses on culinary herbs, flowers, grasses, decorations and crafts.
Seasonal – check the link for their scheduled opening days.
Their approach is a 100% native plant nursery and Nick Alexander is an enthusiastic landscaper, focusing on sustainable practices and making use of the many native plants in his inventory.
Native Plant Sources Further Afield
Natural garden designer that designs with native plants (thought will use non-native at client request) Wil not use tolerance for invasive species in designs!
They have plenty of resources to get you started on inspiring gardening ideas. Check out their Free Resources area for a very impressive selection of knowledge documents, plant profiles and garden ideas.
Consider joining their Facebook Group here: Ontario Native Plant Gardening
Great selection of Native plants, curated seed mixes.
A major driving force in Ontario for supplying quality plants for conservation efforts.
Native plant nursery highly regarded for the work they do in supplying quality plants for municipalities, contractors, conservation authorities and other nurseries. Their seeds are sourced by their staff from wild populations or from the University of Guelph.
Online Resources
Local gardener in the Ridgetown area just outside Chatham. Excellent website with lots of useful information, links to articles and a plant of the month! He maintains a list of native nurseries across North America.
Website hosts a “in the zone” garden tracker and planning tool: https://inthezonegardens.ca/ontario/
They’re also heavily involved in the Southwestern Ontario Seed strategy
Comprehensive resource of indigenous plants, and resources.
Active in conservation efforts across the country with community volunteer events.
Cofounder of Homegrown National Park - a great Native Species resources
Dr. Tallamy is an authority on preserving or providing habitats for native species. Nearly any of his YouTube videos are worth watching to give you an idea of non-native landscaping VS. native landscaping and the importance of native plants. Emphasis is always on the role they play for regional wildlife.
Check out some of his many Youtube talks!
Collaborative between Smithsonian, Marine Biological Laboratory, New Library of Alexandria.
Great Resource on Biodiversity! Ever wondered: “How many insects, birds and wildlife in general does my plant attract, host and feed?” If so, go to the website and enter your plant name in the top right.
Check out the various tabs, and you’ll find the interrelated data that shows how many species a plant supports. You’ll notice that indigenous plants always rank highly on the number of other species attracted.
Tool to help educate yourself about invasive species.
Has a great introduction and some detailed information on keystone species to get people thinking about biodiversity, host plants, specialty and so forth. They also have a copy of the Ecological Regions of North America which can be broken down further once you get into each zone.
Database of Vascular Plants of Canada – native plant search that provides indigenous status.
American equivalent of VASCAN. Their plant tool also maps to Canadian provinces. Gives information about Introduced/Native status for plants throughout North America.