Native Plants

Most of the time, I work hard to achieve a desirable outcome in my landscape but, from time to time, a plant comes along that is easy to establish and care for without being too aggressive, is beautiful, and produces food for wildlife and my family…black elderberry is one of those plants....

As gardeners, we're often on the lookout for low-maintenance plants with colorful flower displays. One such plant that fits that description, and is vastly underutilized in the landscape, is Baptisia. These easy-to-grow native perennials are primarily grown for their colorful floral...

Shaded areas can be difficult areas to landscape, especially when it comes to groundcovers. Turfgrass often struggles, and many commonly used groundcovers, like lily of the valley, wintercreeper, periwinkle, and English ivy, can become problematic because of their aggressive spreading and potential...

One of the most favored hobbies of outdoor enthusiasts, gardeners, and wildlife lovers is feeding the birds. Setting out a bird feeder with seed or suet cakes is a popular way many people use to feed the birds, but there are other ways to feed birds. Birds scavenge seed from plants, they will get...

It’s the beginning of February, and yet I can feel the excitement of the approaching growing season. As the weather teases us with thoughts of the warmth to come with temperatures creeping into the 50s it is important to note we still have more winter ahead.Even though we still have time before...

As cold weather sets in, we often find ourselves retreating indoors where it is warm. However, our landscape plants can't do this, and during times of extreme cold, like this recent cold snap, we may find ourselves wondering how our plants will fare. How do plants prepare for...

Three of my most prized trees are the oaks we planted in our front yard shortly after we moved. They share our front yard with a black gum (Nyssa sylvatica), red twig dogwoods (Cornus sericea), witch hazel (Hamamelis vernalis) and apple (Malus spp.) trees. ...

Autumn is a time for…life? This may seem perplexing, as we often link fall with plants dying, wildlife migrating, and us retreating indoors. However, this is when conservationists managing prairies get excited to sow new life.Managing prairies, forests, or wetlands often involves battling nonnative...

The recent turn in the weather has me feeling all the fall vibes. I’m ready for leaves to turn, for pumpkin spice to be in everything, and for sweater weather. Although as a kid and young adult, Halloween hasn’t traditionally been my favorite holiday, my kids love it which means I love it. As our...