If you want something in your garden that your neighbors don’t have, try native plants, suggests Ken Parker, CNLP, native plant specialist and manager of trees, shrubs and perennials at Lockwood’s Greenhouses.
He will talk about native woodland plants that you can grow in your own garden at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 5 at Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark Street, Hamburg. The fee is $10. He will also be one of several speakers at a Native Plants Day at Lockwood’s on Saturday, July 7.
It’s rare to have local indigenous plants in our gardens, Parker noted. The majority of our garden plants are species that were introduced to Western New York. You don’t even see native woodland plants in our parks.
Ironically, native plants constitute a new product line for nurseries.
“It’s not that it’s a new product, it’s just that we lost that knowledge,” said Parker, who is part Seneca. “I look at native plants from the Native perspective.”
His knowledge of Native plants led to the development of numerous horticultural programs and lecture series within Native American communities, including the Mohawks of St. Regis, NY; the Iroqouis of Six Nations of the Grand River Reserve, Ontario; the Florida Seminoles, and Pueblos of New Mexico. In recent years he has presented for the Intertribal Native Nursery Council and U.S. Forestry Department.
Native Americans have long used native plants as food, as medicine, for fibers, for dyes and in ceremonies, he said. Other people are more interested in becoming self-sustaining nowadays, and they’re beginning to look to native plants.
There are many reasons to use native plants in your garden. Non-native plants can become invasive. Native plants support birds and insects. Our actions can have far-reaching environmental effects. Parker noted that Native Americans look to the seventh generation, realizing that what we do now affects the next seven generations.
Lockwood’s is beginning to grow native plants for sale. This year they are offering native grasses and native perennials grown from seeds. Many of the plants that Parker will be discussing in his talk will be available for sale at Lockwood’s.
Parker’s definition of a native plant is a plant that was locally indigenous before European settlement.
There are plants, such as a Colorado spruce, that are indigenous to North America but not to New York State. For a plant to truly be a native plant, its seed source should be within 60 to 90 miles of Western New York, he said. Ideally, environmentalists would find a good wild specimen as a source of seed and document the plant’s location using GPS.
Parker knows a lot about native plants. He has been actively growing, installing and promoting indigenous plants of North America since 1992. Originally from South Buffalo, he moved to Canada and ran his own nursery that sold only native plants.
Parker also was featured for two seasons on the Canadian TV show Gardening Gamble, which was like Trading Spaces for yards.
A jazz and blues musician as well as a former U.S. Marine, Parker recently moved back to Western New York.
Many native woodland plants thrive in shade
“There’s more to life than hostas!” Parker said. Many woodland native plants grow well in the shade.
There are two kinds of shade. If you live in the city and have a small yard with a big tree sucking up all the water, you have dry shade. If you have an area under a tree that has had generations of leaves building up, you would have moist shade. Parker has provided lists of plants that do well in each kind of shade.
Moist, rich loam soils
Elymus virginicus– Virginia Wild Rye
Carex plantaginea – Plantain-leaved Sedge
Actaea pachypoda – Doll’s Eyes or White Baneberry
Allium tricoccum – Wild Leek
Anemone canadensis – Canada Anemone
Aralia racemosa – American Spikenard
Arisaema triphyllum – Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Asclepias exaltata– Poke Milkweed
Aster macrophyllus – Large-leaf Aster
Cimicifuga racemosa – Black Cohosh
Podophyllum peltatum – Mayapple
Sanguinaria canadensis – Bloodroot
Trillium grandiflorum – White Trillium
Cornus alternifolia –Pagoda Dogwood
Hamamelis virginiana – Common Witch Hazel
Lindera benzoin –Spicebush
Matteuccia struthiopteris –Ostrich Fern
Dennstaedtia punctilobula -Hay-scented Fern
Average to medium & dry soils
Hystrix patula – Eastern Bottlebrush
Elymus virginicus– Virginia Wild Rye
Carex plantaginea – Plantain-leaved Sedge
Elymus villosus – Silky Wild Rye
Aquilegia canadensis – Eastern Columbine
Asarum canadense – Wild Ginger
Eupatorium coelestinum – Blue Mistflower
Geranium maculatum – Wild Geranium
Helianthus strumosus – Paled-leaved Sunflower
Mertensia virginica – Virginia Bluebells
Penstemon digitalis – Smooth Penstemon
Celastrus scandens –American Bittersweet Vine
Cornus florida –Flowering Dogwood
Cornus racemosa –Grey Dogwood
Hydrangea quercifolia –Oakleaf Hydrangea
Parthenocissus quinquefolia –Virginia Creeper Vine
Rubus odoratus –Purple-Flowering Raspberry
Matteuccia struthiopteris –Ostrich Fern
Dennstaedtia punctilobula -Hay-scented Fern
Zizia aurea – Golden Alexanders
Native woodland grasses, perennials and trees
Parker offered this list of native grasses, perennials and trees. While all the plants listed here are North American, not all are indigenous to Western New York, he noted. All of these will be available at Lockwood’s. Those marked with an asterisk are currently being propagated to be available early June.
Grasses
Hystrix patula* -Eastern bottlebrush grass: A unique clump-forming woodland native offers a wide bladed, dark green foliage. The very attractive seed heads resemble bottlebrushes and normally bloom during our Western New York summers. Seed heads are excellent specimens for dried arrangements. (Medium to loam soil/part to full shade/height: 2-4′ feet)
Elymus virginicus*- Virginia wild rye : This cool-season native is widely adapted throughout Canada and the United States. The straight, stiff and bristly seed heads are attractive in floral arrangements. Blooms in early summer and is often found in woodland flood plains, thickets and prairie. (Average to moist soil/full sun to part shade/height: 1-3′ feet)
Carex plantaginea- Plaintain-leaved sedge: The uncommonly wide leaves form impressive clumps in shaded or woodland settings. Naturally occurs in shady forested areas near oak stands. Once established, it can tolerate dry shade locations. Seeds feed a variety of wildlife. (Rich loam soil/part shade to shade/height: 1-3′ ft.)
Elymus villosus*- Silky wild rye: An attractive woodland grass with nodding bristly seed heads that mature in mid summer. Also tolerates dry shade areas once established. As the name suggests, the grass sheaths are hairy & silky. (Average soil/Part shade to shade/Height: 2-3′ ft.)
Perennials
Aquilegia canadensis – Eastern Columbine
Arisaema triphyllum – Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Asarum canadense – Wild Ginger
Asclepias exaltata – Poke Milkweed*
Aster macrophyllus – Large-leaf Aster
Eupatorium coelestinum – Blue Mistflower
- Celastrus scandens or American bittersweet vine. Photo by Ken Parker.
Geranium maculatum – Wild Geranium
Helianthus strumosus – Paled-leaved Sunflower*
Penstemon digitalis – Smooth Penstemon
Trees, shrubs and vines
Celastrus scandens–American Bittersweet Vine
Cornus alternifolia –Pagoda Dogwood
Cornus florida –Flowering Dogwood
Cornus racemosa –Grey Dogwood
Hydrangea quercifolia –Oakleaf Hydrangea
Lindera benzoin –Spicebush
Parthenocissus quinquefolia –Virginia Creeper Vine
Rubus odoratus –Purple-Flowering Raspberry
Tom, if you are thinking of putting in a rain garden, start with this article:
Rain gardens are low maintenance, help the environment
It describes some of the basics and links to detailed instructions for designing a rain garden that are on the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeepers web site. The article Here are some good native plants for your rain garden includes a list of plants. I have a category under topics for birds and butterflies; you can find some articles there that should be helpful, especially this one. I hope that helps.
I have a couple areas in my yard that is kind of wet and I would like to make a rain garden with native flowers and plants that will attract birds and butterflies. Do you have any suggestions how to get started.
Tim,
I’m glad you found the article helpful. Thanks for writing!
Very informative and the plant listing is very usefull
It is ironic that Europeans find our North American species worthy. One man’s weed is another man’s treasure. It is also worth noting that humanity through urbanization as destroyed so much habitat in such a short time that we have truly brought numerous North American plants species on the verge of extinction. Fact is many are already extinct where they once naturally occurred in abundance.
I highly recommend our conservation authorities and local parks departments strive to restore and maintain local species of the area. This should not include cultivars of natives. Make this a high priority to preserve the local genotypes of the original indigenous plants of western New York.
For the average homeowner, it’s okay to bend the rules a little. It is more important to get any kind of native species back in every backyard. I like to call this environmental philosophy Eco-Logic. Be respectful to our Mother Earth.
Eileen, I didn’t know about your emphasis on native species in parks. That’s good to hear! It’s also interesting that Europeans use more native species than we do. Perhaps we’re always looking for something rare. Think of the dandelion. It’s colorful, fragrant, fluffy and grows easily. The only reason we don’t like it is because it gets everywhere. But now that nobody uses native plants in their gardens, native species are rare and different! Thanks so much for writing.
The Olmsted Parks Conservancy began an emphasis on native species in the parklands three or four years ago. The varieties available from seed and some growers is increasing yearly. It’s interesting that European gardeners use more of our native plants than we do!
I think what a lot of gardeners don’t realize is that all of these garden centers have such different inventories. Years ago, if I found a plant I liked one year, I expected to find it the next year at any nursery I walked into. That’s when I realized that nurseries have different niches. Some lean toward hybrids, some like heirloom varieties, some are beginning to specialize in natives. It’s worth exploring local garden centers to see what they offer.
Thank you for this interesting and
useful article.
Very commendable for Lockwoods to lead the native initiative. The listing of native plants in the post is most useful.
What a treat to see a nursery in the Buffalo area selling native plants. I have tried to get some of the nurseries in the northtowns to carry more natives and they look at you like you have two heads. Granted some are not as bold as the hybrids most nurseries sell but they are so much easier and carefree. Once established they require little or no care at all to flourish and are not bothered by many of the pests that attack introductions and hybrids. I have several natives that I have grown from seed or ordered online. Some are native to NY state not exclusively to western NY.