Where I grew up, we revered our native plants. We grew them for beauty, fascination, food, and shade, knowing that our plants captured the imagination of the rest of the world. Our native plants appear in literature, paintings, movies, and even comic books. Native plants of the Deep South have inspired emotion and provided nursery income for centuries—they even played pivotal roles in the country's founding.
Native plants have their place in the garden. They typically are drought tolerant and pest free., which eliminates the use of pesticides and saves on water. Native plants are foundational and provide structure in the landscape. Thanks for your thoughts on natives.
I think there's a distinct difference, though, in thinking that southern nurseries are filled to the brim with native plants and then polling people about iconic southern, native plants. Yes, I can walk into any of the so-called native nurseries around Houston and find a decent selection of native plants but they are not filled to the brim and they are generally the same selections whether I'm shopping in NW Houston or down in Seabrook, with exceptions when they get some oddball natives in stock. Stephen F. Austin State University has two plants sales every year from their SFA Gardens/hort and forestry department and while the overwhelming majority are native plants being sold, they of course have a selection of vegetables and non-native typical horticulture selections you can find at any nursery across east Texas (and the south). My husband and I always pour over their offerings in the weeks before, planning which we want and because we are not newbie gardeners we don't want the things we've seen for the last 25 years. The sale is almost a race, you line up at the start and wait for it to open and then you rush with your cart over to the plants you want to get them before they are taken. I don't know why we worry because all of the cool (to us) natives are never picked over. And yet those run of the mill ornamentals you can buy just about anywhere are in everyone's carts. So, no, I really don't think people generally revere native plants. They know an oak tree, bonus points for a live oak, and plant that and end there. I see it in my own community with our local park board (I'm basically in an HOA that operates as a city) and there is no reverence for native plants or leaving yaupon for wildlife, or native pond vegetation for fish cover and bird foraging. I've fought them to keep so much and I lose a lot of the time. Getting them to realize they are cutting down a native hawthorn is a huge struggle---there is no value there. So, no, I really do not think there is an overwhelming reverence for native plants. Most people simply do not care.
I recently drove across a lot of the south on a spring break road trip to the Smokies. In many places, whether it was Birmingham or Lafayette, I could just pick up the local suburban home landscaping and place it in DFW, Tyler, Beaumont, or Houston. It's the same non-native landscaping there as it is here, with maybe a Little Gem magnolia thrown in for good measure. A few pine trees and oaks, and yes, sure, the showier natives that people "care" about.
But that's not reverence for native plants.
Editing to add: A lot of your references, while important, are all monetary and symbolic. They aren't ecological. Which is what typically gets left out of the conversation when native plants are discussed. Sure, the palmettos are important to South Carolina as bluebonnets are to Texas but very few know there are more than one species of bluebonnets, which do well in what habitat, and that there are other equally important native wildflowers in the spring. There's a disconnect there.
I’m not on FB so I didn’t get to add my 2 cents on southern natives. Live oak with Spanish moss would be top of my list.
When I began gardening in my 20s the plants I knew were natives ( ie the survey results and list of plants you talked about) because they were the ones my parents and grandparents had in their gardens. Most people of their generation didn’t spend a whole lot of money on specialty and exotic plants.
Pass alongs that flourished here and were the backbone of the garden. Some trees were just there and therefore taken into the garden and some were given as gifts to me as a new gardener. I did go hog wild learning about every plant I could get my hands on and learned along the way (45 years and counting) what would thrive and what wouldn’t in the NC Piedmont. I think the real debate is about the industry’s drive to educate people about native plants .
Industry is driven by profit and that doesn’t usually include a passion for ecology or horticulture. That’s why we need people like you Jenks to inform and inspire us to educate ourselves and develop our own sense of commitment and passion to the ecological balance of nature and beauty. Thank you for this article!
New garden means a new opportunity to plant more natives! That is my goal in my new garden. We need to talk about what I can use and show my new neighbors how glorious it will look and how much easier to care for too!
Your survey about iconic plants of the south is infinitely fascinating.
God bless our native plants! What an informative post - I'll look at all my plants with new eyes!
Native plants have their place in the garden. They typically are drought tolerant and pest free., which eliminates the use of pesticides and saves on water. Native plants are foundational and provide structure in the landscape. Thanks for your thoughts on natives.
I think there's a distinct difference, though, in thinking that southern nurseries are filled to the brim with native plants and then polling people about iconic southern, native plants. Yes, I can walk into any of the so-called native nurseries around Houston and find a decent selection of native plants but they are not filled to the brim and they are generally the same selections whether I'm shopping in NW Houston or down in Seabrook, with exceptions when they get some oddball natives in stock. Stephen F. Austin State University has two plants sales every year from their SFA Gardens/hort and forestry department and while the overwhelming majority are native plants being sold, they of course have a selection of vegetables and non-native typical horticulture selections you can find at any nursery across east Texas (and the south). My husband and I always pour over their offerings in the weeks before, planning which we want and because we are not newbie gardeners we don't want the things we've seen for the last 25 years. The sale is almost a race, you line up at the start and wait for it to open and then you rush with your cart over to the plants you want to get them before they are taken. I don't know why we worry because all of the cool (to us) natives are never picked over. And yet those run of the mill ornamentals you can buy just about anywhere are in everyone's carts. So, no, I really don't think people generally revere native plants. They know an oak tree, bonus points for a live oak, and plant that and end there. I see it in my own community with our local park board (I'm basically in an HOA that operates as a city) and there is no reverence for native plants or leaving yaupon for wildlife, or native pond vegetation for fish cover and bird foraging. I've fought them to keep so much and I lose a lot of the time. Getting them to realize they are cutting down a native hawthorn is a huge struggle---there is no value there. So, no, I really do not think there is an overwhelming reverence for native plants. Most people simply do not care.
I recently drove across a lot of the south on a spring break road trip to the Smokies. In many places, whether it was Birmingham or Lafayette, I could just pick up the local suburban home landscaping and place it in DFW, Tyler, Beaumont, or Houston. It's the same non-native landscaping there as it is here, with maybe a Little Gem magnolia thrown in for good measure. A few pine trees and oaks, and yes, sure, the showier natives that people "care" about.
But that's not reverence for native plants.
Editing to add: A lot of your references, while important, are all monetary and symbolic. They aren't ecological. Which is what typically gets left out of the conversation when native plants are discussed. Sure, the palmettos are important to South Carolina as bluebonnets are to Texas but very few know there are more than one species of bluebonnets, which do well in what habitat, and that there are other equally important native wildflowers in the spring. There's a disconnect there.
You go, Jenks!
Chopsticks made from sweetgum trees ... the things you learn in a Jenks Farmer post!
I’m not on FB so I didn’t get to add my 2 cents on southern natives. Live oak with Spanish moss would be top of my list.
When I began gardening in my 20s the plants I knew were natives ( ie the survey results and list of plants you talked about) because they were the ones my parents and grandparents had in their gardens. Most people of their generation didn’t spend a whole lot of money on specialty and exotic plants.
Pass alongs that flourished here and were the backbone of the garden. Some trees were just there and therefore taken into the garden and some were given as gifts to me as a new gardener. I did go hog wild learning about every plant I could get my hands on and learned along the way (45 years and counting) what would thrive and what wouldn’t in the NC Piedmont. I think the real debate is about the industry’s drive to educate people about native plants .
Industry is driven by profit and that doesn’t usually include a passion for ecology or horticulture. That’s why we need people like you Jenks to inform and inspire us to educate ourselves and develop our own sense of commitment and passion to the ecological balance of nature and beauty. Thank you for this article!
New garden means a new opportunity to plant more natives! That is my goal in my new garden. We need to talk about what I can use and show my new neighbors how glorious it will look and how much easier to care for too!