Even a small city garden can support bees, butterflies, birds, and other wildlife, perhaps far more than you ever imagined.
Seriously.
For example, on a tiny lot in spitting distance of a major airport—not anyone’s idea of a nature reserve—a couple added 60 species of native plants to their garden and attracted 116 bird species!
In addition to helping us save wildlife from extinction, native gardens deliver a range of life-support services:
- help us fight climate change,
Monarch on Purple Coneflower
- moderate the effects of extreme weather (floods, hurricanes, winds, heat waves),
- build soil and help prevent erosion,
- filter pollutants out of runoff to help protect watersheds and our drinking water,
- cool and clean the air,
- provide many of our foods, medicines, clothing, and housing,
- dramatically reduce our residential water usage,
- protect our coastlines and fish stocks,
- add beauty and joy to our lives,
- decrease stress and improve our mental health,
- and protect the biodiversity that’s critical to the survival of our ecosystems.
One enthusiast likened native plants to Swiss Army knives because they’re multi-purpose solutions to so many issues.
More land in the USA is devoted to lawns than crops like corn or wheat. These lawns of turfgrass offer little value to wildlife and require more water, time, and money than native plants. And on average, turfgrass receives more pesticides and herbicides than any of our other crops, poisons that are especially dangerous to our kids and pets, too. If we converted half of our lawns into native plant gardens, we could help fight climate change, because native plants sequester a lot more carbon than turfgrass. We would also conserve water, reduce air pollution, and save time and money. Once native plants are established, they typically only need water during extended droughts and rarely need fertilizer. So you can spend more time enjoying life.
Native gardens can soothe your spirits as they help heal the world.
New native plant garden at Ft Proctor Park
Make a difference. Add native plants to your yard, or volunteer to help maintain our community’s native gardens, like the ones newly established at FT Proctor Park. See you at the park!
Learn more and get started:
- This video changed our lives. If you’re curious about rewilding and native plants, we think it’s the best place to start. It’s about an hour-and-a-half long.
- Nature’s best hope video by Dr. Doug Tallamy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY4aV5hqkxY
- Mohawk Valley Chapter of the Wild Ones, a national organization that promotes environmentally sound landscaping practices to preserve biodiversity through the preservation, restoration and establishment of native plant communities: https://mohawkvalley.wildones.org/
- Homegrown National Park: a grassroots conservation project to restore habitat where we live and work, to regenerate biodiversity and ecosystem function
https://homegrownnationalpark.org/
Contributors: Jill Shultz
