Are you thinking about what to plant in your garden this year? Nurseries are already displaying their new stock, and native plant sales are popping up everywhere. It’s time to make your shopping list for spring planting. And we can help!
Over the past few seasons, “Around the Grounds” has recommended some great native perennials that will bring life to your garden. Here are some of our favorite flowering plants — with links to blog posts containing photos and tons of information about each of them:
All of these plants evolved in our region, are well-adapted to our soil and weather, and support native insect and bird populations. Many are deer-resistant and drought-tolerant. You can learn more about their favorite garden conditions in the linked blog posts.
We’ve also recommended ferns, grasses, shrubs, and trees, so browse older posts by clicking on the “Around the Grounds Collection” button below.
Happy spring shopping! And if you live in the Greenburg, NY area, mark your calendar for our spring plant sale on May 13 where many of these plants will be available.
THIS BLOG IS AUTHORED WEEKLY BY CATHY LUDDEN, CONSERVATIONIST AND NATIVE PLANT EDUCATOR; AND BOARD MEMBER, GREENBURGH NATURE CENTER. FOLLOW CATHY ON INSTAGRAM FOR MORE PHOTOS AND GARDENING TIPS@CATHYLUDDEN.
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Spring is approaching! Garden and seed catalogues are arriving in the mail. Nurseries and big box stores will soon begin displaying thousands of plants for our home gardens.
As we plan to beautify our yards, it’s easy to be seduced by photos of gorgeous flowers and promises of carefree shrubs. But beware: many of these plants are not as advertised! It pays for avoid common mistakes now to prevent later problems that can cost you dearly.
The biggest mistake, both for nature and your wallet, is buying invasive plants. And it’s too easy to do! Many of the most common and familiar yard plants are actually invasive species. And most of them are still being sold across the country every day!
Garden catalogue offering an invasive shrub actually prohibited in several states.
English ivy costs American homeowners millions of dollars in tree and building damage every year, but is still sold legally in every state but Oregon.
The term “invasive” applies to plants from other continents that have no natural controls in North America (nothing here eats them!), and they are so successful at reproducing themselves that they spread unchecked causing environmental and economic harm. Invasive plants cost the US – individual property owners, corporations, non-profits, and all levels of government combined – an estimated $142 billion annually! Because invasive plants out-compete native plants, they take over forests, grasslands, wetlands, roadsides, parks, and residential areas, eliminating food and other resources for wildlife, as well as pulling down power lines, trees, fences, and damaging building siding and exterior finishes. Fighting invasive plants is frustrating and very expensive.
Invasive vines choke native trees on America’s roadsides.
Invasive landscape plants like Japanese pachysandra take over parks and wooded areas and are difficult to remove.
There are at least 5000 plant species currently identified as invasive in the US, and over 2/3 of them were introduced to this continent not for food, medicine, or commercial value, but simply because somebody thought they made pretty garden plants. Many states, including New York, have begun to regulate the sale or marketing of a few species of invasive plants. But the power of the nursery industry, and the popularity of many invasive plants with gardeners, has prevented more effective legal controls. Nurseries and mail-order houses still sell hundreds of invasive species. In fact, the nursery industry is the primary pathway for invasive plant introduction. Ultimately, though, it’s up to homeowners and gardeners to refuse to buy these plants.
So, how do we know which plants are invasive and should be avoided?
The simplest way is to use your phone! Put the name of the plant you’re considering and the word “invasive” into Google, or whatever search engine you use, and see what happens! For example, this is the result of a .32-second search using the words “pachysandra” and “invasive”:
The opening page of a Google search.
Seeing that result should suggest choosing a different groundcover – a native one, perhaps?
Another way to avoid invasive plants is to watch for certain buzzwords in the ads. Like most businesses, the nursery industry grabs consumer attention with ads emphasizing the benefits of a product while omitting any discussion of the down-side. As you browse catalogues and nursery labels, watch for the red flags that signal invasive plant characteristics. Words like “grows anywhere,” “fast-spreading,” and “pest free” can mean that a plant has no natural insect or animal controls on this continent.
Catalogue offer using almost all the buzzwords.
This is a great example: any plant that will grow on “steep slopes, poor soil, trouble areas, stream or pond banks,” yet is “drought resistant and sub-zero hardy,” as well as “disease and insect free” and “grows so thick it chokes out even persistent weeds and requires no mowing or care” is the very definition of an invasive species!!
A quick Google search instantly turns up the truth about the advertised plant:
A search for “crown vetch invasive” immediately hits Invasive.org and state governments reporting the invasive plant.
At the bottom of the catalogue ad for crown vetch, there is a note that it cannot be shipped to certain states. That is another dead give-away. If any state has actually prohibited importation of the plant, it is extremely likely that the plant is invasive in many other areas as well. The political process just hasn’t progressed far enough to actually outlaw the plant in other states. Checking Invasive.org will tell the true story:
Invasive.org report on crown vetch.
Invasive.org is a joint project of the University of Georgia and the US Department of Agriculture. They collect, review, monitor, and aggregate reports of invasive plant species that have escaped cultivation and infested natural areas. If a plant is reported as invasive anywhere in the US, it is best simply to avoid it and choose something else, preferably a native plant.
Of course, the best reason to avoid planting invasive species is to protect natural areas and critical habitat for American wildlife. But protecting the value of your own property, and sparing yourself the misery of trying to get rid of a plant you wish you had never planted, is another good reason.
If you fell for an ad like this:
Catalogue ad for Aegopodium, also known as bishop’s weed, or goutweed.
and then watched in horror as that “snowy” plant turned into a solid green mass, invading your lawn and every flower bed, you understand the meaning of regret. (We hear there is a “support group” on Facebook for people who have been victimized by goutweed!)
Goutweed will break your heart.
Other commonly sold plants that can become big regrets on suburban properties include: bamboo, Chinese wisteria, wintercreeper, Asian honeysuckle, periwinkle (vinca), Chinese silver grass, Rose of Sharon, ajuga (bugleweed), Norway maple, and of course, all forms of ivy. All of these plants can spread themselves well beyond where you wanted them and are tough to remove, creating maintenance headaches.
Still other invasive species may not cause trouble in your yard, but will find their way into nearby woods, parks, and natural areas: burning bush, privet, Japanese barberry, autumn olive, buckthorn, Bradford pear, tree of heaven, and Japanese spirea all spread themselves aggressively from gardens into natural areas.
There are so many excellent native alternatives to these troublemakers. Native plants do have natural controls! Birds, bees, insects, and other animals not only need native plants, their participation in the ecosystem will save you the expense and effort of battling invasive plants. Look back through the Around the Grounds Collection for lots of native plant recommendations that will work in your yard.
Happy spring gardening!
THIS BLOG IS WRITTEN BY CATHY LUDDEN, CONSERVATIONIST AND NATIVE PLANT EDUCATOR; AND BOARD MEMBER, GREENBURGH NATURE CENTER. FOLLOW CATHY ON INSTAGRAM FOR MORE PHOTOS AND GARDENING TIPS@CATHYLUDDEN.
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Do you have a soggy situation in your yard: a low spot where water always puddles for a few days before drying up? If so, lucky you! You’ve got the perfect spot for some beautiful water-loving shrubs!
Rainstorms are becoming more frequent and more intense. Suburban lawns often have mushy patches that don’t really recover, even after the ground dries. Turf grass roots sitting in standing water are deprived of oxygen and soon die. You could spend hours – and dollars — aerating, re-seeding, or laying new sod only to see the same thing happen again in the next downpour.
Lawn grass can’t live in water-logged soil
Or, you could plant a few native shrubs that would be happy to soak up that water! Some of our most desirable native plants evolved near ponds, streams, and in wet meadows. They can live in standing water for days at a time, and take up excess water that otherwise becomes mosquito-breeding habitat. Even better, because they are native to our region, they are winter-hardy and provide food for pollinators and birds.
It’s not hard to remedy a soggy area of lawn. You can plant right into the wet areas, even without removing any surviving lawn first. With the right plants, not much soil amendment is necessary, either. Dig a hole about the same depth and twice the circumference of the root ball of the shrub. Loosen the root ball if it is very tightly bound. Adding a few shovel fulls of compost and mixing it with the soil in the planting hole can help. But don’t plant too deep. Keep the crown of the plant just above the soil line. And give your new plant some company! More plants take up more water, reduce compaction, and improve soil drainage, which improves survival odds for all of the plants.
Visually, a cluster of water-loving shrubs is a big improvement over soggy lawn. Think about planting a group of 3 medium-sized shrubs, either all the same type or 3 different species, or perhaps a small tree and a couple of larger shrubs. A group of plants looks more natural, takes up more water, and provides valuable habitat for birds.
Assuming the spot is mostly sunny, and usually dries out a few days after a rainstorm, any of these great shrubs will work beautifully:
Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) Buttonbush produces really interesting flowers from early to mid-summer that last for weeks. The flowers look like 1½-inch white spheres and attract hummingbirds and butterflies. The leaves are large, glossy green, and make a gorgeous background for the flowers. After the flowers fade, hard spherical nuts resembling buttons develop and often last through the winter until birds harvest them.
Buttonbush flowers Photo: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Native to swamps and streamsides from Canada to Florida and west to the Mississippi River, Buttonbush is hardy in Zones 4 to 10. In the Northeast, the shrub can reach 6 to 12 feet tall and 4 to 8 feet wide. In colder zones, the shrub may die back to the ground in winter and grow back to 3 to 4 feet in summer. Pruning is not necessary, but if you want to keep it a bit smaller, it won’t mind being pruned in early spring since the flowers form on new growth.
Buttonbush becomes a large rounded shrub in suburban landscapes Photo: American Beauties Native Plants
Buttonbush loves wet soil, including areas that are often flooded with shallow standing water. It is generally deer-resistant once established, but young plants should be protected in the first few years. The shrub is happy in full sun or part shade.
Possumhaw viburnum (Viburnum nudum) Also called Smooth Witherod, this shrub is one of our most attractive native plants for suburban landscapes. It will tolerate wet, boggy soil, though it does perfectly well in average soil as well, and is a great foundation plant. Native to woodlands, swamps, and thickets from Newfoundland to Florida, it grows 6 to 12 feet tall and 4 to 15 feet wide. It has shiny green leaves, big lacy white flowers in spring, and berries that turn colors from pink to blue to black. It also has spectacular fall leaf color. Possumhaw doesn’t need pruning and is not particularly attractive to deer. This plant works in almost any yard, but it is an ideal solution for a wet area.
Viburnum nudum as a foundation plant at the Nature Center
Possumhaw berries change colors as they ripen
Vibrant fall color and berries
Winterberry (Ilex verticillata) It’s hard to imagine a more useful landscape plant than Winterberry. It can live in standing water, but is also fine in average landscape conditions. It produces brilliant red berries in the fall that feed migrating birds.
This popular shrub is great in wet soil
Robins, mockingbirds, blue jays, cardinals, and cedar waxwings flock to Winterberries
Winterberry is very easy to grow in full sun or part shade. It needs no fertilizer or special care, and needs no pruning. The shrub has a loose shape and can grow 10 to 15 feet tall, but a cultivar called ‘Winter Sprite’ tops out at 3 to 4 feet. In fall, the leaves drop to show the brilliant red berries clustered along the stems. You will need both a male and female plant to produce berries, so ask your nursery for both. For more information on Winterberry, see an earlier post here.
Pussy Willow (Salix discolor). Willows are wetland plants, and our native Pussy Willow is the most beloved of the bunch. As a multi-trunked shrub or small tree, 6 to 15 feet tall, Pussy Willow makes a great focal point where water collects. Plant it, then add two or three of the shrubs described above, and a formerly soggy mess will become your favorite part of the yard! For more information on this great little tree, read our earlier blog post here.
Pussy Willow (Salix discolor) is an easy-to-love small tree
Fuzzy catkins show up in early spring and feed emerging pollinators
So, as you start dreaming about spring flowers, don’t forget about spring “showers,” which are more likely to be torrential downpours these days. Plan ahead for standing water and add some of these water-loving plants to your spring shopping list!
THIS BLOG IS WRITTEN BY CATHY LUDDEN, CONSERVATIONIST AND NATIVE PLANT EDUCATOR; AND BOARD MEMBER, GREENBURGH NATURE CENTER. FOLLOW CATHY ON INSTAGRAM FOR MORE PHOTOS AND GARDENING TIPS@CATHYLUDDEN.
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The morning news is just awful: wars, school shootings, forest fires, floods, political extremes. It’s all too much, and I think I can actually feel my blood pressure rising. Stressed and depressed, I turn away from the news, and look out my window…
A big flock of robins has descended on the Winterberry, eating berries as fast as they can in a joyful feast! They dash back and forth between the Winterberry and the Crab Apple as if they can’t decide which fruit they like best. Dozens more birds – robins, blue jays, and cardinals dive into the American Holly. Squirrels grab the berries knocked to the ground and scamper off to stash them for later.
As I step outside to watch the action, I hear crows screeching an alert from the top of the Locust trees. Sure enough, I see a red-tailed hawk circling high above. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a rabbit dash for cover under the mess of flower stalks I’ve left standing for just that reason – it’s a great place to hide!
Winter hiding place
Watching all of this, I realize that I’m now smiling and calm. The tension I felt earlier has receded. My pulse and breathing have slowed, and there is a sense of well-being just from spending a few minutes in my own yard. These are the healing side-effects of living in nature!
My yard is not typical of suburban New York City. It is heavily planted with native trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers. It’s intentionally a bit messy this time of year, with leaves still on the ground, and untrimmed perennials and tall grasses in muted shades of brown and beige still standing. The shrubs are not clipped into tidy shapes but are allowed to form thickets with their branches interlaced. There is a brush pile creating shelter against the back fence, and River Birch trees with shaggy bark hide insects for woodpeckers and nuthatches even in winter.
My backyard in winter
I know that is why the birds are here: there is food and shelter available year-round in this particular suburban yard.
About 10 years ago, I eliminated pesticides, herbicides, and chemical fertilizers from my yard. Then I began removing the non-native and invasive plants so typical of our area: ivy, vinca, pachysandra, barberry, and burning bush. I gradually replaced them with lots of native trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowers, always chipping away at the lawn to make more room. I stopped sending fall leaves off of the property and started using them to mulch the trees and shrubs, so the fireflies and caterpillars over-wintering in leaves could stay alive and emerge in the spring. Eventually, I replaced more than half of my lawn with native plants.
My “unusual” front yard
I did all of this because I learned that American songbirds are dying off at a horrifying rate. The total population of backyard birds today is 25% less than it was in 1970, and many once common species have lost closer to 50% of their numbers! Baltimore orioles, bluebirds, and warblers were once as common as robins, but are rarely seen now. This is happening because the forests, meadows, and grasslands where birds once nested, mated, and hunted for insects are gone.
There is virtually no undeveloped land left in America. The suburbs keep growing, taking over land that only a few decades ago was wild. Today, 83% of the continental US is privately owned, and 44 million acres of it is planted in lawn! Worse, most of that lawn is maintained with chemicals that are toxic to birds, butterflies, fireflies, and insects that birds need to feed their young.
Typical suburban yard in winter — nothing to eat and nowhere to hide
Yet, America’s suburbs may be “nature’s best hope.” It’s really the only land left that can be reclaimed as a useful habitat. In the book, Nature’s Best Hope, Doug Tallamy suggests that if we converted just half of the lawn in suburbia — 22 million acres — to native plants, it would exceed the combined areas
…of the Everglades, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Teton, Canyonlands, Mount Rainier, North Cascades, Badlands, Olympic, Sequoia, Grand Canyon, Denali, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Parks.
That much habitat could have a huge impact on biodiversity – even reversing losses of vital and cherished bird and animal species. These facts were the motivation for my effort to convert a typical lawn-and-tidy-shrub suburban landscape into something richer and more diverse.
I thought I was doing it for nature. The surprise has been what nature does for me!
My yard full of native plants is my refuge, my laboratory, my classroom, my gym, my anti depressant, my stress reliever, and a playground for our family’s children that is infinitely more interesting and safer than a lawn full of chemicals. We’ve seen new species of butterflies settle here after I added their host plants. With more birds around, we started learning to identify them. So far, we have identified over 40 different species! And I’ve seen wonderful things I had never before even heard of, like a hummingbird moth!
A hummingbird moth visits my Phlox!
There is something new to discover almost daily in a bio-diverse landscape. It is full of life and wonder! The seasons change so visibly: delicate spring flowers, fragrant summer shrubs, so many fall colors, and winter bird feasts! The sounds are amazing: bird calls, crickets, tree frogs, cicadas, and squirrels chittering. The experiences make me feel alive: watching fireflies blink on a summer evening while the air is filled with the perfume of Summersweet shrub; watching from my living room window as tiny birds take refuge from a snowstorm.
Tufted titmouse and white-throated sparrow shelter in my Rhododendron
When the stress of daily life is just too much, you can always visit the Nature Center, or take a walk in any park or nature preserve. It will help.
But it’s so much better to live with nature, and in nature, in your own yard! You can welcome it, take care of it, observe it, learn from it, and be surprised by it every time you step outside. As we begin the new year, I hope you will resolve to convert a bit more of your yard to habitat and do it not only for nature but for yourself and your family.
There are simple things you can do that will make a difference. This blog frequently has suggestions, so scroll through the Around the Grounds Collection below, or start with these posts for ideas: (1/26/23, 2/16/23, 3/23/23, 4/27/23, 10/5/23).
Wishing you joy, peace, and delight in the new year!
Thanks to Saverio DeGiorgio for the featured photo. Follow Sav on Instagram @savwildlifephotography
THIS BLOG IS AUTHORED WEEKLY BY CATHY LUDDEN, CONSERVATIONIST AND NATIVE PLANT EDUCATOR; AND BOARD MEMBER, OF GREENBURGH NATURE CENTER. FOLLOW CATHY ON INSTAGRAM FOR MORE PHOTOS AND GARDENING TIPS@CATHYLUDDEN.
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