Curious about native plants? Interested
in a beautiful, low-maintenance landscape? Concerned
about health and water quality? Or did you just stumble
on to this page by accident?
Regardless, we welcome you and hope we
can satisfy or pique your curiosity. In the pages that
follow, we will introduce some basic Concepts
of landscaping with native plants, referred to by many
as "naturescaping," and follow that with Steps
you can take to get started. Note that we will use the
phrases "naturescaping" and "landscaping with native
plants" interchangeably. You may also be familiar with
the phrase "xeriscaping" which refers to landscaping
with drought resistant plants, though not necessarily
native plants.
In the Concepts
below, we will discuss:
This is followed by the Steps,
beginning on the next
page, which are followed by Designing
for Wildlife, Special Considerations
(new home, hedges, bio-swales, etc.), Propagating
Native Plants and some Examples.
... Ready? Here we go!
CONCEPTS
Relearning
Landscaping
There is an element of "relearning"
involved in naturescaping because throughout most of
our lives we have been taught the opposite. We have
been taught to destroy native plants (perhaps seen as
"uncivilized") and to replace them with the standard
"industrial species." The industrial species, sometimes
called exotics, are generally the same regardless of
where you live. Hence a typical residential or commercial
landscape will look the same whether located in Maine
or Texas or Oregon or anyplace in between. We have been
taught through gardening magazines, radio programs and
other marketing efforts that the industrial plants are
the only "acceptable" plants and that if a place (soil,
climate, etc.) does not support them, then we should
change the place: bring in new soil, add irrigation,
use pesticides and fertilizers, etc.
Maine? Texas? Oregon?
We have also been taught to have a "weed"
free lawn, to decrease biodiversity and to maintain
our landscape through regular cuttings and regular application
of synthetic chemicals. It is interesting to note that
radio gardening programs (and to some extent master
gardening programs) typically involve a presenter who
suggests a chemical solution to almost every landscape
"problem." This practice benefits only the chemical
industry.
Thus, as we approach naturescaping, we
have to purge a lot of the landscaping notions with
which we grew up and be open to new ones. Some of those
new ones are: selecting the plant that goes with the
place and not changing the place for the plant; recognizing
that we do not NEED all the lawn we have; and realizing
that native plants take care of themselves because they
evolved to grow in the place you want to plant them.
Thus, we can let go of some of the old notions and rely
more on common sense.
Traditional
Landscaping v. Naturescaping
Traditional landscaping attempts
to create a landscape that "looks" the same regardless
of location. This is, in part, pushed by nurseries that
want to sell the same plant across wide markets, maximizing
revenue through efficiencies of scale. (Nurseries aggressively
market this limited number of plants through garden
magazines, local newspapers, and radio and television
programs, etc.) It is also driven by landscape designers
who tend to use the same plants regardless of where
the site is (less burdensome than learning new plants).
Lastly, it is driven by homeowners and property managers
who grew up learning one set of plants and understandably
use those plants as a frame of reference as they move
about the country. These and other forces have created
an atmosphere that emphasizes using the same plants
regardless of location and changing a site to accommodate
these plants. Site changing often entails installing
irrigation, bringing in new soil or soil amendments,
regularly applying chemical products (pesticides, fertilizer,
etc.), and frequently cutting, pruning and weeding.
This is traditional landscaping.
Land Change Brigade - on the charge!
Naturescaping, in contrast, emphasizes
selecting the plant that grows naturally at the site.
Since native plants evolved to grow under local conditions,
they do not require that the site be changed. They do
not need the life support of watering (except during
establishment) or regular chemical product application,
and they do not require the same level of cutting and
pruning maintenance.
Thus, in quick comparison, it can be said
that traditional landscaping changes the place to accommodate
the plant and naturescaping selects the plant that goes
naturally with the place. Since we have been programmed
for the former, it takes new thinking and perhaps some
courage to consider the latter, though let us assure
you that the latter is very rewarding ... and easier,
healthier, beautiful and ultimately less expensive.
Kalmia - A Native
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Gardening Diva says "Try naturescaping!
You'll love it!"
Benefits
There are many benefits to naturescaping,
whether practiced in place of or in addition to traditional
landscaping. The benefits include, but are not limited
to, the following (click to get
more information):
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1. Low Maintenance
- Native plants evolved to grow
in local conditions and to predictable sizes. They
do not require watering (except during establishment),
chemical pesticides and fertilizers, or frequent cutting.
-
2. Public Health (lowers
cancer rates) - Traditional
landscaping uses large amounts of synthetic pesticides
and fertilizers, some of which are suspected carcinogens.
During rains, these chemicals often run off into public
water supplies. Traditional landscaping also contributes
to air and noise pollution.
-
3. Saves you Money -
The cost of maintaining a naturescape
is dramatically less than that of a traditional landscape
because a naturescape essentially takes care of itself.
Naturescapes also save you time - and how valuable
is your time?
-
4. Water - In
the West, 60% of consumed water goes to lawns; in
the East, 30%. This water diversion harms the environment,
kills fish, and returns polluted water to our streams
and rivers. It also costs you - on irrigation
system installation and maintenance, and on your water
bill. .
-
5. Song Birds - Our
song bird populations having dropped steadily - 5-10%
per year, depending on the species - for
the last several decades, and there is no end in sight.
The loss is primarily due to habitat loss. Adopting
naturescaping is critical if song birds are to remain.
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6. Enhances Livability
- An ecologically functional
landscape offers so much more than a sterile, static
landscape. It offers imagination to our children,
and color, sound and wonder to all of us. It is cleaner,
quieter and healthier, and may increase property values.
Song Bird - Black Headed Grosbeak
The
Two-Camps
In the text that follows we may refer
to two different "camps" or "approaches"
to naturescaping. These may be referred to as conventional-appearance
and restoration, herein referred
to as NS-conventional and NS-restoration, respectively.
NS-conventional attempts to follow conventional landscape
design principles (geometric patterns, monoculture or
less diverse groundcover) and simply substitutes native
plants for the industrial species. NS-restoration attempts
to create a more natural looking space, planting plant
communities as opposed to individual plant species and
creating a look that reflects how the site may have
looked prior to human disturbance. We encourage you
to try both and even mix the two, depending on your
preferences.
Remember that there is no right or wrong in naturescaping.
You can try something and if you don't like it, consider
it a learning experience and try something else. No
matter what you do, it is better than a turf lawn or a bed
of industrial plants!!! Recall that the underlying principle of
naturescaping is to let natural systems work for you.
Good luck, have fun and keep that sense of humor! And
send us your questions and/or suggestions so we know
where the challenges are. Send us your photos, too!
That is one of the best ways to teach and inspire. If
we receive enough we may even start a photo gallery.
Warm wishes from all of us at PN.
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