The Institute for Regional Conservation (IRC) is dedicated to the protection, restoration, and long-term management of biodiversity on a regional basis, and to the prevention of regional extinctions of rare plants, animals, and ecosystems.
In support of these goals, IRC has designed the Natives For Your Neighborhood website to present accurate, specific, and up-to-date information on cultivated native plants. This project encourages broad participation in native plant gardening and habitat restoration at the local and regional levels.
Natives For Your Neighborhood is an exciting program with enormous potential to improve planting projects across the region, helping to change what is now a backyard hobby for a few into a powerful conservation tool of many.
PROGRAM BACKGROUND: OUR NATIVE PLANT HERITAGE
South Florida is one of the most biologically diverse regions in North America, harboring about 1,400 species of native plants. It is one of the few places in the United States where temperate, tropical, and subtropical plants intermingle. It is full of fascinating native plant habitats such as hardwood hammocks, cypress swamps, prairies, pine flatwoods, beach dunes, and more. The native plants that inhabit these ecosystems are extraordinarily diverse - from giant oaks to colorful bromeliads, golden prairie grasses to endemic wildflowers, lacy ferns to coastal sunflowers, to name just a few.
Yet alarming changes have taken place within South Florida. Disturbingly, many of our unique natural habitats are virtually gone, or are fast disappearing.
Habitat destruction, plant poaching, hydrological modifications, fire suppression, and other human activities have significantly impaired South Florida's ecosystems. Native habitats in many areas have been severely degraded, making it easy for invasive exotic weeds to take over and out-compete native plants. Historically, natural areas occupied large spaces, but because of massive decreases in their size, these fragmented natural areas now have limits to the number of native species that they can sustain. In addition, hydrological modifications, such as the extensive network of drainage canals now in place, have severely impacted native habitats. Furthermore, by suppressing natural fires - key processes in maintaining many ecosystems - humans have negatively affected additional species. Finally, thoughtless and illegal poaching of plants has led to the disappearance of numerous rare plants (especially orchids).
Through extensive research, The Institute for Regional Conservation has made significant scientific discoveries that further illustrate the great losses taking place:
Over 100 species of native plants (8%) are apparently extirpated (no longer found in the region) in South Florida.
About 17% (244 species) of South Florida's native flora are critically imperiled, and of the remaining species, 27% are imperiled, and 25% are rare.
About 1/3 of the South Florida flora is comprised of escaped non-native plants.
The three largest conservation areas (Big Cypress National Preserve, Everglades National Park, & Francis R. Taylor Wildlife Management Area) provide protection to only 2 out of every 3 native plant species. Many species completely rely on small fragmented preserves.
It is becoming clear that in order to conserve our native plant heritage, simply setting aside conservation areas will not be enough.
NATIVE PLANT GARDENING – A CALL TO ACTION!
Native plant gardening can provide positive conservation benefits for South Florida. By planting native plants one can:
Create larger, more connected plant populations, helping ensure the future of native plant species by increasing their ability to migrate in response to changes in climate and sea-level.
Provide food and shelter for birds, butterflies, and other native wildlife.
Provide stop-over habitat for migrating wildlife.
Reduce consumption of energy and toxic chemicals.
Reduce landscape maintenance needs and water consumption.
Cool houses and other structures.
HABITAT RESTORATION
Native plant gardening can be augmented through the restoration of native plant habitats. Additional benefits of habitat restoration include:
Strengthening the existing conservation system by bridging the gaps between protected conservation areas with newly created restoration sites.
Improving benefits for wildlife.
Allowing for evolutionary processes to continue through pollination, seed dispersal, and recruitment.
NATIVES FOR YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
The benefits of native plant gardening and habitat restoration are maximized through the use of local species and, whenever possible, local, legally obtained, sources of plants. After all, the term “Native” refers to a species naturally occurring within an area or region, rather than to a political unit such as a state or county.
Natives For Your Neighborhood supports locally-based native plant gardening and habitat restoration by providing:
Scientifically derived information about historical plant and habitat distributions in an easy-to-use format.
Lists of species appropriate for use in local areas and in the restoration of local native plant habitats.
Lists of widely distributed species for use at the county level.
Horticultural information on nearly 600 species of plants native to South Florida, including their availability in nurseries, typical height, soil requirements, and flowering characteristics.
To learn more about how to use this website, and to find answers to common questions, visit the FAQ page.
THE CHALLENGES
The challenges to native plant conservation are many, and to enact solutions will require the sustained, combined effort of people of diverse backgrounds and disciplines.
Yet there remains much optimism. Increased awareness of native plant conservation has led to more appropriate management of South Florida's conservation areas. Without a doubt, South Floridians have made significant strides to conserve our native flora. However, there is much more we can do as individuals at the local level to support larger conservation projects in South Florida.
We hope that Natives For Your Neighborhood contributes to your efforts!
Gann, G.D., M.E. Abdo, J.W. Gann, G.D. Gann, Sr., S.W.
Woodmansee, K.A. Bradley, E. Verdon and K.N. Hines. 2005-2008. Natives For Your Neighborhood. http://www.regionalconservation.org.
The Institute for Regional Conservation, Miami.
