Native vs. non-native plants: A little guide
“Native plants give us a sense of where we are in this great land of ours. I want Texas to look like Texas and Vermont to look like Vermont,” said Lady Bird Johnson, who was the First Lady of the United States as the wife of President Lyndon B. Johnson.
Plants define the landscape. In California, besieged by the twin threats of drought and wildfire, the choice to grow native versus non-native plants is attracting more attention than ever before. What exactly are the merits of native compared to non-native plants, and how do gardeners make the best choice about what to grow in a home garden?
Native plants occur naturally in the area where they originally evolved. These plants have coevolved with wildlife, fungi, and microbes, and their interdependent relationships form the foundation of our native ecosystems, according “Native and Naturalized Plants for the Home Garden in Northern California.”
Every place has its own native plants, but California is spectacular in that most of the state is comprised of the “California Floristic Province,” a biodiversity hotspot that contains over 5,000 native plant species, more than 60% of which are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere else in the world.
With this stunning variety of native plants, you might expect to see them growing on every corner and offered for sale in every nursery and home improvement store, yet this is not the case. In fact, according to the California Academy of Sciences, 75% of the original native plant habitat in California has been lost, according to “Hotspot: California on the Edge.”
Since California natives are less commonly planted compared to non-native plants, you can become more familiar with them by visiting a local native plant garden such as the Butte County Master Gardeners Demonstration Garden at Patrick Ranch in Durham, the Alice B. Hecker Native Plant Garden at Chico Creek Nature Center, and the Native Plant Pollinator Garden at Gateway Science Museum in Chico.
But how do we know for sure that a plant really evolved in the local area? Botanical studies of the world’s flora have been ongoing for many years, and the historical record includes many specimens and drawings of plants that were originally brought to America by European explorers and settlers. In addition, paleobotanists have been able to compare fossil records with modern plants to accurately identify which plants are native to an area, according to “Native and Naturalized Plants for the Home Garden in Northern California.”
For gardeners, native plants have some important advantages. According to the California Native Plant Society, native plants are adapted to the local area and have natural defenses to local diseases and insects, minimizing the need for pesticides. Unfortunately, pesticides kill indiscriminately, so beneficial insects become collateral damage when pesticides are used. In contrast, native plants have built-in natural pest control, so that you can avoid the cost, mess and environmental damage involved in applying pesticides.
Another advantage to native plants is that once they are established, they normally need little watering beyond normal rainfall. With California experiencing an historic drought, native plants can help save significant amounts of water that would otherwise be soaked up by thirstier landscape plants. In general, native plants require less maintenance than non-native garden plants: less water, little or no fertilizer, less pruning, less of your time.
In addition, California native plants attract wildlife that use these plants as their natural habitat. For example, the many pollinators that flock to native plants can improve fruit set in your home orchard and yield in your vegetable garden. A variety of native insects and birds can reduce populations of mosquitos and plant-eating bugs. By using native plants, you support native wildlife and help preserve the balance of natural ecosystems, according to “Benefits of California Native Plants.”
As gardeners we have many choices about what to plant, even after allowing for what’s available locally and what we can afford. However, home gardeners may not realize that some of the non-native plants commonly available at garden centers and nurseries are invasive species