Why We Design with Native Plants
Regional Authenticity
To be native means to be of a place. By planting native, we are inviting to our homes the regional wonders of Appalachia and the Southeast. Planting native means to draw inspiration from the Great Smoky Mountains, Cumberland Cedar Glades, Obed River, and many places unique to where we live.
Balds and highlands occur at the high altitudes of the Smokey Mountains such as this one at Black Balsam Knob. The combination of lower average temperatures and thin, rocky soil creates a plant community unique to this area.
Biodiversity
Planting native plants supports animal diversity. In the same way that plants have adapted to their environments, animal species have adapted to use these plants. Many animal species rely on specific relationships with native plants for food and shelter, while the plants rely on the animals for pollination and seed dispersal. Even at the scale of a neighborhood backyard, increasing the presence of native plants will bring in many more insects, which in turn support birds, mammals, and reptiles.
Milkweed, while most famously known for hosting Monarch Butterflies, is also the host plant for Milkweed Tussock Moths. One plant species can hold value for a multitude of other species.
Site Specificity
Do you have a problem spot in your yard that is too shady, wet, or clay heavy? For every site condition problematic for box store garden plants, there are entire native plant communities adapted to thrive there. For example, a plant like Butterfly Milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa, is adapted to sunny, dry, clay heavy soils whereas a plant like Virginia Spiderwort, Tradescantia virginiana, prefers moist soils in open woodlands.
Blazingstar, Liatris spicata, does well in sunny sites surrounded by warm-season grass species. Allowing it to grow in tightly packed, well draining meadow environments will ensure better success than typical deeply mulched garden beds.
Low Inputs
Our design approach removes the need for inputs like irrigation, fertilizer, and pesticide. Selecting species for your already existing site conditions means less cost and labor up front in addition to long term health and success of the garden. This has the additional benefit of encouraging less growth from weeds who generally appreciate being given fertilized garden soil and irrigation.
Rattlesnake Master, Eryngium yuccifolium, not just tolerates but thrives in dry, gravely soil. Waxy leaves and a starchy taproot are a couple of ways it can acquire and hold onto water through drought. It is a plant fit for a garden that will never need irrigation or additional fertilizer.
