Hello, stranger. Hopefully we won't be strangers for long since I'll be opening up about my husband and myself. Just so we’re clear: Any three-letter word I mention from hereon out will pertain to our “bed”— our garden bed to be precise.
Brian's work involves initiating sustainability efforts on a corporate scale. While we both share a passion for green living he began seriously researching on Missouri native plants months before me. He'd arrive home with catalogs, books, and contact details of The Audubon Society of Missouri (www.mobirds.org/Conservation), Missouri Wildflowers Nursery (www.mowildflowers.net), and the Wild Ones (www.stlwildones.org). "For only $25" he said, "We can have the Audubon folks come over for a two-hour consultation and evaluation of our property." That piqued my interest. He added, "They're not landscape designers but they'll give suggestions on what type of native plant can thrive best in our yard." Sold!
Our very positive experience with Mitch from the Audubon encouraged us to attend various events promoting the planting of MO natives. In these gatherings (which are almost always free and open to the public) you can either order, purchase and/or avail free native plants from nurseries such as Missouri Wildflower which is based in Jefferson City. We were also introduced to some of the most impressive nurseries in St. Louis County selling native flora. It was during one of my solo trips to Greenscape Gardens (www.greenscapegardens.com) that I met Sue of the STL Chapter of the Wild Ones. With a platinum certification and near encyclopedic knowledge of native plants she spent a good hour speaking with me. She knew I was on the fence about going 100% native so she even graciously invited my family to visit her home. "That's how we do it in the Wild Ones. We encourage people to visit our home garden because it's better to see mature plants in an actual setting than browse through photos." And wow, impressed we were. She owned a near quarter-acre lot with 80% dedicated to this breathtaking oasis of a garden. Its pièce de résistance was a fish pond the size of a small swimming pool which her equally cordial husband, Andy created himself. They had water-loving native flora in the pond and a variety of native trees, shrubs and other perennials surrounding this body of water. Their garden played host not just to birds, bees and butterflies but to a number of turtles, garden snakes, frogs-- and once, a visiting heron. My kids had the time of their lives when Andy allowed them to search for turtles in the garden. They found eight.
I did mention earlier being on the fence about replacing every cultivar in our garden with MO natives. It took about 10 years for Sue and Andy's garden to reach its current state. Despite that she still pointed out the arborvitae and a couple of non-natives in her yard.
This supports our current position: Brian and I are not ready to go totally wild especially since our new acquaintance, a platinum certified member of the Wild Ones still owns non-native plants herself*. The average homeowner prefers cultivars because they simply look and sometimes, perform better than their predecessors. Brian sighed, "It'll likely take us 15 years to fully convert to natives." I couldn't agree more.
Our website, blog and social media The Native Explorer, is a documentation of our balancing act of planning and planting a combination (for now) of native and non-native flora. If you share our dilemma, have questions, or if you feel you're on your way to going 100%wild then The Native Explorer wants you to chime in. We want to exchange notes and even interact with you in person. We can all share tips, do's and don'ts, maybe lend a hand one weekend with someone's gardening project, and work together toward educating our community on the importance of taking even a baby step toward planting MO natives for a healthier ecosystem.
Ready, set, explore!
:) Aina
The.Native.Explorer@gmail.com
*Sue and Andy are in the process of eliminating all non-native plants in their garden starting with arborvitae
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