Native Garden Myths

There is a trend towards a more native gardening style and in general that is good for the environment and wildlife diversity. However, this has led to a number of myths about this style of gardening and many people are now over-hyping its benefits. What does science tell us about native wildlife gardens? 

Traditional Gardens are Good for Wildlife

Dr Mark Goddard, an urban ecologist said, “Residential gardens make up half of the total green space areas in cities – an extent that translates into huge potential for wildlife benefits.” Gardens are beneficial to wildlife even if they don’t contain a lot of native flowers and still have a patch of lawn.

Native wildflower meadows have some benefits but so do all other types of gardens. “In many countries, private gardens are a major component of urban green space and can provide considerable biodiversity benefits.”

In 1966, zoologist Charles Elton dismissed the value of gardens for wildlife, describing them as ‘biological deserts’. In the years since then our understanding has gradually changed as a result of many studies that looked at life in urban gardens. We now know that even non-native plants and lawns contribute substantially to wildlife diversity.

A study looking at the flora in 267 urban domestic gardens in five UK cities found “1056 species, of which 30% were native and 70% alien. 34% of the 50 most frequently recorded species were native, a number of them being weeds.” Gardeners love adding new plants and changing plant communities which can result in more plant diversity than in natural habitats.

My own garden is a good example. I grow over 3,000 different types of plants in all types of habitats, including bogs and ponds. Without intervention, the property would be a sugar maple and beech forest with small areas of meadow wild plants. The current garden is many times more diverse.

Gardening Harms the Environment

Many gardeners think gardening is good for the environment, but it is not as good as you might think – even if you only grow natives.

Gardens Don’t Need to Be Big

It is a common belief that gardens need to be large to be important to wildlife, especially for insects and birds. The reality is that small gardens are located next to other small gardens and most wildlife doesn’t care about fences. From the point of view of a flying finch or flying ladybug, it all looks like one big garden.

Studies have shown that garden size doesn’t correlate to invertebrate richness and that garden size is not important for nectar availability. Plant diversity and garden management are more important.

Even balcony gardens contribute to wildlife.

Plants Don’t Have to Be Native

The purists are convinced that all plants in a wildlife garden need to be native species. Although natives can add some extra benefits, the environment also benefits from non-native plants and in some ways they are a better option.

One reason for having a garden is for its aesthetic qualities and cultivated plants can be a more pleasing choice. They also offer a wider range in style and color making the garden more interesting. The number of animal species in a garden is not related to the native status of plants and depends more on the quality and variety of plants.

One limitation of native plants is that they might not extend the seasons well enough. In my garden, non-native snowdrops are one of the first to flower and they are always covered in insects including large bumblebees. Local native plants won’t be available for another couple of weeks.

Some non-natives are better at dealing with early frost such as tulips, narcissus, winter aconites (Eranthis) and many alpine plants.

The same occurs in fall. You can select late flowering exotic plants to provide nectar well past the point of native plants. My butterfly bush is always covered by butterflies in late fall because it provides a better nectar source than my native goldenrod, at least for butterflies. Beetles and flies prefer the native goldenrod. Non-native roses provide pollen and nectar right up to frost.

Lawns are Also Good for Wildlife

Natural gardeners have no use for lawns and feel they should all be removed, but they ignore some basic facts.

Lawns play a important role for those who want to use the garden for something other than gardens. There is no better choice for a living, durable surface for foot traffic. Aesthetically, it is also an attractive part of any garden design because it enhances the look of flower beds.

The problem with lawns is not their existence, but the intensive way we maintain them. They don’t need to be pristine and weed free. They can be grown with no irrigation in most locations and pesticides can be vastly reduced or eliminated. Studies have shown a significant environmental benefit from lawns grown in a less intensive way. Less frequent mowing at higher heights improves invertebrate and plant diversity and reduces mowing costs by 35%.

The Optimow project tested mowing frequency and found that mowing once every two weeks increased pollinator numbers by 75%.

Granted, we do have too much lawn. For example, the front yard lawn is rarely used and does little to enhance the look of the garden. Ground covered would be a much better choice.

Native Gardens Don’t Have to Be Messy

One of the big arguments against natural gardens is that they look messy – think wild meadow – but that does not have to be the case. Native plants can be added just like any other perennial. In fact in my garden, Aspen Grove Gardens, I grow many native plants and if you visit the garden it does not look anything like a traditional native garden because I control the spread of natives in the same way that I control non-natives.

Dr Mark Goddard said, “Social norms of tidy gardens can be detrimental to biodiversity”. Insect biodiversity, especially bees, does decrease with tidiness. Weeds can also increase biodiversity. However, there are extremes to tidiness and perhaps a middle road approach is warranted. Stop having perfectly manicured lawns and shrubs. Let the grass grow a bit longer. Don’t pick up every dead leaf. Even with these changes the garden can still look well maintained and does not need to be a complete mess.

Another option is to leave part of the garden a bit wilder and maintain the rest. “Letting parts of your garden grow wild with long grass can increase butterfly numbers by up to 93% and attract a wider range of species, according to new research from leading wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation.”

Native Plants Don’t Necessarily Grow Well

A common, but incorrect claim, is that native plants have evolved for your location and therefore are better adapted to your garden. Plant native and you will have less problems with pests and diseases.

That is a big myth that assumes all non-native plants grow in an environment completely different than yours – that is unlikely.

It also assumes that your yard is a place where all native plants thrive, which is definitely false. Native plants only grow well when they are situated and maintained properly.

This should be obvious to everyone. Have you ever gone for a walk in the woods in Eastern North America? Did you see a lot of goldenrod? It is a weed and grows everywhere but not if there is too much shade. Solidago canadensis, the common species here, likes full sun.

Marsh Marigold (Caltha Palustris) is another native here but it does not grow in dry soil. It does well in wet ditches and ponds. Lobelia cardinalis, the cardinal flower is also a native but it will just no overwinter for me. Lobelia siphilitica, the blue lobelia and hybrids between the two species grow easily. In fact, the blue lobelia is too weedy and needs to be controlled.

I grew some Bush Honeysuckle, Diervilla lonicera, from seed and planted it in my sugar maple bush. It can be an aggressive shrub, but I figured shade would control its spread. Not true – it is a weed. It is taking over the wooded area and shading out native ephemerals. Anemone canadensis is also a terrible weedy native in sunny locations. It can take years to remove it from a garden.

Native plants can be great and easy to grow, provided you pick the right ones and plant them in the right spot. Just like any non-native, the wrong plant in the wrong spot does not work.

Nativars Can be Just as Good as Natives

Nativars are native plants that have been altered to create aesthetically more pleasing varieties. Doug Tallamy recently published research comparing native woody plants to nativars to determine which characteristics affect insect herbivores.

They tested 6 desirable traits including red leaves, larger fruit, variegation, habit, disease resistance and fall color. Out of these, only colored leaves (red, blue, or purple) affected predation, probably due to the fact that color in leaves changes the taste of the leaves. For the other traits, “in some cases, the straight species was used more than the cultivar, but in others, the cultivar was preferred or there was no difference in insect use”.

What this means is that using the right woody nativars is just as beneficial for insect herbivores as using natives and that may convince more people to use these plants instead of non-natives.

What Can You Do To Attract Wildlife?

The following are all great ideas that allow you to combine native plants with conventional plants, in a semi-formal garden.

• Install a natural pond. Water increases biodiversity more than any other choice.
• Reduce your lawn in areas where you do not need a lawn, such as the front yard. A simple solution is to allow some of it to grow long.
• Stop being a neat freak. A few sticks, or dead leaves lying on the ground is good for nature and you will soon accept it as a way of life.
• Don’t clean up in fall. Insects and birds need the fall debris to over winter.
• Allow your front garden to become a bit less formal and a bit more messy. As you change, neighbors will follow you. Years ago, everyone on on the street had lawns in the front yard. I removed some and made a nice looking garden. I got positive comments and soon others followed with front yard gardens.
• Add more shrubs, especially ones that produce nectar and berries for wildlife.
• Grow annuals that flower and produce nectar all season long.
• Stop killing every bug you see. Predators stay away from your garden if you don’t have some pests living there.
• Add more natives to the garden.