Woody Natives
While this is not the only native woody plants that we can grow, it is a good start. Some will be easier to find than others, but check with your local nursery to see what they have. There are also a few nurseries in the state that specialize in native plants. While I don’t recommend digging up every non-native plant in your yard, to plant all native plants--add a few natives and see how you like them. NEVER, go searching these plants in the wild to plant in your yard. If everyone did that, there would be none left for the rest of us. Unless you own the property, you don’t have the right to dig anything up. Its also healthier on the plant, and easier for you to purchase them from a reputable nursery.
If your yard needs some local flavor, or some interesting new plants that can almost take care of themselves--plant native shrubs.
Antique Roses
What goes around, comes around, is an old, but true statement. If you look at the cost of what our mothers considered "junk" or the clothes today that looked like what I wore in junior high, you'll find the craze for the past is up and going. Antiques aren't just for furniture and clothing, they are also big in the plant world. Heirloom plants are finding a niche market and filling it. Everything from vegetables to flower varieties are being brought back to our gardens. And roses are high on the list of antique flowers.
Beloved for centuries for their wonderful scents, and their unique and beautiful flowers, rose lovers everywhere are adding antique roses to their gardens, in the hope of having their cake and eating it too - or in other words, having roses without weekly spray programs. For while all antique varieties aren't immune to the dreaded black spot disease, most of them don't get it or suffer little from its effects. But why did they go by the wayside, and are just now returning, if they are so wonderful? Several things can be considered. First, hybrid tea roses came on the market and offered much larger blooms in many cases, and almost constant bloom throughout the growing season. Their flowers were more defined and lasted longer. So we went with the new plants to get bigger and more flowers. We traded scent in many cases, and ease of growing. We now spray weekly, prune severely yearly and are much more tied to our gardens than before. Who today has time to devote to weekly pesticide sprays? And, many having the time, choose not to spray.