Community Gardens

Go Native!

Go native this Fall! Native plants that is! This is a g-rated article after all. During the fall, we are celebrating native plants in conjunction with National Planting Day, which is sponsored by Keep America Beautiful annually. National Planting Day is a reminder for all of us to celebrate the value and power of native species for local landscapes. Native plants are essential in restoring ecological balance to our environment. Native plants are a natural and healthy way to create greener and more beautiful communities. Keep Liberty Beautiful, in conjunction with Keep America Beautiful, encourages everyone to learn more about their native plants and to consider planting native species of trees, flowers, and plants in their own yards.

What makes a native plant a native? There are many definitions out there, but we usually adhere to the “official” definition in the Federal Register, defining native plants as those that are “naturally occurring, either presently or historically, in any ecosystem of the United States.” If you love to have birds and butterflies in your yard, you will want to consider using native plants. Natives are critical to attracting specialized pollinators and insects, which in turn provide food for birds and, ultimately, many more animals up the food chain. Natives also provide habitat for wildlife. Natives are hardy, lower maintenance and require less water than other ornamentals, so if you are looking for a yard or garden that is much easier to maintain---and who isn’t?--- natives should be your go-to plants!

Here are a few of the natives that I love that you might want to consider for your own garden paradise:

'Shenandoah' or red switch grass is truly a plant for all seasons. In early summer, its leaf blades are tipped in red, and by autumn, the entire leaf is a rich burgundy color, topped by pink plumes. In winter, the leaf color fades to beige. This luscious grass is a compact selection of an American native prairie grass that grows in full sun and moist, well-drained soil.
Trumpet Honeysuckle likes sun or part shade. This native vine grows rapidly. It has gold to scarlet red tubular flowers from spring through summer. It is so pretty to use on a trellis or on a fence.
The Carolina Yellow Jessamine is a fast growing evergreen climbing vine that grows best in moist, well-drained soils in full sun. Its yellow trumpet-shaped, fragrant flowers cover the vine in February and March. It is useful for growing on trellises, fences, or mailboxes.
The Oakleaf Hydrangea is a medium to fast growing flowering shrub that grows best in moist, well-drained soils in partial shade. Its large white, fragrant flower clusters are about 12” in length and occur from May through June. It is recommended to prune these plants after flowering season is over.
The Southern Wax Myrtle is a broadleaf evergreen shrub or small tree. It is often multi-trunked, with gray-green aromatic foliage and clusters of blue-gray fruits on female plants. It prefers moist, acid soils but is adaptable to other conditions, including wet sites with poor drainage. The Wax Myrtle grows best in full sun to light shade and it is useful as a tall screen or specimen tree.
Star Anise is also one of my favorites. It has rich, green foliage with the smell of anise---almost a licorice scent. The blooms in June are small yellow-green flowers. Star anise prefers moist soil and prefers full sun or light shade. It is cold tolerant. Theses shrubs are useful for screening or hedges.
Bottlebrush is also a southern favorite. Callistemon species have commonly been referred to as bottlebrushes because of their cylindrical, brush-like flowers, which resemble a traditional bottle brush. They are quite striking. Most species are drought-resistant and are striking when used in ornamental landscaping.
Milkweed is one of the keys to having monarch butterflies—for their survival now and in the future. Monarch caterpillars must have milkweed. Because of modern changes, such as suburbanization, there's much less milkweed than there was in the
Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) are native to North America and one of the most popular wildflowers grown. They can blanket open fields. Their golden-yellow flowers are beautiful..

Native plants are just waiting to help you create a beautiful ---and easy to care for--- garden oasis for your home. If I have your interest now and you want to learn more about native plants for our area, there are some excellent online resources that can help you choose the right native species for your upcoming project. Some online sites to consider are the web sites, www.plantnative.org (featuring a state-by-state directory of native species, specialized nurseries, and local organizations), www.abnativeplants.com, UGA’s Extension sites at www.caes.uga.edu , the Marine Extension’s site at www.coastscapes.org and the Georgia Native Plants society at www.gnps.org.

I Wish I Was The Queen

I wish I was the queen. I am not talking about the one across the pond that has her pocketbook permanently attached to her arm. I would like to be a Queen Bee. As I was researching information for the upcoming National Planting Day in September, I was struck by how lucky these royal bee ladies are. In a hive, a honey bee queen is surrounded and served by all the other bees. The other female bees are non-producing and are the worker bees. So just like in human life, it is the ladies that make the world continue to go round by feeding and cleaning and taking care of everybody. The male bees--- called drones--- are there for mating… and I will not go into all the analogies related to humans that I could make here in a family newspaper. But the queen---lucky her! --- she is there to be served and to mate. She produces all the eggs for her hive (and yes, this does sound a little tiring when you consider a hive could have a population of 10,000 but remember, she has all those worker bees for nannies).

Now the reason I am hung up on bees is because they really need our help. Bees are losing habitat all around the world due to many farming practices that are detrimental to bee life and the vast destruction of native landscapes. Another devastating problem is that deep desire in the suburbs for a pristine green grassy lawn. We are losing more bees every year. This isn’t just a serious problem for homeless bees. It is a human problem, too. My first selfish thought is ‘what if we run out of honey???’ I do love honey and I cannot imagine life without it, but we will lose so much more than honey if we do not find a way to provide life space for bees and other pollinators---like butterflies, moths and, beetles-- that are a significant part of our ecosystem. When we lose the bees, we lose flowers and other plants and foods that depend on pollination by these busy little creatures. The significant decline of these pollinators will affect all of us---not just the honey-lovers.

But just in time for National Planting Day on September 9th, here are some ways that you can help save the bees. Just planting flowers and more native plants in your garden, your yard, or even in planters will help provide bees with forage. As you plan your gardens during the year, consider adding pollinator-friendly trees and plants to provide food and habitat for our bee populations. Here are some favorites that the ‘Queen’ recommends: asters, milkweed, goldenrod (they do not cause hayfever, ragweed does that), lilacs, lavender, sage, verbena, wisteria, mint, cosmos, squash, tomatoes, pumpkins, sunflowers, oregano, rosemary, poppies, black-eyed Susans, passion flower vine, honeysuckle, fuschia, and bush sunflower. Maple trees are also quite popular with bees, too. Many other plants and flowers are possibilities. Check out regional possibilities on the web and our website for pollinators and native plants. Try to have a succession of blooms throughout the spring and fall. The bees will love you for it. Also, one other thing bees love to have is a little plate or birdbath with pebbles and water that they can climb around on and hang out when the ‘queen’ is not watching. It is sort of a swimming pond for bees.

Chill out on having that perfect, weedless green lawn. Some weeds, like dandelions and clover, and are quite popular with our bee friends, too. Please think twice about using chemicals and pest treatments on your lawn and gardens. They can cause unhealthy damage to the honeybees systems. These treatments are especially damaging if applied while flowers are in bloom. The chemicals will get into the pollen and nectar and be taken back to the bee hive where they also get into the honey—which in turn means they can get into us honey-loving humans. Find a nice local, bee loving bee keeper that takes cares of his bees and the areas where they pollinate for the healthiest and safest honey you can find.

Although many bee species have been negatively affected by habitat loss and increased uses of chemicals and pesticides over the past few decades, humans can still help rebuild bee communities with simple changes to our landscapes. Help save the bees! The ‘Queen’ will thank you for it!