Question

QUESTION 17 When using native plants in your garden, the best results occur when plants are

Answer 1

Benefits of Native Plants

Native plants have many advantages over the more popular exotic species. Native plants:

• Grow Well in Your Climate. Because native plants are adapted to your local climate, you know they can handle whatever it has to dish out – from periods of drought, to a hard freeze in the wintertime. They can also deal with common pests and diseases, and some of them have even evolved ways of protecting themselves from being eaten by larger animals. All this means that you can count on native plants to flourish in your landscape without a lot of coddling.
• Are Low-Maintenance. Any plant that can grow on its own in the wild shouldn’t need a lot of attention to grow in your yard. They don’t need to be fertilized or sprayed for pests; in many cases, they don’t even need watering, except when they’re young. And because you can easily predict how big they’ll grow, you can space them out properly when you plant them instead of having to trim them down to size. All this helps keep maintenance to a minimum.
• Require Less Water. Americans devote huge amounts of water to their lawns and landscape plants. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 30% of all the water used by U.S. households – nearly nine billion gallons a day – goes to outdoor use. This is a particular problem in dry climates like the Southwest, where thirsty cities and farms must compete for scarce water resources. Native plants, which can get by without regular watering, save you money while also protecting your area’s water supply.
• Prevent Pollution. Traditional landscapes rely heavily on fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides to keep them weed-free and healthy-looking. When it rains, these chemicals get washed out of suburban yards and run off into the local water supply, polluting drinking water, streams and rivers, and the plants and fish that live in them. Landscaping with native plants, which don’t need any chemical assistance, reduces this source of water pollution. And because native plants are low-maintenance, natural landscaping also reduces pollution and noise from gas-guzzling power tools like mowers and string trimmers – which, according to the EPA, account for about 5% of all urban air pollution.
• Attract Wildlife. Native plants and animals are adapted to live together. When you grow native plants, you also provide a habitat for a variety of wild creatures, including butterflies and songbirds. These species also attract other pollinating insects – which, in turn, help to keep your landscape healthy by fertilizing your plants.
• Save You Money. Native plants cost about as much to buy as nonnative ones – but once they’re in the ground, they cost far less to maintain. The money you save on water, chemicals, and equipment for your yard can go toward a family vacation, a dinner at a restaurant, or just beefing up your savings. According to The Lawn Advisor, a site devoted to lawn care, a professionally landscaped yard can cost as much as $5,000 per year to maintain. Investing that money every year instead, at a modest 5% rate of return, would add up to more than $60,000 after 10 years.
• Look Unique. In a neighborhood full of tea roses and Japanese maples, a yard landscaped with native plants really stands out. For many people, that’s a plus – but if you’d rather have a yard that blends in with the rest of your street, you can look for native plants that look similar to the exotic plants your neighbors prefer. Just compare the pictures of native plants in garden guides or catalogs to the plants you’re used to seeing in your neighborhood, and select ones that look like they’ll blend in. No one will know your plants are different – they’ll just know that you somehow seem to spend a lot less time on yard work than everyone else.