Dwarf Nativars – Do They Measure Up?

For those of us with small landscapes, dwarf cultivars of native plants can seem like a gift from heaven.  Want to grow a particular native plant, but just don’t have the room?  Have a straight species plant, like a native viburnum, that needs a pollinator partner for fruit production – but you just can’t squeeze another large viburnum in your…

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Native Plant Research at the Mt. Cuba Center with George Coombs

Great garden plant or garden slacker?  This is a question that the Mt. Cuba Center in Hockessin, Delaware has sought to answer, giving gardeners and green industry professionals a helping hand in selecting native plants.  Since 2002, Mt. Cuba, has conducted native plant research in their trial gardens, examining native species, native cultivars/selections (“nativars”) and hybrids to evaluate which plants…

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The Nativar Conundrum: New Research on Natives vs. Native Cultivars with Dr. Doug Tallamy

Planting trees or shrubs this fall? How will you go about making your plant selection? If you have been reading the EcoBeneficial website, hopefully you have been inspired to choose native plants. Beyond that, your choices might be more complicated – should you choose plants that are native to your immediate area or native to your region? Locally sourced or…

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