Useful Native Plant Databases
You have heard how important native plants are to our environment, but how do you find out which plants are native to your area and support your local ecosystem? One important resource is your state or local native plant society or native plant group, such as The Native Plant Center in New York. Another way to to explore regional native plants is to do some research online. Here are a number of great resources to help you along the way:
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
http://www.wildflower.org/plants/
Native plant database
USDA PLANTS Database
www.plants.usda.gov/java/
Plant database, including natives
Biota of North America Program
www.bonap.org
Native plants by state and county level
Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/plant-finder.aspx
General plant database
Plant Native
www.plantnative.org
Native plant and nursery lists by state
More Great Resources
The Xerces Society’s “Gardening for Butterflies”
I have to give the folks at The Xerces Society a lot of credit. They took the rare step of publishing a book on native pollinators (Attracting Native Pollinators), before coming out with their new book, Gardening for Butterflies. Both are excellent resources and well worth purchasing. Gardening for Butterflies…
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Reliable Lists of Native Plants for Bees
It’s a great time of your to start planning your garden. Make sure to include a “Pollinator Victory Garden” in part of your landscape – a way to help win the war on pollinator decline. It’s not just about honey bees – we have 4,000 species of native bees in…
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Milkweed, Monarchs and More
The connection between Monarch Butterflies and milkweed plants has practically become common knowledge with the news of the Monarch facing extinction. But did you know how robust a milkweed community really is? The handy book, Milkweed, Monarchs and More, provides an insider’s view of the numerous invertebrate species that are…
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