By choosing the right plants for our gardens we can start to rebuild critical habitat that has been lost to suburban lawns and sprawling urban areas.
At the heart of this new approach is selecting plants that are native to your local area. These are plants that have coevolved with local insects & wildlife.
Don't require fertilizers and pesticides.
Serve as butterfly host plants.
Important food source for insects & wildlife.
Require less water & maintenance.
Incorporate more native flowering perennials that serve as butterfly host plants like this passionvine for Gulf Fritillary butterfly caterpillars.
Incorporate native grasses and shrubs that provide wildlife benefits such as fruit, nectar, and seeds such as Inland Sea Oats:
Incorporate herbs that serve as butterfly host plants such as parsley, dill, and rue. You want caterpillars to eat these. They will become Swallowtails!
Minimize use of pesticides. Instead invite in more beneficial insects to your garden, such as ladybugs that eat aphids.
Incorporate nectar plants that attract bees. Bees are important for pollinating the vegetables in your garden. We need bees!
Skip the non-native annuals sold at big box nurseries and plant native perennials instead! They will come back each year.