Going Native: Resources for Gardening with Indigenous Plants

Indigenous plants are a lovely addition to a garden

Around this time of year, as the days get longer and the sun begins to burn off the long gray days of winter, people in the Finger Lakes region start planning their gardens. They pour through seed catalogs, dust off the gardening tools, decide the mix of vegetables to flowers. It’s a time to rejoice in the coming of spring and the first sight of robins that herald the advent of warmer seasons.

If you are an avid gardener, you may already know of many of these resources, but if you are new to native plants, have recently moved here or are visiting the region, here are some wonderful resources for information, courses and purchasing native plants:

Nurseries in the Finger Lakes that specialize in native plants: Native plants – those indigenous to this region – are a wonderful addition to any garden. They are perfectly suited to our climate and many are becoming rare in their traditional habitats. Native plants are also wonderful for sheltering and providing food for native wildlife as well as warding off the spread of invasive plant species.  Most of these nurseries also provide great online resources for learning more about native plants.

• Amanda’s Garden – Specializes in woodland wildflowers and propagates many species of native perennials. Springwater.
• Plantsman Nursery – Has propagated and raised native plants in the nursery environment for over 15 years without toxic pesticides or herbicides. Groton.
• White Oak Nursery -has been propagating and growing over 80 species of native shade trees and native flowering shrubs since 1995. Canandaigua.

Classes, workshops and symposia:

• Ithaca’s 3rd Annual Designing with Native Plants Symposium, March 4 and 5, La Tourelle Resort and Spa, Ithaca.
• Rochester Civic Garden Center
• Finger Lakes Native Plant Society – Offers field trips, presentations and special events

Helpful websites:

• Cold Climate Gardening – Books and many resources for native and traditional gardening in the northeast.
• Stewardship Garden – Discusses conservation issues, advantages of native plants and offers tips on designing a garden using native plants.
• Wild Ones: Native Plants, Natural Habitats – A wealth of information on preserving native plants and designing natural habitats.

Thank you to Kimberly Burkard for this submission:  The Upstate Gardeners’ Journal (which is free at many local nurseries and now online as well) is a great resource for gardening info of all types in the Finger Lakes.

If you know of others, please share them!