How Does Planting Natives Affect People?

[rinaturalist]

I’d like to convince others to plant more native plants for the sake of our wildlife. However, I think many people (i.e. “non-naturalists”) don’t really know the value that rehabitation can bring to our native species. To help, I’d like to bring up some points on how planting natives can benefit people more directly, such as helping against climate change and the management of runoff storm water. If anyone has anything they could share, I’d be happy to see it!

[terrybb]

How about the fact that without the wildlife native plants sustain, humans could not survive on this planet?

[annkatrinrose]

Growing natives adapted to your local soil and climate saves time and money compared to keeping exotic garden plants alive that won’t thrive without intensive care.

[fffffffff]

You need to show them some beautiful natives, no matter how good they are, having a garden of regular weeds is not what people want to have. There’re many acclimitized introduced garden plants here that are showy and cool, some are from NA, so you might have them too.

[egordon88]

Here’s one perspective https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/xerces-society-distributes-thousands-of-pollinator-friendly-plants-for-free/article_0c7a0256-0c2c-11ec-a150-5b1e8843305b.html

[aranamor]

-They tend to be low maintenance as they’re suited to your climate, though some have more specific needs.
-There’s a huge variety of them, including many beautiful flowers!
-There are many native fruit! Also perfectly suited to your climate, so they’re pretty easy to grow!
-They can attract specialized native pollinators, from bees to butterflies to hummingbirds!
-They also support your local ecosystem in general besides from pollinators- birds can eat seed heads, mammals can eat native fruits, leaves support a variety of caterpillars, etc.
-They also provide habitat for wildlife in general
-Low water needs, as in the rain will provide most if not all water needed!
-No big need for fertilizers, pesticides, etc., it can easily be completely natural!
-No way of becoming invasive and spreading into other areas as they’re already native
-Because they’re suited to your climate, they’re also much more hardy then non native plants!
-No need to spend time + money mowing, you can let them grow un-mowed!
-Some can also help prevent/control erosion in your yard, or help retain storm water
-They’re not only beneficial to you, but the wildlife will also thank you!

This was just a quick list I threw together, I could probably go on more!