Native Plants

August 4, 2021leslieGardening, Insects, Native Plants, Soil

The Ephemeral Spring WildflowersAfter a long winter, spring wildflower ephemerals herald a new growing season. The first blooms magically transform the woodland landscape.Read More

May 17, 2021leslieCommunity, Lawns, Native Plants

“What if each American landowner made it a goal to convert half of his or her lawn to productive native plant communities?Read More Willows are one of the last of our shrubs and trees to lose their leaves in autumn. They turn shades of yellow—anywhere from greenish-yellow to whitish-yellow. As earlier fall colors start to paint our landscapes, the willows offer a decidedly green contrast in a diversity of shades depending on the species.Read More

April 24, 2020leslieCommunity, Health and Wellness, Native Plants

Kelly Cartwright, Ph.D., is a biology professor at the College of Lake County in Grayslake, Illinois where she teaches environmental biology, general biology, botany, and introduction to sustainability.Read More When the O’Connors bought an old dairy turned deer-hunting farm, they had visions of transforming it into a “perfect” prairie. “We envisioned prairies with beautiful flowers, all natives, and no weeds,” explains Marcie, who, with her husband Mike, has been restoring their 500-acre farm near Alma, Wisconsin, into prairie and savanna for the past 20…Read More

November 6, 2019leslieCommunity, Gardening, Native Plants

“My little slice of heaven in the city provides big habitat for wildlife. A small, modest bungalow on a narrow, 40-foot wide lot in Minneapolis, not far from the only gorge along the mighty Mississippi.Read More

April 26, 2019leslieGardening, Native Plants, Pollinators

Next time you visit your favorite garden center, you may want to contemplate some of these purchases:Read More Ten years ago, Liz Stanley’s and her partner Lynn Gallagher’s suburban yard was a weedy, turf-grass expanse, complete with invasive buckthorn. With no backgrounds in gardening—and through trial and error—they have slowly transformed their half-acre yard in Bloomington, Minnesota (a suburb of the Twin Cities), into a lush native habitat for pollinators, birds, and other…Read More

October 30, 2018leslieCommunity, Gardening, Native Plants, Water

“Six years ago I decided to do my part to help ensure the health of the small lake I live on. I removed all the roses, daylilies, hydrangeas, and the rest of the plants I had been managing with TLC for years. I had been reading about native plants—about their deep roots and their ability…Read More