Grow Natives

The variety of native plants species found in Indiana is vast and diverse. Consisting of trees, shrubs, forbs (herbaceous annuals and perennials), grasses, sedges, fern and bryophytes (mosses and liverworts), these native species are found in a wide range of plant communities such as woodlands, prairies and wetlands.

What is native?
A plant or animal that has evolved in a given place over a period of time sufficient to develop complex and essential relationships with the physical environment and other organisms in a given ecological community (Darke & Tallamy, 2014). 

​The key here is relationships between the environment and organisms. Native plants are critical parts of food webs for our wildlife and pollinators -- native plants are the backbone of our ecosystems.

Invasive plants might be valuable parts of the food chain in their native lands but, despite being in North America for along time, are not valuable food sources for native wildlife.

Are native cultivars or
​"nativars" a good choice?

Learn more here

Why should you care?

Indiana's’ native plants have evolved over thousands of years to fill specific ecosystem niches and provide vital ecological services. Let’s take a brief look at some of these essential services.

Food for insects

Native plants are essential to all terrestrial life providing sources of food, either directly or indirectly, for all mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, spiders and insects. They comprise the 1st trophic level of our food webs and convert the sun’s energy, through photosynthesis, into the food sources necessary to sustain all other higher trophic levels. 

Can a non-native plant effectively fill the same role of providing food for wildlife that native plant species do in our local ecosystems? Research has shown that more often than not the answer is NO! 

Our native herbivorous insects, which are responsible for passing more of the sun’s energy from plants into the food web than any other life form, are the perfect example of why this is true. Over time, native insects have co-evolved with native plants to develop essential and complex relationships that non-native plants simply can’t replicate. 

​In fact, approximately 90% of our herbivorous insects are diet and/or host-plant specialists rendering them unable to digest and/or reproduce on non-native plants. The endangered Monarch Butterfly is the most famous example of this type of species dependency, relying exclusively on declining Milkweed plant populations that were once prevalent in North America.

Even hundreds of years will not provide enough evolutionary time for a non-native plant to become ecologically equivalent to a native species it has displaced. Unfortunately, many imported ornamentals are selected specifically because they are unpalatable to insects and are labeled and marketed as pest free, making them inherently poor substitutes in our food webs. 
​

food for birds

​Native plants supply the insect populations that birds require for both nutrition and successful reproduction. In fact, 60% of all birds rely completely on insects for their dietary needs with birds eating up to 550 million tons of insects each year (Martin Nyffeler, The Science of Nature).
 
Furthermore, 96% of all birds feed their young almost exclusively on caterpillars, not seeds and berries. Just one clutch of chickadees can consume 6000-9000 caterpillars which means they require a breeding range populated by large numbers of natives plant species just to successfully reproduce.
 
If your yard is filled with insect-free imported ornamentals, birds will have a difficult time finding a sufficient number of caterpillars on which to raise their young. Now multiply that by every yard in your neighborhood and you can begin to understand just why bird populations are declining at such alarming rates.

Foods and goods for us

Insects are dependent on native plants for their sources of food and to complete their reproductive cycles. In return, they provide vital services for humans.

• Over 1,000 plants grown for food, beverage, fibers, spices and medicines require pollination by insects to produce the goods we depend on.
• One in three mouthfuls directly or indirectly relies on bee pollination. Produce such as apples, blueberries, chocolate, coffee, melons, peaches, potatoes, vanilla, almonds, etc. all depend on pollinators for fruit production.

Creating native plant gardens

See the Creating and Maintaining your Native Prairie booklet available via the Hamilton County SWCD for info on site selection and prep, choosing and sourcing native plants and seed, planting, and maintenance for native plant gardens and prairies. 

The Indiana Native Plant Society has a plethora of information on using natives in your home landscape and beyond.

Some of our favorite pages include: 
Getting Started in the Home Landscape
Native Plant Palettes
​Landscape Worthy Indiana Natives 
Growing Native Plants from Seed
Larger Scale Plantings

Certify your native garden
If you cultivate native plants and have removed, or are working to remove, invasive species from your property, you can apply to have your garden certified through the Grow Indiana Natives program.  Approved gardens are eligible to purchase a "We Grow Indiana Natives" sign for their garden. 

Grow Indiana Natives Certification

Where to Buy Native Plants
There are many great resources for native plants in central Indiana ranging from quality retailers, environmental organization sales and fundraisers, mail order nurseries, and more. Where you buy you plants does matter.

The Grow Indiana Native Program has a Buy Natives Directory that lists sales and retailers who sell natives and DO NOT sell any invasive plants.  We encourage you to patronize these sellers and to thank them for not selling invasive plants! The directory also includes landscape designers who design with native plants. 

Are you a retailer or designer?  Learn about how to enroll your business here.

Buy Indiana Natives Directory