Gardening with Native Plants

This is the time of year where are fingers are itching to get in the dirt, when our seed packets are singing our names, and when gardening blogs are seeing their maximum traffic.  It's almost gardening season, and that means it's time to dream and prepare!

Last month, the UW Biodiversity Institute, in collaboration with the UW Extension, Barnyards & Backyards and the Laramie Garden Club just published a book you might be interested in.  It's called "Plants with Altitude: Regionally Native Plants for Wyoming Gardens."

Inside it is a list of about 40 wildflowers (forbs) and 12 shrubs that are native to Wyoming or just beyond, and that we recommend for gardens because they're beautiful, hardy, water wise and you can find them at nurseries or in seed catalogs.  For each plant, there's a photo and description, along with soil, water and sun requirements, and if it's beneficial for pollinators or resistant to herbivores.

If you're thinking about getting native plants into your gardens this year, this book is a fabulous resource.  And it's cheap - $5 if you buy it in person (UW Berry Center on 10th and Lewis St., or at the UW Bookstore), or $8 if you buy it online at www.wyomingnativegardens.org.

 

Written by Brenna Marsicek, Biodiversity Institute