BEGINNING  A  DEMONSTRATION  GARDEN    DISCOVERING  THE  BENEFITS  OF  NATIVE  PLANTS  AND  EDUCATING  VISITORS  ON  LOCAL  GARDENING  

Emily  Chapin  August  9th,  2012  

Goals  for  the  Demonstration  Garden:  •  Incorporate  native  plants  of  Bald  Head  Island  in  the  garden  

• Provide  visitors  with  first-­‐hand  examples  of  local  flora    on  BHI    

•  Include  signage  to  help  visitors  identify  plants  

• Show  that  landscapes  with  native  plants  can  still  be  beautiful    

• Educate  visitors  on  the  benefits  of  native  plants    

• Encourage  methods  of  sustainable  gardening  in  home  landscapes    

 

Native  Plants:  • A  native  plant  is  one  that  occurs  naturally  in  a  particular  region  or  ecosystem  without  human  intervention.      

•  In  the  eastern  United  States,  the  flora  present  at  the  time  of  the  

European  settlers  is  considered  native.      

• Non-­‐native  plants  are  those  that  have    been  introduced  and  

established  in  a  particular  region.  

 

Invasive  Species:  •  Invasive  alien  species  are  plants,  animals,  or  other  organisms  that  

are  introduced  into  a  particular  area  outside  their  native  range  and  

cause  damage  in  their  new  location.      

• The  term  “invasive”  is  given  to  those  plants  that  are  most  

aggressive  and  most  likely  to  outcompete  the  native  flora.    

•  Invasive  species  have  no  natural  enemies  to  limit  their  

reproduction.    Thus,  the  introduction  of  non-­‐native,  invasive  species  

often  forces  a  decline  in  the  population  of  native  plants.      

• Leading  threat  to  biodiversity      

Benefits  of  Gardening  with  Native  Plants  (1)  

• Support  the  local  ecology  by  attracting  native  wildlife,  including  insects,  birds,  and  even  mammals.    

 

Benefits  of  Gardening  with  Native  Plants    (2)  • Native  plants  need  less  fertilizer,  little-­‐to-­‐no  pesticides,  and  less  pruning.  

Benefits  of  Gardening  with  Native  Plants  (3)  • Native  plants  require  less  irrigation  and  save  water  because  they  are  acclimated  to  their  unique  climate.      

 

Benefits  of  Gardening  with  Native  Plants  (4)  

• Native  plants  help  to  limit  the  chance  of  invasive,  exotic  plant  species  being  introduced  into  the  environment  around  you.    

 

Benefits  of  Gardening  with  Native  Plants  (5)  • Native  plants  can  create  beautiful  gardens  and  can  be  used  for  ecological  restoration  

Bringing  Nature  Home  by  Douglas  Tallamy  

Humans  have  not  left  enough  of  the  natural  habitats  to  prevent  the  loss  of  species  

(Tallamy  12).      

The  number  of  species  that  can  

survive  is  dependent  on  the  amount  of  human  destruction.  

(urbanization,  climate  change,  

diseases,  pesticides,  and  farm  

intensification  all  threaten  

biodiversity).    

The  number  of  species  of  plants  is  closely  linked  to  the  diversity  of  animals  in  a  particular  habitat  

(Tallamy  20).      

It  takes  a  long  time  for  insects  to  adapt  to  the  chemical  of  alien  species  of  

plants.  

Native  plants  provide  more  food  for  native  insects  which  then  transfer  most  of  the  energy  to  animals  in  higher  trophic  levels.    

The  future  of  biodiversity  will  be  dim  unless  humans  

start  to  take  action  to  prevent  the  

extinction  of  species.    

Tallamy,  Douglas.  Bringing  Nature  Home.  Portland:  Timber  Press,  2009.  Print.  

Native  Plant  Survey  

Survey  Results  (1)  

2.540541  

2   2  

0  

0.5  

1  

1.5  

2  

2.5  

3  

Mean   Median   Mode  

I  know  about  the  native  plants  in  the  area  I  live  in  

Series1  

2.378378  

2  

1  

0  

0.5  

1  

1.5  

2  

2.5  

Mean   Median   Mode  

I  use  native  plants  in  my  landscaping  

Series1  

Survey  Results  (2)  

2.918919   3  

4  

0  

0.5  

1  

1.5  

2  

2.5  

3  

3.5  

4  

4.5  

Mean   Median   Mode  

I  feel  that  I  have  a  positive  perception  of  native  gardens  

Mean  

Median  

Mode  

2.486486  

2   2  

0  

0.5  

1  

1.5  

2  

2.5  

3  

Mean   Median   Mode  

I  feel  that  I  know  the  benefits  of  gardening  with  native  plants  

Series1  

STARTING  THE  GARDEN  

Camp Pollywog Helps by Weeding

More Help From the Pollywogs!

A  lot  of  Sand…  

•  Conditions  of  the  location:  Sandy,  dry,  rocky,    

•  Rocks,  Glass,  Nails,  oh  my!    •  Met  with  the  manager  of  

the  community  garden,  Jane  Johnson.    She  suggested  a  thick  layer  of  cow  manure  to  enrich  the  soil  

 

Writing  a  Donation  letter  to  get  cow  manure  • Both  Stewart  Hardware  &  Garden  and  Home  Depot  donated  250  pounds  of  cow  manure  each.    

 

250  pounds  of  Moo-­‐Nure:  

Learning  about  the  Plants  Native  to  Bald  

Head  Island  

Driftwood    

•  I  decided  to  use  drift  wood  to  line  the  beds  of  the  garden.    

Campers  Help  by  Transplanting  Native  Plants    

Collecting  Native  Plants:  •  I  visited  a  local  nursery  called  Growing  Wild  Nursery  in  Burgaw,  NC.    

•  Specializes  in  coastal  plain  native  plants  in  North  Carolina.    • He  donated  some  Coral  Honeysuckle,  Switchgrass,  Yucca,  and  Thoroughwort  

Spray  Painting  the  Trellis  

Filling  the  Garden  with  Native  

Plants  

•  Blanket  Flower  

•  Prickly  Pear  Cactus  

•  Sabal  Palm  

•  Lantana  

•  Common  Yucca  

•  Adam’s  Needle  

•  Switch  grass  

•  Hyssop-­‐leaved  Thoroughwort  

•  St.  Andrew’s  Cross  

•  Pennywort  

•  Coral  Honeysuckle  

Coral  Honeysuckle  

After  Mulch  

Thank  you  Michael,  Patrick,  and  C  Patrol  Camp!  

Labeling  the  Plants  

Thanks  for  Everyone’s  Help!    Special  thanks  to:  •  Kendyll  Goeman  and  Tracey  Ritchie  •  Tom  Hancock  and  Patrick  Amico  •  Mike  Thomasen  •  Alex  Hanyok    •  Alistair  Glen  (Growing  Wild  Nursery)  

QUESTIONS?