Native Plant Wildlife Gardening

Andrew over at Garden Smackdown has challenged garden bloggers to list what native plants we grow in his Play Natives Forward. Of course I love this idea, and think it is a great way for us to take a mini-inventory of natives vs non-natives on our own properties.

I am dividing my list into two parts as it’s just a bit much all at once. These are the native trees and shrubs I grow.

Naturally Occurring:

Acers assorted types
Asimina Pawpaw
Baccharis halimifolia Groundsel Bush
Calycanthus floridus Sweetshrub
Carya tomentosa Mockernut Hickory
Cornus florida Flowering Dogwood
Crataegus Hawthorn
Diospyros Virginiana Persimmon male & female
Euonymus americana Strawberry Bush, Hearts a’ Bustin
Fagus grandifolia American Beech
Juniperus virginiana Eastern Red Cedar
Liquidambar styraciflua Sweetgum
Liriodendron tulipifera Yellow Poplar
Magnolia virginiana Sweetbay magnolia
Oxydendrum arboreum Sourwood
Pinus assorted types
Prunus serotina Black Cherry
Nyssa sylvatica Black Gum
Quercus assorted types
Rhus copallina Winged Sumac
Sassafras albidum Sassafras
Vaccinium arboreum Farkleberry, Sparkleberry
Vaccinium corymbosum Highbush Blueberry
Viburnum acerifolium Maple-Leaf Viburnum

What I have planted:

All of these went in last year and it probably isn’t a complete list. Like any gardener, there are still a few more shrubs I am looking for!

Acer pensylvanica Striped Maple, Moosewood (my zone envy plant)
Aesculus parviflora Bottlebrush Buckeye
Aesculus pavia Red Buckeye
Agarista populifolia Florida Leucothoe
Amelanchier arborea Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis Canadian Serviceberry
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi Bearberry (groundcover)
Aronia arbutifolia Chokeberry Brilliantissima
Aronia melanocarpa grandi Appleleaf Chokeberry
Aronia melanocarpa Chokeberry Autumn Magic
Callicarpa americana American Beautyberry
Callicarpa americana American Beautyberry Alba
Calycanthus floridus Carolina allspice
Carpinus caroliniana American Hornbeam
Castanea dentata American Chestnut
Castanea pumila Ash’s Chinquapin
Catalpa bignonioides Catalpa
Chionanthus virginicus Fringe tree
Clethra alnifolia Summersweet, Pepperbush Hummingbird
Clethra alnifolia Summersweet, Pepperbush Ruby Spice
Cornus amomum Silky Dogwood
Cornus drummondii Roughleaf Dogwood
Cornus racemosa Gray Dogwood
Cornus sericea Redtwig Dogwood
Cornus stolinifera Red-Osier Dogwood Arctic Fire
Corylus americana American Hazelnut
Crataegus marshallii Parsley Hawthorn
Cyrilla racemiflora Titi
Halesia diptera magniflora Big-Flowered Silverbell
Halesia tetraptera Pink Carolina Silverbell Arnold Pink
Hibiscus coccineus Swamp Hibiscus
Hydrangea quercifolia Oakleaf Hydrangea Alice
Hydrangea quercifolia Oakleaf Hydrangea Snowflake
Hydrangea quercifolia Oakleaf Hydrangea ssp.
Ilex verticillata Winterberry Female Winter’s Red
Ilex verticillata Winterberry Male Southern Gentleman
Ilex vomitoria pendula Weeping Yaupon Holly
Illicium floridanum Florida anise
Illicium parviflorum Yellow Anise
Itea virginica Virginia Sweetspire Henry’s Garnet
Lindera benzoin Spicebush
Lyonia lucida Fetterbush
Malus angustifolia Southern Crabapple
Myrica cerifera Southern Wax Myrtle
Neviusia alabamensis Alabama Snow-wreath
Physocarpus op. Mindia Ninebark Coppertina
Physocarpus opulifolius Ninebark Diabolo
Pinckneya pubens Feverbark
Prunus angustifolia Chickasaw Plum
Prunus umbellata Flatwoods Plum
Stewartia monadelpha Tall Stewartia
Styrax americanus American Snow-bell
Symphoricarpos x doorenbosii Coralberry Amethyst
Symphoricarpus albus Snowberry
Taxodium distichum Bald Cypress
Tsuga canadensis Eastern hemlock
Vaccinium ashei Rabbit Eye Blueberry Premier
Vaccinium vitis-idaea min Mountain Cranberry (groundcover)
Viburnum dentatum Arrowood
Viburnum lentago Nannyberry
Viburnum nudum Viburnum Count Pulaski
Viburnum nudum Viburnum Winterhur Female
Viburnum prunifolium Blackhaw
Viburnum rufidulum Rusty Blackhaw
Viburnum trilobum (changed names I know) American Cranberry Bush

It is spring and many of the fantastic garden blogs I visit have come up with some very handy spring chore lists. I’ve read through their lists and it didn’t take me long to realize that my spring to-do is a bit different than theirs. I don’t have bad bugs (honestly. I don’t), I don’t prune, I don’t turn soil since I’m ankle deep in leaf litter anyway and have great, nature made soil. If I do any of these things it is just me wanting to feel like the garden needs me.

I am not really a gardener so much as a keeper of trees. I putter about and pretend to garden but really I’m just creating a healthy environment for what should be there anyway. I’m a wildlife habitat gardener. Since my to-do list is so different than theirs, I’ve made one up just for wildlife gardeners.

Spring Chores for the Habitat Garden:

- Take your dog to a corner of the yard, brush the dickens out of him and leave behind enough dog hair to build 5 more dogs. This will be your bird nesting materials pile.

- Check the Hummingbird Migration Maps hourly to see if hummers have shown up in your area. Keep scanning the horizon for flocks of migrating hummingbirds. Fret.

- Add fallen twigs, pruning yard trash to your brush pile. Decide you need your neighbor’s pruned limbs as well and build another brush pile.

- Periodically shake your fists at the squirrels running about. This is for no particular reason except that you know they are up to something. This should be practiced year round.

- Build a toad and turtle ramp to your in-ground bird bath. You realized that turtles can’t climb those dang stackable blocks the previous residents used to build tiers. Why the heck would anyone use stackable blocks? They aren’t wildlife friendly!

- Design a permanent mud puddle feature with as much care as would go into a grand plaza fountain. Run a bird bath dripper to it so that the mud stays moist. Birds, butterflies and bees will all need mud to build their homes or drink from this summer. Try and come up with something to tell neighbors when they ask why you have filled that stunning platter with mud and left it in the yard.

- Create an artistic stone pile and plant some native grass around it for lizards and toads. Call it garden art and impress your neighbors with your understated, elegant taste. Don’t let any squeamish neighbors too close to said artist stone pile lest a snake be sunning itself on one of the rocks. Snakes will love this for habitat as well.

- Each morning check under your bat house for guano. The bats will be coming out of hibernation and could show up any night! Peer up into the baffles hoping to see a bat even though you realize, since you have done this 100 times, that you will not be able to see squat in those little dark crevices. Still, the thought is just too exciting.

These tasks will get your property prepared for the influx of summer critters who will come to share your space and raise families. But, as I stated, gardening for a habitat gardener is not really gardening at all. The critters would come to any friendly environment and handle most of these things on their own. Still, the above list will give you the opportunity to to call yourself a gardener and feel needed.

It’s spring and I am wandering my little plot of woods, checking for chores that need to be done and to generally see how everything has survived the winter. While puttering about I discovered a couple of animal dens tucked away in crannies on the forest floor.

This was an interesting one. It is in the upturned roots of a fallen Eastern red cedar and the entrance is about 15″ across. The hole itself runs horizontal and turns a corner, it appears that there is some sort of chamber in the hollowed roots and trunk area. There are well worn paths to it but I could find no scat so really do not know what is living here. It’s relatively close to my house and whatever the critter is it must be nocturnal, although nocturnal expands my possible residents list, not shorten it. I am a wee hour riser and tend to know what wildlife is about since I have a large in ground bird bath animals visit for a drink during the night. All the same, I haven’t seen anything come from this area. The twigs hanging over it are actually wild muscadines Vitis rotundifolia so during the summer it will be very well hidden.

This den you could walk right over and not see. The entrance is about 10″ across and blends in amazingly well with the forest floor. It also run horizontal instead of going downward into the ground. The tunnel turns a corner as if there is a chamber a bit further back. It’s built in a small bank and tucked under some low growing tree branches.

Now this den is coyote. I’m just tossing it in because I like it. The photo is awful but I wasn’t getting too close! It was in the backyard of a friend who asked me to help ID some plants on their property and located right up close to the house. The people who owned the home were completely unaware of it’s presence, I went through and ID several plants and one coyote den. There are actually three entrances here, it is built into a very steep bank which is difficult to tell from the picture. The area surrounding the den was well worn and there was scat about. The coyotes soon abandoned the den of their own volition.

It appears that my property has gained a couple of new residents over the winter so now I will keep a close watch to see who they are and welcome them. Hopefully we can all respect each other’s space and live together peacefully. It shouldn’t be too hard to accomplish that.

Since my garden is new I don’t have any perennials or annual plants in yet. Last year was spent planting shrubs, clearing and establishing the foundation. It was The Year of the Shrub. This year is The Year of the Flower now that I have space to start on smaller plants. I’m growing several from seed – I am a mass planter and let’s face it, buying a gillion perennials can get expensive. I have the advantage of being in zone 7b which allows me to not have to use duct tape and mess with sealing containers perfectly. I did try duct tape for a bit but ended up removing it completely.

Recently a very nice family provided me with bags of milk jugs for my winter sowing project and I got to talking with the Mom – she was interested in what I was doing and how to go about sowing seeds in this manner. This post is for her, the illustrated guide to the Karyl’s Warmer Climate System of Sowing Seeds in Milk Jugs, aka easy seed starting containers for southern climates.

Sooo…take one milk jug and…

Poke drainage holes in the bottom of the container. Since I do these containers in mass, I use an inexpensive soldering iron I bought at a hardware store for $15. Melting plastic smells pretty darn bad so doing this outdoors is the location of choice! You can also use an awl but I found the soldering iron whips through them a lot faster.

I usually poke about 4 holes per quarter section of jug bottom, this will depend on the diameter of the tool used to create holes.

Cut the milk jug right below handle level, leaving the handle area intact to act as a hinge. You will not want to cut the container fully in half as later the tops will end up all over the place – just keep the top and bottom attached for your own sanity.

Using a hand held hole punch, punch a single hole in the top and bottom of the jug. There is a vertical seam in the plastic which I use as a guide so that the holes line up. Twist ties will be used to keep the jugs closed and these holes are where the twist ties will be threaded later.

Fill the containers with dirt. I use Miracle Gro Potting Mix. There are a zillion opinions on what type of potting mix to use but so far I haven’t had problems with Miracle Gro.

Water the dirt filled containers well and let them drain overnight. What I have always heard is that when you sow your seeds, the dirt should be wet to “the consistency of brownies”. I’ve found this to be a fairly good guideline.

Labeling is very important. Just wait until seeds sprout and your labels have faded or come apart and you’ll be aware of just how crucial it is. This is another winter sowing topic of a zillion opinions on how-to. For myself, I use some sturdy address labels cut in half and written in grease pencil. These pencils are available at crafts stores or crayon also works. Permanent magic marker such as Sharpie does not work, it will fade and you’ll have no clue what seedling is in what jug later. I staple the label on the side of the jug, I’m not counting on it to stick. One thing that I did for awhile was put a Popsicle stick with the plant name written on it on the inside of the jug for a back up labeling system but found that this wasn’t necessary, however it’s an idea if you would like a second name somewhere.

Sow seeds on top of the moist dirt. How many seeds depends upon the size of the seed, but do not be too heavy handed or you’ll be thinning out like crazy later when sprouts appear. Ask me how I know this!

I then mist the seeds with a spray bottle of water to help them adhere to the soil. The “pat gently into the dirt” system doesn’t work for me, I end up with seeds stuck to my hands. The spray works fine. Some seeds require light for germination and your seed pack instructions should tell you this, if they do not require light for germination, sprinkle a thin layer of dirt on top of them.

Close the lid and secure with a twist tie threaded through the holes made earlier with the hole punch. I buy twist ties on rolls at any hardware store. A roll is about $2, look for them where they keep plant labels and stakes.

Now just set your mini-greenhouse milk jug in a semi-shady location and wait for the seeds to sprout. For details on winter sowing, visit WinterSown.org and a forum where the experts hang out, Winter Sowing Message Board.

I swear, spring loves to tease us. One day it is 70º and I am running around with a bad case of Yippie! It’s warm out! fever and taking photos of daffodils. The next day I get this:

I would say that it is that funky Georgia weather but think we all get tormented in this manner. Apparently Ms. Spring has a wicked sense of humor – perhaps she is related to Loki.

I was passed the Honest Scrap award by Lisa from Get in The Garden. I’ve been negligent and delayed writing this, I apologize! The idea of Honest Scrap me to reveal 10 truths about myself that people wouldn’t learn from reading my blog, then select seven other people to pass it to, so here it goes…

1. I am an alcoholic and drug addict. It’s a non-issue as I haven’t had a drink in 20-odd years and I never think about it, but I’m highly intolerant of drunks. I’ve had far too much experience with such people to even be able to deal with it for a minute.

2. I chew the inside of my lip when I program. Otherwise I don’t fidget or have any nervous habits, it’s only when programming. It’s so bad that even if I never did it again the inside of my lip is never going to go back to normal.

3. There is a corn on my foot which causes me pain. It needs to be surgically removed but I’ve already taken a needle in the bottom of my foot. It so sucked. That’s never going to happen again. Although I have a high tolerance for pain, the needle to the foot option is out. Now there is a fascinating fact you needed to know.

4. I am a magnet for emotional vampires. I am on the quiet side and tend to back down to wait my turn, so highly charged emotional people like to be around me since it can be all about them. Needy, narcissistic people who need constant validation attach to me like a barnacle. I can spot this personality from a mile away and run like hell but they chase.

5. I am fascinated with body amour. Jewelry people never take off, tattoos, anything people keep upon themselves constantly. I want to know why and see beauty in such talismans. I have a very large personal space (do not hug me) but will reach out for a necklace on someone I just met, touch an arm tattoo or similar and grill the person about their choice. Fortunately no one has been offended yet and it’s compulsive behavior on my part. I do it before I think. Their stories delight me no end.

6. Art and art history is my first love. It’s what I studied. My era of choice is later 1900’s to early 20th century. I can get downright emotional over a painting from that period.

7. Dog behavior is my second love. I’ve worked with abused cases, do a lot of training and foster. I always take the behavior problem dogs and help work out their issues so that a dog who is not adoptable has a chance of finding a successful home.

8. I never get sick and I mean never. Those colds everyone gets each year bypass me, I don’t get poison ivy and mosquitoes don’t even like me. I’m annoying.

9. I am a Jaws baby. Yup. Saw Jaws as a kid and am convinced that big sharks are waiting for me at ankle depth in the ocean. I don’t think I took a bath for a month after that. Showers only. Poltergeist was the other one I could have lived without. I was a blond haired, blue eyed kid named Karyl Ayne just like the little girl and could relate just a tad too much. Bad idea.

10. No matter what I am doing it is likely that I’d rather be in the woods.

And I would like to pass this to:

Bridget Butler at Bird Diva
Curbstone Valley
Christopher Tidrick at From the Soil
David Steen at Living Alongside Wildlife
Liza and John’s Garden
Lost in the Landscape
Curtis at Native Plants with Adams Garden