The Ontario Naturalized Garden - The Complete Guide to Using Native Plants

Although this book is focussed on the native plants in Ontario, Canada, the basic information about naturalized gardening and bioregionalism applies anywhere. Johnson provides a balanced, thorough discussion about many current gardening practices, and how a gardener can introduce a few native plants, or attempt to recreate a whole native plant ecosystem.

The term "bioregionalism" is defined as "a philosophy that calls for a closer relationship with nature ('bio') and a deeper understanding of locale ('region'). Its advocates see the world not in terms of political boundaries, which are contested and shifting and arbitrary, but rather in terms of natural geographic regions, which are defined by such ecological realities as flora, fauna, watersheds, landforms, and climate. They don't separate human culture from this search for home place; unlike some conservationists, they do not say 'protect the wilderness out there and keep destructive humanity apart from the wilderness.' Instead, they are struggling to find a way, as humans, to reinhabit and restore the natural world in a meaningful, constructive, and, by this point in history, a necessarily healing way." (pp 17-18) This philosophy strikes a chord with me. It seems unrealistic to me to try to remove the human from the equation. We inhabit much of the planet, and are a part of the ecosystem, albeit an often destructive one.

I've already discovered some of the benefits of using native plants without knowing it, as the plant index informs me that my Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), and Geranium or Cranesbill (Geranium maculatum) (not to be confused with the annual Geranium (Pelargonium)) are all native plants. They all thrive in my garden, easily outdoing my other plants with minimal care. And this is one of the major benefits to the gardener, as native plants are well suited to the existing environment, and need little coddling to succeed. They are also well suited to survive the native insect and disease threats that cause so many problems with introduced species.

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1. The Ontario Naturalized Garden
2. Native plants
3. Garden habitats

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