What plants should I landscape with?
Use native plants! Native plants are magnificent and by planting them, you bring a natural beauty to your yard. At the same time, you help conserve and promote the aesthetics and health of plant communities throughout southeast Michigan. NAP offers a brochure series that can help get you started. Each brochure offers a list of natives with short written descriptions and planting information for each suggested plant and a list of reference material. An order form for these Your Landscape and our Natural Areas brochures can be found here: Detailed Native Plant Brochures Order Form (pdf)
Once you have an idea what plants you might like to work with, the Michigan Native Plant Producers Association (MNPPA) is a great resource for purchasing those plants. They offer an online Source Guide with a list of nearly 400 native plants and which member nurseries sell them. More information on MNPPA member nurseries and native landscaping consultants can be found here: Southeast Michigan Nurseries and Native Plant Consultants (pdf)
Abridged List of Recommended Species Native to Southeast Michigan:
Native Trees
Native Shrubs
Native Vines
Native Perennials
Native Ferns
Native Grasses, Rushes, & Sedges
What do we mean by native?
By native we refer to those plants that were here before Europeans settled in Michigan in the 1700s. Since then, thousands of plants and animals have been introduced and become naturalized in North America at an unprecedented rate and scale. Naturalized means these non-native (introduced or alien) species are capable of establishing and sustaining themselves in the environment without our care. These plants can grow at the exclusion of the native plants. Approximately 30% of Michigan’s 2,600 plant species are alien plants that have become naturalized largely in the last hundred years.
Where should my plants come from?
Many plant species that are native in Michigan have wide geographic ranges. Because they are likely to be genetically different from region to region, and therefore possibly unsuited to your conditions, it is best to use individuals of the desired species from your local area. Individuals from a local source are well adapted to that area and by and large the safest to use in the long run. For example, a flowering dogwood that is raised in southern Ohio may not survive our winters nearly as well as a dogwood that was grown in Michigan. In contrast, some introduced species do very well in their new environment because they are relatively free of pests and diseases. These plants tend to become invasive in our landscape. If you are unable to locate the desired plants locally, try to find them from other sources close by in Michigan or else in Wisconsin, Minnesota, northern Illinois, or northern Ohio.
Where can I find these plants?
As native plants increase in popularity, more and more landscape nurseries are stocking them alongside their other horticultural selections. Check with your local nursery to see if it has local sources of native plants. Nursery staff can help match the appropriate native species to your specific site requirements. You can certainly obtain them from local native plant producers: Southeast Michigan Nurseries and Native Plant Consultants (pdf), or check out the MNPPA Source Guide.
In addition to being representative of the native landscape, plants listed here have one or more of the following qualities:
- exceptional horticultural value
- adapted to extreme site conditions
- readily available in the nursery trade
- easy to grow
A word of caution: While many nurseries carry native plants, it is important to determine where they came from before making your purchase. Were the plants wild-collected or were they propagated at that nursery? Collecting plants in the wild can devastate local plant populations, so insist on plants propagated from division, cuttings, or seed (these plants also tend to be healthier than wild-collected plants).
References
The following reference books can provide excellent informaiton on landscaping, plant conservation, and site requirements for specific plants:
Gardener’s Guide to Plant Conservation. Marshall, N. 1993
Gardening with Native Wild Flowers. Jones, S. Jr., and L. Foote. 1990
Michigan Flora, Parts I and II. Voss, E. 1985
Michigan Trees. Barnes, B. and W. H. Wagner. 2004 (1981 1st ed.)
Michigan Wildflowers. Smith, H. 1966
Nature’s Design: A Practical Guide to Natural Landscaping. Smyser, C. 1984
Native Trees, Shrubs, and Vines for Urban and Rural America. Hightshoe, G. 1988
Shrubs of Michigan. Billington, C. 1949