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Saving Native Plants To Save Ourselves

by January 27, 2022 1

On January 27th, Andrea O’Farrell from West Seattle Meaningful Movies led a conversation about the movies INSECT APOCALYPSE and WHY LAWNS MUST DIE.  She was joined by Erica Guttman of the Native Plant Salvage Foundation,  a non-profit organization that also supports the habitat & water programs of WSU Extension who shared tips on how to get rid of your grass, and who also made suggestions for Waterwise plant options.  After her presentation, local Northwest plant enthusiasts asked and answered questions about how to protect our native plants and help our environment in our own back yards!

INSECT APOCALYPSE tells of the alarming decline in insect populations that has been happening over the last 50 years.   It delves into what is causing it and how we can make a difference by planting native plants in our gardens.  The video features the renowned entomologist Doug Tallamy whose books include “Bringing Nature Home” and “Nature’s Best Hope.” https://www.documentarymania.com/player.php?title=Insect%20Apocalypse

WHY LAWNS MUST DIE takes a look at the grass lawn’s history of class exploitation and settler colonialism and how that ties into the American lawn culture we see today. Also, the turfgrass lawn has a huge environmental impact. It’s the biggest crop in the United States by area and requires a massive amount of fossil fuels, fertilizer, and chemicals to upkeep. Ultimately, the grass lawn is exacerbating climate change and the climate crisis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=megIy0mO5-4

THE LITTLE THINGS THAT RUN THE WORLD shows us how to save native bees and other insects. Doug Tallamy tells us why, and how to do this in your own backyard, in a seminar presented by the City of Guelph and Pollination Guelph https://youtu.be/HjD0bbcAFXI

RESOURCES FROM Erica Guttman – https://www.nativeplantsalvage.org/naturescaping-resources

Topics include:

Erica’s Favorite Books for Naturescaping

Tools for Naturescaping

Plants: Picking Your Plants

Plants: Veggies

Plants: Where To Get Plants

Plants: Lawns

Design & Planning: Layout

Design & Planning: Sustainable Landscaping

Design & Planning: Small Spaces Gardening

Design & Planning: Watering & Landscaping

Design & Planning: How to Select a Landscape Professional

Drainage: Green Stormwater Infrastructure, Rain Gardens & More

Maintaining: Beneficial Wildlife

Maintaining: Pest Control

Maintaining: Disease Control

Maintaining: Quality Pruning for Plant Health (general)

Maintaining: Quality Pruning for Plant Health – Fruit Trees

Maintaining: Controlling Invasive Plants

Soil

Mulch & Wood Chips

Water Resources

 

https://www.nwf.org/garden
https://www.nwf.org/Garden-for-Wildlife/About/Native-Plants
Keystone plants for PNW Ecoregion 6 – NW Forested Mountains
Keystone plants for PNW Ecoregion 7 – Marine West Coast Forest

RESOURCES from Andrea O’Farrell

Where to find Native Plants in the Seattle Area

Go Natives! Nursery 

King Conservation District Native Plant Sale (there are other Conservation District sales in nearby counties as well) Plant pickups will be March 12 and 13, 2022

Northwest Meadowscapes (online) 

Kruckeberg Botanic Garden

City People’s Garden Store

Recommended Books:

Grow Your Own Native Landscape

Written and Edited by Michael Leigh

A Guide to Identifying, Propagating & Landscaping with Western Washington Native Plants.

https://pubs.extension.wsu.edu/grow-your-own-native-landscape-a-guide-to-identifying-propagating-landscaping-with-wwa-native-plants

Live Staking (Propagate your own plants! Free and easy!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qZpkjSccUA&t=229s

Plants best suited for live staking (let’s share if we can)

  • Willow- Sitka willow and Pacific Willow

  • Black Cottonwood

  • Pacific Ninebark

  • Red Osier Dogwood

  • Snowberry

  • Hard hack

  • Twinberry

  • Indian Plum (Oso Berry)

  • Red Flowering Currant

Ditch Your Lawn – 12 Favorite Natives from Lawn Love

https://lawnlove.com/blog/best-native-plants-seattle/

Pacific bleeding heart

Tall mountain shooting star

Red columbine

Common camas

Wild ginger (asarum caudatum)

Red-osier dogwood

Red flowering currant

Evergreen huckleberry

Salal

Wild ginger

Indian plum

Vine maple

Oregon grape

Bringing Nature Home– Homegrown National Park

HOMEGROWN NATIONAL PARK

In the past, we have asked one thing of our gardens: that they be pretty. Now they have to support life, sequester carbon, feed pollinators and manage water.

–Doug Tallamy

 

 

1 Comment so far

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  1. AMOSeattle
    #1 AMOSeattle 31 January, 2022, 17:12

    Wow, what an amazing collection of resources!

    Reply to this comment

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