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Promoting nature-based, toxic-free land care practices for the health of people, their pets, and the planet.

Right Plant, Right Place

You’ve probably heard the phrase “right plant, right place” mentioned when people talk about ecological gardening. At the root of this concept is understanding a plant’s growing conditions so you can give it just what it wants and needs, like the right amount of light, the kind of soil it prefers, and the temperatures it can withstand. That’s why native plants from your region are the best option for your yard because they have evolved over millennia in your place along with the native wildlife they support and don’t require extra inputs from humans to thrive.

But it’s important to make smart choices. For example, if you have a shady spot with moist soil, you’ll be more successful planting a native cinnamon fern, which likes full to part-shade and moisture-rich soil, than you would butterfly weed, which needs bright sun and well-drained soil. Spend some time observing your property to understand what conditions you have to understand the kinds of native plants you can grow.

Summer garden with pink echinacea and grasses.
Resilient ostrich ferns (Matteuccia struthiopteris) and golden ragwort (Packera aurea) protect pale pink wild geranium.
To preserve the orange butterfly weed that emerged in early July, Mia Wendel-DiLallo and Claire Davis used hedge shears to cut back the mugwort and black swallow-wort that grew around it.