The mission of PLANT IT WILD is to foster greater awareness and appreciation of the fragile natural environment of our region. Through direct efforts we work to preserve, protect, and promote the natural beauty of the area and its plant communities.
We promote the use of native plant species by producing educational materials available at our meetings, booths, presentations, and through our website. Programs are offered from May through September featuring a wide array of speakers and topics on native plants.
Not sure which plants are native to Michigan? Click Here to view a list of some of our favorite plants from this beautiful state.
Click Here to join Plant It Wild and help us preserve, protect, and promote the natural beauty of the area and its plant communities.
Click Here to read more about who we are and how we strive to help the community be a more natural and beautiful place.
Big Blue needs a special place to thrive. Note its blossoms are colorful! Same with Indian Grass (yellow) and Side Oats Grama (fire engine red). Got room? Add beneficial native grasses to your lanscape.Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) is a dignified, tall grass with gorgeous inflorescences, especially when viewed up close. Purple pistils contrast with dangling yellow stamens, set against the backdrop of long, strap-like blue foliage. This large grass needs room to thrive. While it avoids wet soils, big bluestem will grow in everything else, from clay to dry-gravel soils. With many tall grasses, the root systems dwarf the above-ground portions of the plant. When big bluestem is mature and established, its considerable above-ground mass represents only a third of the entire plant. The other two-thirds lie below the soil, with roots capable of reaching 12-15 feet in depth. At Garden in the Woods, our big bluestem is firmly rooted in the Meadow and Coastal Sand Plain gardens.
Photo: Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) inflorescence details, © Uli Lorimer
Terrific concept. Support the food web! Become a beneficial insect farmer. I’m with you on this.🐝This is my dream: To plant all the natives that attract all the cute bugs!
🐞Like bird watching, only smaller.
🐛Find the most productive native host plants your area by zip code. HERE: www.nwf.org/NativePlantFinder/
Say "no" to pesticides and "YES" to native plants that support beneficial insects!Although they are indisputably the most important animals on earth, invertebrates are in trouble. One recent review of the science estimated that, if losses continue at current rates, 40% of the world’s insect species may go extinct over the next few decades. There is no time to wait. We need to act now.
Thanks to our donors, Xerces is at the forefront of invertebrate conservation and we have tried-and-true methods to maximize invertebrate diversity across landscapes. Please show us your support by making a tax-deductible donation today.
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(Photo: Xerces Society / Jennifer Hopwood)
MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Wednesday, September 18 Plant it Wild celebrates our season end with a potluck dinner, brief business meeting, and a fabulous program on Rain Gardens and Shoreline Protection. Potluck at 6:30. Bring table setting and a dish to pass. The food is always delish. Beverages provided. Business meeting at 7. Summary of the year, election of officers, etc. Program immediately afterward presented by Carolyn Thayer, landscape designer, owner Designs in Bloom. Everyone can utilize raingarden principles on their property... slow it down and soak it in.
Remember... native plants host the beneficial insects that feed baby birds in the spring. By fall, those same plants feed seeds to adult birds AND shelter the insects needed for babies the following spring.... It is a circle... when it connects it is the web of life.Before birdfeeders, this is how birds got their seeds!
Grow a bird feeder like this with pesticide-free native plants. Nature has been providing food for the birds for millions of years; we just need to re-establish the original plants that our birds evolved with. Don't shop at the big box store nurseries, your local native plant society will help you acquire the plants.
The Audubon Society agrees this is the best thing you can do for birds. More info here: www.audubon.org/plantsforbirds
Find your native plant society here: nanps.org/native-plant-societies/