SHIFTING ROOTS

home, garden, food, and prairie lifestyle

  • About
    • Contact
    • Work With Me
    • Features
    • Privacy Policy
  • Blog
  • Gardening
    • How to Start a Garden: Especially if you’re in Zone 3 or Zone 2
    • Seed Starting
    • Vegetable Gardening
    • Perennials
    • Cut Flowers
    • Small Space Gardening
  • Recipes
    • Canning
    • Preserving
    • Prairie Fruits Cookbook
    • The Best Pumpkin Recipes
    • How to Make a Tempting Christmas Cookie Tray (Plus Recipes!)
  • Popular Posts
  • E-Books
    • Pretty & Practical Garden Planner
    • Cut Flowers Made Simple
    • Constant Colour Perennial Garden
    • Small Garden, Big Harvest
    • Growing Roots Online Gardening Course
    • Frost Proof Flower Garden
    • Bouquets Made Beautiful
    • Savvy Seed Saving Annual Cut flowers
    • Prairie Fruits Cookbook
    • Online Gardening Consultations
  • Seasons
    • Christmas

5 Benefits to Landscaping with Low Maintenance Native Plants

May 21, 2019

What is Native Plant Landscaping?


Native plant landscaping is using plants in your garden that originated locally in the wild from where you live. These plants can range from grasses to herbs to shrubs to trees. They include beautiful flowers and food source plants.

There’s no special way to landscape native plants. The design can be simple clusters of one plant, a mix of plants to create a wildflower meadow or even a food forest. Native plants can be arranged in any way you like, just as ornamentals are, and there are many benefits to growing native plants over non-natives.

Beautiful landscape of native flowers.

Why Should I Use Native Plants in My Garden?

Many people don’t realize that caring for native plants is way easier than ornamentals!

Native plant species have had time over centuries to acclimate to a region making them more resistant to damage from freezing, drought, common diseases, and herbivores, whereas non-native species have not. Native plants have ecological, economic, genetic, cultural and aesthetic benefits including: 

They require less maintenance post-planting (fertilization, water, weeding, etc.) than ornamental plants! 

Survival rates over the first winter after planting are usually higher than ornamentals. Native plants are also used to suffering through drought and poor weather conditions so they don’t need as much tucking in at night! They are also better at defending themselves against weed species. Who doesn’t want to weed less!?!

Retention of naturally occurring food sources for wildlife. 

Many pollinators including bees have co-evolved with native plants and rely on the for food. Having these plants in your yard can help attract native bees and prevent a decline in the species.

And with the bugs come beautiful birds who eat them!

Bees pollinating a flower


By planting native plants you can help protect threatened or endangered species. 

Specific relationships exist between native plants and mycorrhizae, invertebrates, pollinators and birds that cannot be replicated with non-native plants. Native plants not only provide food sources for wildlife, they provide suitable habitat. Think of the Monarch butterfly who need milkweed plants to lay their eggs on. 

There is also less spring/fall cleanup to worry about. The longer you leave it, the better it is for the insects and animals that depend on dead leaves and fallen-over grasses for overwintering.

Monarch butterfly and milkweed


Add beauty to the landscape and preserve our natural heritage. 

Many native plants produce gorgeous flowers and some species are especially fragrant. Shrubs such as red-osier dogwood are even beautiful in the winter as their red stems protrude from the snow. 

These plants also connect us to the land. First Nations peoples have used them for centuries as food and medicines.

Dogwood for winter interest in a zone 3 landscape on the Canadian prairies.

Provide opportunity for public education. 

Your neighbors will probably ask about the new plants they may not recognize in your yard. This is a great opportunity to educate them about the plants that are native to your region and the benefits of growing them in your own yard. 

Where Can I Find These Plants?

There are several native plants nurseries across Canada where seeds, seedlings, and larger plants can be purchased.

Just like ornamentals, native plants have different life cycles (annual, biennial, perennial), different planting requirements (e.g. sun/shade, moister/drier) and different blooming times.

The nursery can provide all the details you need for successful establishment. Most have a guarantee on the plants’ survival and even ship right to your door.

Some nurseries in western Canada are Wild About Flowers, Sherwood’s Forests, Twin Sisters Native Plant Nursery and NATS Nursery. The Edmonton Native Plant Society also has lots of useful information on their website: http://edmontonnativeplantgroup.org/home.htm. If you want to get more involved, consider joining your local native plant group if there is one in your area.

How do you create a low maintenance, drought-resistant flower garden, encourage pollinators, and add beauty to your backyard landscape? The solution is easier than you think with native perennials! #flowers #landscaping #nativeplants #zone 3 #canada

Native plants can sometimes be found at garden centres amoungst the ornamentals. If the Latin name has been included on the tag you can check if it’s in a local native plant guide such as Plants of the Western Forest Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba Boreal and Aspen Parkland by Derek Johnson, Linda Kershaw and Andy MacKinnon.

You can find this book or others similar to it for your area on Amazon, Bookstores, or your local library.

Be aware that only the Latin name will tell you the exact species as many plants have the same common names.

There are also landscaping companies that specialize in native plant landscaping (although I imagine most people reading this probably love to get the dirt under their own finger nails!). A quick Google search can yield these types of companies.

Some cities even have small grants for native plant landscaping projects. You can also check with your local government if any shelter belt programs exist for rural properties (these are usually for shrubs to be planted around the homestead).

So if you’re looking for a way to encourage pollinators, create a low maintenance flower garden in your landscape, add beauty to your yard, and create conversations–grow native plants.

Robyn Sayer

Robyn is a Plant Ecologist from Edmonton, AB who is passionate about native plant landscaping. When she’s not working in the wilderness she spends every spare minute in the garden. Robyn hopes to spread awareness about the beauty and practicality of using native plants in our own yards.

8 Comments
Filed Under: Uncategorised Tagged: flower garden, Gardening, landscaping, native plants, Prairies, zone 3

25 Must Read Books for the Prairie Gardener

February 23, 2017

This post contains affiliate links.  If you purchase anything, I earn a small commission at no extra charge to you.  Thanks for your support!

Gardeners in the prairie provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba face unique gardening challenges.  Our harsh winters and short growing season mean that typical gardening advice doesn’t always work in our region.  Here are 25 prairie gardening books that were written with us in mind.  Or anyone who lives in zones 2 or 3.  Enjoy!

Growing Vegetables and Fruit

Canadian Vegetable Gardening

by Douglas Green

An excellent guide for beginning Canadian vegetable gardeners.

Vegetable Gardening for Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba

by Laura Peters

I love the Lone Pine series of books and this one is no exception.  If you have a vegetable garden in one of the three prairie provinces, it doesn’t get more specific to you than this.

[Read more…]

Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.

www.shiftingroots.com

15 Comments
Filed Under: Gardening, Outdoor Life Tagged: Alberta, Canada, canadian gardening, container gardening, Flowers, fruit, Gardening, Manitoba, prairie gardening, Prairies, Saskatchewan, square foot gardening, urban gardening, Vegetables

Grow roots with us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Welcome!

Hi, I'm Kristen and I help new gardeners learn to grow their own vegetables and beautify their yards. I also share recipes that use all that delicious garden produce. Grab a coffee (and your gardening gloves) and join me for gardening tips, simple recipes, and the occasional DIY, all from the lovely city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

P.S. First time gardener? You'll want to download the quick start gardening guide below!

Recent Posts

  • How to Grow Eucalyptus for Cut Flowers (Even in a Short Growing Season!)
  • 26 Best Flowers to Grow for Dried Flower Arrangements
  • 17 Perennial Flowers That Love Shade
  • How to Design a Cut Flower Garden in Raised Beds
  • How to Start a Cut Flower Garden

Welcome!

Hi, I’m Kristen and I help new gardeners learn to grow their own vegetables and beautify their yards. I also share recipes that use all that delicious garden produce. Grab a coffee (and your gardening gloves) and join me for gardening tips, simple recipes, and the occasional DIY, all from the lovely city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Connect with Shifting Roots On. . .

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Find What You’re Looking For. . .

Privacy Policy

Growing a luffa sponge was possibly the most chall Growing a luffa sponge was possibly the most challenging and finicky thing I've taken on so far as a gardener in zone 3.  And all I got to show for it was 3 baby loofah sponges, which are so precious to me that I can't bare to actually use them. (Kind of defeats the point, doesn't it?)⁠⠀
⁠⠀
I'll be starting mine soon, so I though I would share some of the improvements to the growing process from last year.⁠⠀
⁠⠀
1. Plant in larger containers!! I thought I used large enough ones, but I sorely underestimated how big these plants would get indoors.  Once of my readers suggested buckets, and I think this is an excellent idea.⁠⠀
⁠⠀
2. Plant only 1 plant per container.  I thought loofah's would be like a cucumber or pumpkin or other vining squash where you plant in a hill.  The containers with two plants in them did not do as well as the single seed containers.⁠⠀
⁠⠀
3. Have a string for the vine to climb.  Cutting the vine off of my window screen was not fun.⁠⠀
⁠⠀
Will you try luffas this year?⁠⠀
⁠⠀
#luffasponge #loofahsponge #luffachallenge2012 #seedstarting #wintergardening #indoorgardening⁠⠀
Got the seed starting itch? There's some things y Got the seed starting itch?  There's some things you can actually seed start now and you won't end up with crazy leggy seedlings and endless problems.  In fact, these plants require that you start now, and need to be started in zone 3 by the end of February at the absolute latest.⁠
⁠
I've already started some lisianthus and eucalyptus, and am waiting on my seed orders to start some more.⁠
⁠
If you're starting a luffa sponge, make sure you have some sort of eventual plan for the vine.  last year mine went over my fall windows before I was able to take them outdoors.⁠
⁠
P.S. I've actually never started onions from seed, so if anyone wants to chin in about their experience, feel free!
Growing eucalyptus for the first time this year? Growing eucalyptus for the first time this year?  A new post is on the blog to walk you through it.  While in theory eucalyptus is easy to grow, it's challenging in my zone 3 garden for three reasons: ⁠
⁠
➡️It needs a long time to mature⁠
➡️I have a short growing season⁠
➡️I live in a cool climate, and eucalyptus grows better when its warm.⁠
⁠
That said, you can see by this picture that it can be done!!⁠
⁠
Are you growing eucalyptus this year?
Oh friends, if any of my nice, curated photos sums Oh friends, if any of my nice, curated photos sums up how this last week went, I think it's this one.  Babies crying, trying to stay calm, outwardly looking like it's all under control, but feeling very overwhelmed.⁠
⁠
This post isn't gardening related, so feel free to scroll by if you're here only for the gardening content.⁠
⁠
Thankfully it's January, and I keep reminding myself that the Internet will not break if I don't keep to my self-imposed posting schedule.  But it doesn't make a week full of teething-and-not-sleeping baby any easier. ⁠
⁠
Felicity slept through the night for the first time ever last Monday, then proceeded to punish us with frequent wakings and terrible sleep until Saturday.  And as tough as this is in regular times, in Covid times its extra frustrating because I don't have my village.⁠
⁠
I can't just call up another Mama friend and go for coffee at her house.  I can't take my son out for a Mommy-and-Dominic date because everything he'd want to do isn't really much of an option.  There's no playgroup or play place to just drop in on.  And forget just taking everybody out to get groceries just for a change of scenery.⁠
⁠
I know people have way more serious problems than this, and I hope I don't sound whiny and entitled, it's not my intention.  Please know that I'm very grateful for my family and job and that so far we've been healthy. ⁠
⁠
A lot of you who follow me do so in part because you are also juggling life with very little people through this strange time.  I hope that in occasionally sharing my struggles, it makes you feel better about your struggles. (You're struggling too sometimes. . . right?)
Do you tend to plan out your garden to the nth deg Do you tend to plan out your garden to the nth degree, do you just wing it, or are you somewhere in-between?⁠
⁠
I tend to plan it all out, and then when I actually get out in the field, so to speak, the plan changes a little bit. ⁠
⁠
If you need a garden planner that's both pretty & practical, my garden planner is available in the ebooks section.  It's only $9 and has lots of upgrades from the previous planner.  Use code CANADA if you're Canadian to account for the exchange.⁠
⁠
P.S. You can see exactly what you're getting in the video--no surprises. ⁠
P.P.S  I get my planner bound and printed at a printing place.  Lots of people just print their own and put the sheets in a binder.
Are you gardening in containers this year? When y Are you gardening in containers this year?  When you're shopping for vegetable seeds, look for varieties that have names with words like patio, tiny, small, etc.  While lots of vegetable varieties will do fine in a container, you'll have an easier time with ones that are specifically bred for that situation.⁠
⁠
📸 by @blushbrandphotography
I'm living the pepper dream in this photo. While I'm living the pepper dream in this photo.  While these ones are a bit on the small side, who doesn't want ripe peppers in July in zone 3?!?! ⁠
⁠
Over the years I've gotten better at growing peppers, and I promise I'll spill my secrets in February when it's actually time to start them.  Until then, get yourself all or one of my four favourite varieties: ⁠
⁠
🌶️Carmen⁠
🌶️Escamillo⁠
🌶️Candy Stripe⁠
🌶️Hungarian Hot Wax⁠
⁠
Do you have a favourite pepper variety?⁠
⁠
Load More… Follow on Instagram

Theme Design By Studio Mommy · Copyright © 2021

Copyright © 2021 · Beyond Madison Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in