Native plants vs. lawns: Why it’s really about balance, and the choice is yours

>> ORIGINAL COLUMN: Dispelling social media myths about gardening, pollinators and more

I am not a native plant purist, and will never be. I love native plants; I have them in my landscape, I teach classes about how to incorporate them into your landscapes, and I lead wildflower walks in the spring for volunteers.​

I love plants. I love introduced plants (which by the way have been around for years) and I love new introductions.

I evaluate annual and perennial varieties each year and include information back to the company regarding those that attract pollinators.

I try to help people understand how to attract pollinators in an already established landscape.

My job is to provide people with research-based information to make informed decisions.

If you follow my column, I promote healthy landscapes overall. Not everyone is ready or wants an all native landscape. My job is to share research based information to allow people to make their own decisions about gardens, lawns, plants, pests, etc.

I was not praising lawns in my recent article. There are those who make people feel guilty for having a lawn. Some take great pride in their lawn. It’s their property and they can do what they feel is best for them.

It’s all about balance. People aren’t likely to plant all native plants but we can encourage them to at least plant something for pollinators.

In addition, keep in mind that a landscape with all native plants such as a prairie or meadow is also a great home for others in our environment besides pollinators. Rodents, ticks, and more thrive in this environment. Having just returned from the Ohio Tick Symposium and listened to researchers, docs and others talk about ticks and their diseases, I am concerned about tick populations.

Yes, ticks hang out in turf, and they thrive in these native plantings such as meadows and prairies. Tick populations are increasing in Ohio, all should be aware.

I have a small prairie and each time the dogs come out of there, we check for ticks. They love to hunt the mice and smell the deer.

It’s about balance ... between a healthy landscape for pollinators and something that one can maintain and love.

Landscapes that are all native may be great for pollinators and other creatures but may not work for some people. That’s OK. And landscapes that are well maintained and have lawns may be preferred by some.

Those that don’t want a native landscape are not wrong or bad people. Let’s start by encouraging them to plant something beneficial for pollinators rather than judging them for not planting native plants.

I would love to read the research that shows it would be better if Americans grow native plants instead of lawn. Please send to me!

I have absolutely nothing against native plants. I have quite a few of them, some of which are overly unruly and have been extricate! I have a quarter acre prairie. I focus on bringing in as many pollinators as I can.​

Again, it is a balance between helping the pollinators and having the landscape that you love. Let’s encourage people, not discourage.