2025: Year of the Native Plants
Black-Eyed Susan
Golden flower that can grow as either an annual or a short-lived perennial. They can be found in prairies and open woodlands. They attract birds and butterflies.
This plant can be seen in the garden near the GSC office!
Photo By Swamp Snappers Camera Club Member
Butterfly milkweed:
Bright orange perennial flowers that attract butterflies that can grow up to 3 feet tall.
Mayapple
Perennial herbaceous plant found in shady areas with moist, soils. with a cup shaped flower. has an edible yellow berry.
Common Blackberry
Woody shrub that blooms in late spring or early summer that produces fruit in the summer. berries are edible and can be identified by the hairs covering the branches.
Highbush Blueberry
slow growing deciduous shrub found in swamps and high elevation forest. grows 6-12 feet tall and has edible blueberries.
Sugar Maple
State tree of New York, the sap is used for making maple syrup. The lumber is used for flooring and furniture.
Video on why planting native species is important.
Importance of Native Plants
Native plants provide many benefits to an ecosystem.
Wildlife gain shelter, food, and the plants even provide nectar and pollen for pollinators.
Native plants evolved in local conditions, so they are used in many conservation efforts due to the time and money that it saves by using them.
Many of our native plants have lots of colorful flowers and provide visuals for gardens and landscapes
Even humans gain benefits from native plants such as foods, a pollution removal (noise and air). which in turn reduce stress as long as time is spent outside around them.
Native vs. Invasive
Native: Native plants are species of that originated from a range and have evolved to thrive in these areas. These plants will be the most beneficial to all living organisms that are also natives.
Invasive: Non-native plants that will cause economic or environmental harm to humans. But not all nonnatives are invasives. The biggest factor is that they will root and spread at a high rate that will disrupt the growth of our native plants so it’s important to know which plants to look out for. Some of the very common species of Invasive plants that can be found in our area include. Honeysuckle, Phragmites, and Japanese knotweed.
Honeysuckle
these spread very quickly due to the high number of seeds and fruit produced and spread by birds. There is a native honeysuckle but to tell the difference is that the Invasive will have a hollow pith.
phragmites
Perennial grass that can grow over 15 feet in height. Can be found in just about every environment but will be seen on roadsides and wetlands. It is a very tough species to manage due to the roots and rhizomes that can spread 10 or more feet deep just in a single year.
Japanese Knotweed
Herbaceous, woody perennial plant with greenish-white flowers that can reach 10-15 feet tall. Roots can reach lengths of 65 feet or more making it difficult to remove.
Knowledge is Important
All Invasives impact our native plants by forming dense clusters, causing them to not be able to receive sunlight, and their large rooting systems make it difficult to gather nutrients. With that being in mind, it is important to try and manage invasives, but there is only so much you can do as they will come back and most likely spread. This means you should be cautious and do research on the best management actions.
Further information can be found on the New York Invasive Species Information website: NYIS
Research on Native Plants can be done on Plantnative.org - Native Plant List for New York, Pennsylvania, and Northern New Jersey - PlantNative.org
Native Plants and Where to Buy Them can be found on Audubon.org Native plants - Full results page | Audubon
Further information on why natives are important can be found on the National Wildlife Federation - Why Native