By Susan Harkins and Jonathan Kubesch

Years ago, when I started planting native species for wildlife, I planted trees and flowers. My commitment to natives is strong, and I’ve restored nearly half of my property with native species of trees, shrubs, and flowering plants. Only one thing is missing, and that’s native grasses. Native grasslands and savannah are part of Kentucky’s rich natural heritage.

Native grasses provide a showy, functional addition to the backyard, the field corner, or the fencerow. At the time, I didn’t know the many benefits for our native wildlife that native grasses offer.

Improve ecosystem function

At the heart of every successful garden is the right soil. Regardless of your soil type, keeping topsoil and runoff in your urban yard can be a challenge. Traditional lawns can prevent erosion and runoff under ideal conditions, but native landscaping protects soil and water from more extreme weather events with fewer inputs. Some people plant rain gardens to prevent run-off but native grasses are also good at holding soil in place thanks to their long, fibrous, strong roots. Grasses help build organic matter and increase water infiltration. It doesn’t hurt that they require little maintenance and that they’re beautiful.

Native grasses also have reduced soil fertility requirements in comparison to many introduced species. Work from Kentucky and Tennessee suggests that most soils can support these grasses with modest additions of P and K (Potassium and Phosphorus) both of which can come from compost or the regular breakdown of organic matter in the yard. Native grasses can make a yard more of a closed loop for cycling nutrients.

Improve habitat

Until I started following the Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources program on how native grasses benefit songbirds, I had no idea how important native grasses are to wildlife. I was aware of how game birds, such as quail, benefit from native grasses, but almost everything benefits from native grasses. Songbirds benefit from the insects, grass seed, and habitat available in native grasses. The open space at the ground level allows baby birds to move freely and the cover of native grasses provides protection from predators.

Native grasses are host to a number of butterfly and moth species in their larval stage. Rebuilding these populations will help rebuild the bird populations as many feed caterpillars to the young. While not every yard might produce a full ecosystem, there’s research underway at Virginia Tech about how to use native grasses and wildflowers to produce bee-friendly beef.

Establishing native grasses

Converting current lawns or garden space to native grasses requires some planning and preparation. The easiest areas to convert towards native grasses are formerly wooded areas or cropland. In subdivisions, this might be a new home. Old pastures and lawns can be difficult to convert to native grasses because of the existing weed issues present. That said, attention to detail can make areas work for native grasses.

Start with a soil test from the University of Kentucky to get a baseline for any fertility adjustments. Killing existing vegetation needs to be as effective as possible. Research across the mid-South currently leans towards a “spray-smother-spray” approach where the current vegetation is killed, a competitive smother crop is grown to outcompete any surviving weeds, and then that crop is killed prior to planting native grasses. In your urban yard, an organic alternative might be to use solarization, tillage, or intensive mowing to kill existing vegetation.

Depending on the area to cover, one might consider buying seed or plugs. For plugs, assume that a native grass plant can be anywhere from one to three feet in diameter, so be sure to plan accordingly. Seeding can be a challenge given the seed is fluffy; try mixing the seed with play sand, cracked corn, or pelletized lime to make it easier to broadcast. Native grass seeding rates can vary, but plan to eventually get at least 1 seedling per square foot of allotted space.

Limiting weed competition is crucial in the establishment period, as has been seen in recent work from Virginia Tech. Introduced annual grasses, such as foxtails and crabgrass, can be hard to control in native stands. If using plugs, consider mulching around plants with straw.

When considering where to add native grasses to your landscaping, keep in mind that they’re difficult to move once established. The only non-chemical way to remove them is to mow them to the ground several times over the next few growing seasons.

By Alicia Bosela, owner of Ironweed Native Plant Nursery

At the nursery, an inquisitive couple wanted native plants for their new cabin home: “We’d like plants that our grandmothers would’ve had.”  To their surprise, I asked, “Which grandmother?” meaning a couple generations ago or when most plants at hand were still native?

Ethnobotany is the study of the interrelations between people and plants in the past. Beginning in roughly 1000AD the three sisters: corn, beans, and squash were the primary crops used by indigenous people of North America. They reached the Midwest from Mexico and became the dominant crops. Before 1000AD, during the Woodland period, crops were also grown but they were developed from native plants. These native plants still exist today, though in wild form.

The Eastern Agricultural Complex (EAC) refers to a geographic area centered on the Mississippi River and encompassing all adjoining states. Kentucky is at the core of that geographic area. The EAC is one center of domestication in the pre-historic world in which domesticated native plants were largely abandoned in favor of corn, hence, “the lost crops.”

A handful of native plants were domesticated including little barley, village goosefoot, upright knotweed, marsh elder, and Carolina maygrass. Though special, these plants are not remotely ornamental. Interesting research is being done to understand many questions about their domestication and use. As a tie in, foragers and those interested in wild edibles might enjoy a detailed talk by Dr. Natalie Mueller of Cornell University. A few in the “local food” movement have begun to experiment with these plants in their dishes.

Perhaps these plants have value in Environmental Education, introducing an appreciation of early agriculture to folks, young and old. Might there be a use someday for these plants for those interested in sustainability? Regardless, the inquisitive couple who visited the nursery for native plants used by their grandmother have a colorful array of options and a marvelous starting point to explore on our natural heritage over an expanse of time.

Plants mention in this article

Little barley (Hordeum pusillum)

Village goosefoot (Chenopodium berlandieri)

Upright knotweed (Polygonum erectum)

Marsh elder (Iva annua)

Carolina maygrass (Phalaris caroliniana)

Alicia Bosela owns Ironweed Native Plant Nursery in Columbia Kentucky, a certified woman-owned business. Before opening her own nursery, she was the Assistant Director of Clay Hill Memorial Forest Environmental Education Center. You can contact her at www.ironweednursery.com.

By Susan Harkins

You worked hard turning some of your property into wildlife habitat. You planted nectar and host plants for butterflies and pollinators. Trees and bushes offer shelter and habitat for birds, squirrels, and other small creatures. Perhaps this summer, a box turtle took up residence in your back yard or you heard tree frogs singing in your own trees! Now, after all your hard work, why would you destroy that wonderful ecosystem by cleaning it up for winter?

This time of year, experts encourage us to clean up and cut down. That is the right way to manage a manicured golf-course landscape; but it’s the wrong way to treat the property you’ve cultivated as wildlife habitat. Think about it; does Mother Nature rake leaves and cut down dried seed heads? No. Dying plant matter provides food and shelter for insects and animals throughout the winter, and to complete the lifecycle, decaying matter amends the soil—free fertilizer!

First, let’s talk about not raking leaves. Leaf litter is a microecosystem all its own. It’s full of eggs, larvae, pupae, and thriving insects. Bag up the leaves and they’re gone—an entire little ecosystem is gone. You invited all those beneficial insects into your yard. If you want to keep them there, don’t destroy their home and kill their offspring! Instead, allow leaves to lay where they fall. Only remove leaves from areas you must. A foot of leaves can be  as detrimental to that thriving community as no leaves at all. In addition, wet slippery leaves are hazardous. Find balance between being a responsible homeowner and supporting the living community underneath those leaves.

Next up is your wildflowers. They’re looking shabby this time of year, but fight the urge to cut them back. Birds and other creatures depend on seeds and dried leaves for food. Many insects overwinter in dried stems. And honestly, what looks a tad shabby right now will look spectacular surrounded by a blanket of snow. I plant river oats because those glistening seeds bowing over a blanket of bright snow are beautiful. If you want to clean up your front yard a bit, that’s understandable, but don’t throw out the debris. Pile it up in an out-of-the way corner and let nature take care of it while it provides shelter throughout the winter.

Experts tell us that a messy winter garden encourages disease, and they’re right. Please don’t apply this messy strategy to your vegetable garden plots or your precious cultivars, such as roses. Some of your landscape will always require special care. However, in those areas that you purposely turned over to nature, continue to let nature take the lead.

Butterflies, native bees and pollinators, and other beneficial insects need a safe place to hibernate over winter. Birds and other small creatures need shelter and food. Truly wild places are in decline, so your yard matters. Every yard matters. Leave your wildlife habitat messy, and let nature do what it does best in a healthy balanced system.

This article was originally published in the Franklin County Horticulture newsletter.

Last month, The Lady Slipper introduced a new column, Kentucky Yard Restoration. In that premiere article, Karen Cairns describes her restoration project as a labor of love. I think most of us can identify with that statement.

Years ago, I planted natives for the birds and butterflies, without realizing that I was providing habitat for many other Kentucky creatures. I lived in an ordinary neighborhood with a few old trees, a small back yard, and houses in every direction but up. The birds came. The butterflies came. But so did the frogs, box turtles, rabbits, raccoons, and bees. I still get goosebumps when I remember finding that first bullfrog.

One morning, I found a neighbor in my backyard wandering around looking at it all. He asked how we installed the small pond–and when I say small, I mean it. But it was cozy enough for the green frog who took up residence there.

Each August, the hummingbirds were so numerous and bold, they would fly between our heads while sitting in our bench swing. I once had one check me out by hovering about a foot from my face and squeaking at me for a bit. What she was telling me, I don’t know, but I cried. I just stood there and cried because the interaction was so amazing.

Over the years, I noticed that some species were more abundant than others, and we began referring to things that happened during “titmouse summer,” “red-winged blackbird summer,” and so on. We had a pair of rose-breasted grosbeaks that stopped by Mother’s Day weekend without fail for many years. A red-winged blackbird flew in at the same time every day to chat with our dog. After a hard storm, a pair of bluebirds took refuge until they were strong enough to rebuild. They returned often to feed their offspring.

When we moved, I started over. Our new home had a Bradford pear tree and some holly bushes. If you think I despaired, you are wrong. I was excited, and I started all over again. After ten years, my home is surrounded by trees, shrubs, flowers and grasses–almost all native. The backyard bumps up to a field that connects with a wild and protected area. My backyard blends right into that field. Some might call it ugly; I think it’s beautiful. It is habitat, and now I take stewardship seriously–so seriously, that my mantra has become “Every yard matters.”

If we can convince a few of our neighbors to return just a small section of their yards to the wild, we can reconnect to the wild in a way most of us think impossible. Imagine the corridors of habitat we could create. Many will be slow to adopt to this idea, but we must try. We have no choice if we are to become the stewards we are meant to be. I want my children, my grandchildren, and my great-grandchildren to know the joy of discovering a frog in their small pond. We don’t all start out with stewardship as our end goal, but that’s where a restoration project takes us.

We want to share your yard reclamation stories. You don’t have to be a great writer–we only need your passion and your story. Please consider sharing your Kentucky Yard Restoration story. You can contact us at LadySlipper@knps.org.

By Susan Harkins and Jonathan O.C. Kubesch 

A recommendation to not use landscaping cloth in flower beds, is usually met with a lot of resistance. Laying cloth is standard practice among professional landscapers and home gardeners. However, as we become more aware of the importance of natives in our landscaping, it’s also time to give up the cloth. There’s nothing natural about it, and it works against you in native plantings. Initially, landscaping cloth sounds like a great idea, but in the end, it is usually more trouble than it’s worth and there are a number of reasons why.  

Cloth compacts the soil 

Compacted soil is not a natural growing medium regardless of what you’re planting. You want loose crumbling soil that drains well and has plenty of nutrients. Plants grow better when their roots are allowed to grow easily, and water and nutrient intake is easy. Under landscape cloth, you will find compacted soil—it’s hard to dig and plants are seldom as healthy as they should be.  

After installing landscape fabric, soil quickly begins to lose its crumbly, granular structure. In nature, many natives require that spongy surface in order to grow and establish. A side effect of sealing the soil surface is that it hinders recruitment of many delicate natives from existing plants.  

Now consider that cloth seldom stays where you put it. Usually, it’ll work its way to the surface, where it’s ugly. Sometimes cloth goes deeper into the soil. Eventually, you could plant right over it, never knowing it’s just an inch or so below your new planting and that will definitely affect that plant’s health.  

Weeding is more difficult 

Initially, cloth will deter weeds, but nature is tougher than the cloth. Eventually, the weeds will return and guess what? Pulling those weeds will be a nightmare because that layer of cloth is under the surface acting as an anchor! You’ll have to dig it out most likely and doing so will leave a hole in the fabric, which means more weeds. While you might have fewer weeds, those weeds will be more difficult to remove. Wild violets (Viola spp) are notorious for rooting into imperfections in landscape fabrics.  

If that weren’t enough, consider what these cloths are made of: petroleum and other chemicals, which leach into your soil. As we become more environmentally aware, landscaping cloth is no longer a reasonable choice.  

Long term, landscape fabric doesn’t allow the gardener to shift landscapes in tune with horticultural and environmental trends. It arrests the landscape because it takes a fair deal of work to remove and can be a pain to remove around existing plants.  

Cost 

Landscaping cloth isn’t expensive until you consider how much of it you need to cover all your landscaping and native beds. You’ll also need pins to hold it down. To hide it, you’ll cover it with mulch. It adds up, and it’s totally unnecessary. A more natural alternative is old newspapers covered in wood or straw mulch. While these barriers will eventually break down, they are easier to work with over the years and provide better water flow into the soil.

Reseeding 

Many natives propagate by self-seeding. Landscaping cloth makes that close to impossible because the seeds never make contact with the soil underneath the cloth. What happens when you want to add new plants? You must cut the cloth to add plants, bulbs, and so on. Every hole in the fabric is an opportunity for weed seeds in the underlying soil to germinate and break through.  

While your natives may fail to reseed because of the cloth, weeds are different. Seeds traveling by air or deposited by birds and other small mammals won’t mind the lack of soil a bit. They’ll sprout in the mulch and send their strong roots through the cloth.  

It isn’t natural 

There’s nothing natural—or native—about landscaping fabric. If your motivation is stewardship, I probably don’t need to say anything else. Regardless of whether it’s under mulch, rock, or even soil, a cloth barrier traps creatures below ground. You’re killing creatures that live in the soil and keep it healthy!

When you hike in the woods, you don’t see landscaping cloth. Remember, you’re trying to create, or mimic, a natural environment. In looking to mimic native systems, consider materials that you see in the woods or meadows. Leaves and duff, as well as thatch or straw, are the natural mulches in ecosystems. They provide a level of control on the weedier species, but they also break down over time to support new plants. While we may not mimic that same level of space and time variability in our yards, using natural materials is important! 

What to use instead 

Establishing a new bed takes work with or without putting down landscaping cloth but eliminating that cloth will save you some labor and money. What you use to reduce weeds is up to you and the soil’s health should be a factor. If it’s compacted, amend with organic matter before you do anything else. Rototilling the area isn’t necessary and actually destroys soil composition, so avoid rototilling unless the soil is severely compacted.  

Remove turf or cover it with layers of cardboard or newspaper to smoother it. Both will quickly degrade and help amend the soil. Wet the cardboard or paper to keep it in place. The next step is a few inches of good arborist chips. You can buy mulch, but most tree servicing companies will gladly dump a nice mound of chips for free. Chips aren’t consistent in size and color, so they look more natural—more like a forest floor. They degrade quickly though and will need supplementing often if you continue to use chips.  

If you plant immediately, cut through the cardboard and plant in the ground and keep the area well watered until the plants are well established.

You can avoid remulching eventually, by using native groundcovers as green or living mulch. It takes a few seasons, but eventually your plantings will be so full that few weeds can’t set up home. You will still have to weed occasionally but maintaining this spot will be much easier than if you laid cloth underneath.  

Meadowscapes and other areas where a mix of native species provide aesthetic vistas at lower maintenance requirements than traditionally manicured beds. Using grassland species will require occassional mowing or spin-trimming, but these areas are great for self-mulching and weed control. 

We add natives to our yards for several reasons. Mine started with a love of birds, butterflies, frogs, bugs, and so on. At the time I wasn’t thinking about being a good steward of the land, but that is what happened. Regardless of why you plant natives, you will approach the addition as you would any other flower bed by preparing the area, and if that includes landscaping cloth, please stop and reassess your decision. 

By Katrina Kelly, owner of EARTHeim

I’ve never met a gardener who doesn’t want to reduce maintenance in their garden. While it can be fruitful to care for a garden, sometimes we just want to sit back and relax while enjoying it! Groundcovers are one solution to reduce garden maintenance. The fewer blank spaces there are, the fewer chances for weeds and the less need for mulch. There are many native groundcover plants that are great choices in garden settings.

Groundcover usually refers to plants that are low-growing and have a spreading or creeping habit. Some perennials that grow taller can be used like a groundcover. There are many groundcover species commonly seen in the landscape, mostly non-native ones like Vinca major, Pachysandra terminalis, or Liriope. Unfortunately, many non-native groundcovers are also considered invasive like wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei), and English ivy (Hedera helix).

There are many reasons why a groundcover may make a great choice. Groundcovers can help fill large spaces, especially if you’re on a budget. The groundcover will spread over time, so you can buy fewer plants to get started. Many native groundcovers are manageable in the landscape even when left to naturalize.

In a design sense, using large swaths of groundcovers can create a simple, refined garden space. Use them to create a monochromatic palette or greenery for foliage interest. For groundcovers that bloom, large blocks of color create nice views along a roadway or as a backdrop to a garden.

One of my favorite ways to use a groundcover is underneath trees and shrubs. Because it can be difficult to reach underneath a shrub to pull weeds, planting a groundcover helps with this dilemma. I often show up to client’s homes, where I find invasive honeysuckle growing inside another shrub. This situation is often overlooked, so when you plant a shrub, consider planting a companion groundcover underneath.

In an ecological sense, native groundcovers can be used to suppress invasive species in an area. For example, wild ginger has a dense root structure, which prevents anything else from growing in it. Groundcovers will compete with other plants through its root structure, shading the ground, and absorbing moisture from the soil. Use this behavior to prevent weeds.

Some plants can be considered groundcovers even though they are not low growing. Ferns, like ostrich (Matteuccia struthiopteris) and interrupted (Osmunda claytoniana), will spread by underground rhizomes or stolons to form small colonies that are great for filling in sections of a shade garden. River oats is a nice ornamental plant that looks like a grass. It readily seeds, but it is great in areas where you need to keep out invasive plants and to prevent soil erosion.

Like river oats, grasses, and sedges (Carex species) make great groundcovers on sloped areas that are prone to erosion. These plants in a residential setting work well because they mimic a lawn but eliminate mowing along steep slopes which can be dangerous.

Sedges are another low maintenance alternative. They are the only plant I consider no maintenance because many species don’t need cutting down in spring. They are safe choices in an easement garden between the sidewalk and street since they don’t block views. A few can tolerate being stepped on occasionally in these high traffic areas.

A few part shade to shade groundcovers to consider are wild ginger (Asarum canadense), Allegheny spurge (Pachysandra procumbens), stonecrop (Sedum ternatum), woodland phlox (Phlox divaricata), creeping phlox (Phlox stolonifera), golden groundsel (Packera aurea), green and gold (Chrysogonum virginianum), and dwarf crested iris (Iris cristata). Some of these can tolerate nearly full sun conditions. For full sun conditions try moss phlox (Phlox subulata), pussytoes (Antennaria virginica), and prairie smoke (Geum triflorum).

Success with groundcovers starts with the right plant for the right place. Always check the plant’s growing conditions before purchasing. A groundcover may thrive in its ideal condition, but struggle in others. Always check botanical names before purchasing since common names can be misleading. It’s easy to confused them with similar non-native species, or a cousin who likes a different microclimate.

Working in the landscape industry, I’ve seen groundcovers planted haphazardly in landscapes with little thought. Use groundcovers to show intentionally, which achieves a certain affect whether it’s for aesthetic or ecological reasons. If you have areas in your landscape that could use some groundcover, consider some of these native choices.

Katrina Kelly is a native to Lexington, Kentucky. She is a graduate of the University of Kentucky and has a degree in Landscape Architecture and Music. She is the owner and solopreneur of EARTHeim Landscape Design in Lexington, which focuses on creating unique garden designs with native plants and backyard homesteads. Her interest in native plants began when she volunteered at Salato with Mary Carol Cooper in 2005. She is a board member of the Wild Ones organization in Lexington. In the small amount of time she is not thinking about gardens or gardening, she enjoys photography, writing, science, fitness and nutrition, and building or crafting things around the home.