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Though many of today’s popular garden plants are imported, native plants are making a comeback for a host of good reasons:

• Native plants require less maintenance. Plants native to the region are adapted to the local environment and therefore require less care in the form of fertilizer and irrigation.
• Native plants are less susceptible to disease and pests. They have evolved with local insects and plants, developing defences that allow them to coexist. As plants are domesticated, they become more susceptible to disease, insect pests, and weeds, and are therefore more dependent on the use of pesticides and other chemicals for survival.
• Native plants are better suited to meet the needs of local wildlife. They provide valuable food sources and shelter for wildlife. Many domestic flowers have been bred for showiness and may have lost much of their nectar and pollen characteristics. Flowers that have been cultivated to have tightly bunched, frilly flowers also make it more difficult for insects to access their nectar.
• Some wildlife species are entirely dependent on the availability of certain native plants. Local wildlife evolved not in isolation, but with the native vegetation. This wildlife has adapted to depend on the existing plant life. While some wildlife are flexible in their choice of food plants, others are dependent on the availability of a specific plant for their survival. The Karner Blue butterfly, for example, is endangered because of the disappearance of its larval host plant, wild lupine. By choosing plants native to your region you support local wildlife.