tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post5926000749925025732..comments2024-03-24T12:55:07.300-04:00Comments on grounded design by Thomas Rainer: Native Plant Myth #3: Native Plants are not as showy or ornamental as exotic plantsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13805682623764800983noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-1533859430912691622011-02-08T10:24:09.813-05:002011-02-08T10:24:09.813-05:00Funny how sometimes I just "do" without ...Funny how sometimes I just "do" without much thought: I plant picking favorites then throw in an interesting garden element (broken clay pot or something) and when I stop to consider your post I see that I am evocative, for sure (I want to hide in my lavender), but also appreciate provocative. I love Chanticleer Gardens, for example, but go for less-wild in my yard.<br /><br />This is what you do so well--you make me stop and think. Then plant on. Thanks Thomas!margarethttp://fresh-basil.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-13386532349031504682011-02-02T20:37:54.284-05:002011-02-02T20:37:54.284-05:00A really interesting point. As a student, I worke...A really interesting point. As a student, I worked in the NYBG Native Plants Garden, and in those days to showcase those ecosystems in a public garden was almost revolutionary. But I agree that Natives won't catch on with the public if we only present them as a sort of ecological duty. I've spoken to Sheila Brady about the new design and it sounds like its going to be spectacular.Thomas Christophernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-36432607019869799862011-01-28T12:25:01.954-05:002011-01-28T12:25:01.954-05:00Garden style are always very important to choose a...Garden style are always very important to choose as they should be unique and should have a some good specifications as they hold your impression.Pond Kitshttp://www.gardenpondstores.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-39046467299333128622011-01-27T13:20:57.458-05:002011-01-27T13:20:57.458-05:00Albeit belatedly, I've added Grounded Design t...Albeit belatedly, I've added Grounded Design to the Bevy of Blogs page on Bay Area Tendrils.<br />Alice<br />aka<br />Alice's Garden Travel BuzzBay Area Tendrilshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02559534912850380427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-54176274614049238692011-01-27T13:14:32.344-05:002011-01-27T13:14:32.344-05:00Thomas
I'll look forward to seeing the NYBG&#...Thomas<br /><br />I'll look forward to seeing the NYBG's new Native Plant Garden on my next trip to New York. The design concept sounds incredibly intriguing.<br /><br />At this time of year I tend to recall my last Springtime visit to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden where curator Uli Lorimer keeps their Native Plant Garden in tip-top shape. <br /><br />I love the delicacy of native blooms. That said, your approach sounds provocative and challenging in the best of ways. Future forward makes sense.Alice Joycehttp://alicesgardentravelbuzz.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-8052379853023674112011-01-27T13:06:13.873-05:002011-01-27T13:06:13.873-05:00Seed sowing is the first step towards gardening. G...Seed sowing is the first step towards gardening. Gardening is a beautiful habit and hobby to follow as it gives content to the heart and peace to the mind. Even I have a small garden in my backyard.blog about our products we have in our just feminized rangehttp://www.justfeminized.com/index.aspnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-56702673648201881112011-01-27T10:26:08.640-05:002011-01-27T10:26:08.640-05:00Wow, Piet Oudolf's use of natives is gorgeous....Wow, Piet Oudolf's use of natives is gorgeous. I love your perspective.margarethttp://fresh-basil.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-41000972835844910262011-01-26T13:21:06.160-05:002011-01-26T13:21:06.160-05:00Great post, Thomas, and also a very interesting di...Great post, Thomas, and also a very interesting discussion. Trying to convince gardeners that they should forgo pretty in favor of native will never work; emphasizing the ways you can make a pretty garden with natives seems like a much more successful approach -- and if nursery owners like Carolyn can find a way to give them catchy cultivar names, too, so much the better! -JeanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-2653348465680487022011-01-26T07:01:02.427-05:002011-01-26T07:01:02.427-05:00Carolyn,
What a fascinating concept! I had a cli...Carolyn,<br /><br />What a fascinating concept! I had a client who requested Hydrangea quercifolia 'Alice' just because she had a daughter named that. I think it would work, especially if the wildlife value were somehow embedded in it.<br />ThomasAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13805682623764800983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-81201790098141463252011-01-25T20:16:09.277-05:002011-01-25T20:16:09.277-05:00A related marketing liability of native plants is ...A related marketing liability of native plants is that they tend not to have catchy cultivar names. As I nursery owner I know that the name of the plant is often as important as its ultimate look in convincing the customer to buy. That's one of the reasons why all these new native heucheras are so marketable: who can resist 'Sugar Plum', 'Southern Comfort', and 'Midnight Rose'. Doug Tallamy and I have been tossing around the idea of giving catchy cultivar names reflecting the native's benefit to the environment to straight species native plants, for example, Quercus rubra 'Wildlife Queen' (obviously we would need to get those marketing people involved). What do you think?Carolyn @ Carolyn's Shade Gardenshttp://carolynsshadegardens.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-65965048838333266232011-01-25T16:31:59.972-05:002011-01-25T16:31:59.972-05:00The New Native Plant garden might make a trip to N...The New Native Plant garden might make a trip to New York worth considering! One of my favorite gardens is the Lurie garden in Chicago.<br />Lucky you for gettiing to work on it. <br /><br />It's true, as the linked information points out, we can't recreate natural communities in small spaces; as soon as we make choices, why, we are gardeners and may as well practice some design.<br /><br />But also: does appreciating native plants, or getting casual garden visitors to appreciate them require a shift in our aesthetic paradigm and educating others to that shift? <br /><br />I remember so clearly when I discovered (to echo a previous comment) that grasses are beautiful, and when I learned that flowers are much more beautiful with pollinators than without.Adrian Ayres Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11057583835126786240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-65788134297283782332011-01-25T15:22:17.326-05:002011-01-25T15:22:17.326-05:00Each time I read your posts, my concept of a garde...Each time I read your posts, my concept of a garden is stretched and challenged. I love the concept of an over the top blooming native border. That would change the way people see natives.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-31757252048024019842011-01-25T12:34:21.136-05:002011-01-25T12:34:21.136-05:00This is an excellent post. In my own design practi...This is an excellent post. In my own design practice, I strive to use natives emphasizing design first. Not every native garden has to be a meadow or wildlife habitat or mimic natural landscapes. The wide variety of natives-- including a new wave of native selections and cultivars coming to market--work in both informal and formal designs.Scott Calhounhttp://www.zonagardens.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-17244956551527827672011-01-25T12:16:01.894-05:002011-01-25T12:16:01.894-05:00Thomas, I think you made some great points. More d...Thomas, I think you made some great points. More designs like Piet Oudolf with masses of natives to inspire people. <br />I have seen some excellent residential native landscapes in the midwest in both formal and informal designs that were very effective and would prompt anyone to buy more natives. <br /><br />It is also a question of perception. Why do we as a society devalue the look of our natural landscapes? We are always seem to be drawn to something different or unique or more colorful or more organized. We just can't handle the natural chaos, it's unsettling I guess. <br /><br />Christopher Lloyd did an excellent job of combining the natural with the formal at Great Dixter and I agree this would be an interesting design with our native plants.<br />HeatherHeather Holmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12614164765858960174noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-28722449169331712792011-01-25T11:37:23.969-05:002011-01-25T11:37:23.969-05:00Bullseye! I always try to emphasize what you also ...Bullseye! I always try to emphasize what you also say, "The problem is not that native plants are intrinsically less ornamental than exotics; the problem is one of design. Native gardens, for the most part, overly imitate natural plant communities. Native gardens end up looking like some poor imitation..."<br /><br />Some people do not like that, but the truth hurts. But those who do get it, some are my clients and all are far more thoughtful.Desert Dwellerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00952727692048782529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-72203158182864297452011-01-25T10:56:45.616-05:002011-01-25T10:56:45.616-05:00Scott,
That's exactly what first got me turne...Scott,<br /><br />That's exactly what first got me turned on to natives. It wasn't so much the environmental argument, but it was discovering how many wonderful, showy, and garden worthy plants there are. I'm convinced one could design a flower border of nothing but U.S. natives that rivals Great Dixter. Hmmm, maybe I'll have to try that. ThomasThomashttp://www.groundeddesign.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-70821820385636568062011-01-25T10:42:43.027-05:002011-01-25T10:42:43.027-05:00Wow...I had never really thought of it that way, b...Wow...I had never really thought of it that way, but I think you may have hit the nail on the head. I admit, even though I tend to be "conscious" of natives, I was designing my backyard this spring and was considering which grasses I was going to use. I started with the usual ones, Miscanthus, Pennisetum, etc. Then, spurred on by my recent love of Schizachrynium, I started poking around about other native grasses. Lo and behold...what a bevy of beauties! Sorghastrum, Andropogon...such wonderful grasses, and ones that I'm ashamed to admit, grew all around my childhood house in Nebraska. In the prarie, they were merely "there", but you are right, put them in a traditional border and they were statuesque beauties, rivaling any exotic grass.scottweberpdxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08740930947767329183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-90425640428193703152011-01-25T09:32:05.933-05:002011-01-25T09:32:05.933-05:00I think this post is inspired. I wish there more ...I think this post is inspired. I wish there more gardening books that dealt with native plants in just this fashion. Love your quote: "Listen up native plant advocates: until native plants are shown to be beautiful, they will never be fully embraced by the American public."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8850578816787718159.post-56524773578255169402011-01-25T07:52:39.281-05:002011-01-25T07:52:39.281-05:00I really enjoyed your article. In my experience a...I really enjoyed your article. In my experience and as you stated, people want a pretty landscape. If we design the landscape and use natives like any other ornamental, people will embrace their beauty. Then, it's a win-win! <br /><br />I am glad I found your site!Jan @TWOwomenANDaHOEhttp://www.twowomenandahoe.comnoreply@blogger.com