There is something about this time of the year that brings out my creative side. One of my favorite hobbies is to gather materials from native plants to create natural crafts. At our home garden and at Lincoln University native plant gardens, we leave as much dry...
Golden alexanders (Zizia aurea) and Blue false indigo (Baptisia australis). Photo: Scott Woodbury
Rattlesnake Master: Not Just for the Pollinators
With its yucca-like appearance and curious common name, rattlesnake master (Erynigium yuccifolium) is bound to get the attention of native plant enthusiasts. In a native prairie or prairie planting, this easily identifiable plant gets plenty of pollinator attention,...
Leave the Leaves
By Carol Davit, Missouri Prairie Foundation Executive Director Photo of leaves in native plant bed: Carol Davit. Through the mastery and mystery of plant chemistry, leaf abscission occurs every fall in woodlands and forests, and petioles detach from deciduous tree and...
September Gold
By Carol Davit, Missouri Prairie Foundation Executive Director Photo of rigid goldenrod (Solidago rigida) and blue sage (Salvia azurea) at Missouri Prairie Foundation's Snowball Hill Prairie: Bruce Schuette. On prairies, prairie plantings, native gardens, many old...
The Magic of Milkweed
By Erica Ballard Recently, the migratory monarch butterfly was added to the International Union for Conservation’s (IUCN) endangered species red list. As these declining butterflies depend entirely on milkweed as host plants during their caterpillar stage, programs...
Those Dr. Seuss Plants: Using Prairie Blazing Star to Capture Interest
By Erica Ballard One of the most rewarding facets of my native garden is using it as a teaching tool for my neighborhood. A colorful Grow Native! garden sign near my mailbox announces the purposeful intent of my native plantings, which help native pollinators...
Snow in July: The Wonders of Wild Hydrangea
By Erica Ballard Last summer, I planted nine wild hydrangea shrubs (Hydrangea arborescens) in a new native garden in front of my house. Situated in the back of the planting in a long row, the hydrangeas provide structure and continuity to a garden that is mostly...
Last Chance for Winter Pruning
My favorite winter activity, besides going for long walks through the woods, is pruning trees and shrubs. March is the last month to do it before they leaf out in April. Why prune before leaf-out? It’s easy to see the branching structure, and safer in terms of disease...
Native Plant Container Gardening
By Mervin Wallace I began growing native perennials in containers for outdoor display about ten years ago, as various native plant colleagues of mine had suggested. At Missouri Wildflowers Nursery, we now have decorative pots, planted seven to eight years ago, which...
Community Conservation: Interview with Ronda Burnett
In 2020, Ronda Burnett became the new chair of MPF's Grow Native! Committee. A native of Monett, MO, Ronda has worked as a community conservation planner with the Missouri Department of Conservation in Springfield, MO since 2005. Ronda is also the author of...
Are You a Host with the Most?
By Carol Davit, Missouri Prairie Foundation Executive Director Photo: Linda Williams The foundation for insect and other animal life is plants. Not just any plants, but plants native to a given location, where insects in that same geography evolved with those same...
Native Plants & Your Vegetable Garden
Did you know native companion plants facilitate pollination of fruits and vegetables?