Forget Zones...

It seems like a day never goes by without someone on social media sites that I am a member of giving advice about what to plant - and it almost always starts with a question regarding "what zone are you in"............ I despise this type of planting advice. Today, I planted yet another of my very favorite native trees, silky camelia (Stewartia malacodendron), and I challenge the zone people to tell me that I am wrong.
Over the years, I have planted a great many native plants in my landscape that are not in my zone. I think they are basically meaningless as guidelines to creating a home landscape. If I was in the process of restoring a natural community to my yard, it would be a different matter, but I am not. I am creating a living landscape in my tiny suburban lot and I am doing that by maximizing diversity. At the same time, I am adding plants that bring me joy as much as I am adding those that have wildlife value. Silky camelias are one of the most beautiful Florida native trees and I want one near me. Simple as that.
If our goal is to add life to our landscapes, it seems to me most important to add species capable of performing their ecological functions without the addition of valuable resources such as water and without a special need for additional fertilizer. It goes without saying that they should not require pesticides and fungicides to ward off pest problems.
What this means to me is that we should be selecting plants based on their ecological attributes and shunning those that aren't adapted to our growing site. None of that is really translates into "growing zone." Since moving here, I've added three species of native azaleas. None of them occur naturally in Pasco County or in whatever zone I am living in. I've planted three native viburnums, at least 7 species of hawthorns, two species of silverbells, and others that I've used before in other landscapes well out of their zone. I do not have an irrigation system so they do not get additional water once they are firmly established. I mulch with leaf litter and that feeds my soil and tempers the surface temperature. So far, the only woody plant that has perished is a bumelia (Sideroxylon lanuginosa) that is native to my region. Why it persihed, I have no idea, but it wasn't because it wasn't native to my "zone." I will try it again. As we design our landscapes, we should first consider the attributes of the plants we want to add. We next should consider whether we can provide the right microclimate where we intend to plant them and last, we should make sure that what we select will bring us joy. The latter is nearly as important as the others in my opinion. If you are not sure about the growing requirements, consult with those who have grown it. After that, purchase one or several and give it a try. What is the worst thing that could happen? If it dies, try it again in a different growing spot with different conditions. I have killed nearly as many plants suitable for my zone as I have those outside of it. Do not limit yourself for no good purpose. Have some fun and add plants within arm's length that put a smile on your face.
A newly planted silky camelia (Stewartia malacodendron)            

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Ethics of Collecting Seed

Image
I've been writing lately about seeds and using them to create what is often called a pollinator meadow. A great many of the plants in my new landscape were grown from seed. Frankly, I have always loved sowing seeds and watching them sprout. I started in early childhood and I've been doing it since. It's rewarding and the anticipation of waiting for seeds to sprout is difficult to match unless you play the lottery. I rarely purchase seeds. I collect them. When I can, I purchase a few plants of a species I wish to add to my landscape and I then collect their seed after they bloom. If a plant doesn't prosper sufficiently to set seed for me, it is not a plant I wish to continue to grow. Over the years, I've tried a great many plants that I've failed to adequately provide for. Today in my landscape, I'm trying a few that I've never tried before. The exceptions come from plants that are not available in the trade. To grow these from seed, I need to collect
Read more

Wildflower Meadows - The Importance of Grasses

Image
A Natural Wildflower "Meadow" - Apalachicola National Forest I grew up in the prairie Midwest and was fortunate to have been caught up in the prairie restoration movement that blazed brightly in the last few decades of this past century. Very little of our original prairie ecosystems remain as the rich prairie soils were quickly converted to agricultural uses as European settlers swarmed their way over the continent.  These ecosystems are extremely diverse, regardless of where they occur. From the tall-grass prairies of the Midwest to the rockland prairies of the Mid-South and the true dry prairie systems here in Florida where I now reside, there are several universal characteristics - they are some of the most species diverse systems in the world and they are dominated by grasses. Grasses, in all their many shapes and forms, are what form the foundation of any "meadow." That must also be true for all the "wildflower meadows" I see extolled on s
Read more

A Pollinator Garden is More than Wildflowers

Image
A natural grass-dominated meadow in the shade Splitbeard bluestem - Andropogon ternarius Lopsided Indiangrass - Sorghastrum secundum Sites on social media that are promoting pollinator gardens are rife with posts about wildflowers. Folks seeking to make their landscapes pollinator friendly seem to be almost-universally focused on wildflowers. What these well-meaning people seem to not understand is the importance of native grasses. Meadows, prairies, and other wildflower-dominated systems are mostly grass. Grasses form the backbone of every one of these plant communities. It isn't the wildflowers. They simply provide most of the color - but a living landscape is not about color, it's about creating habitat, and this habitat requires us to incorporate native grasses. It is true that the vast majority of grasses, and their graminoid relatives, are wind pollinated. They do not provide nectar and pollen for the most part, but despite that they are significant. More s
Read more