American Beauties Native Plant Program

[The Helpful Gardener]

I have been working on a project that is making a big splash in the industry right now; we released American Beauties, a native plant program to a lot of interest this past summer, and most recently at the Maryland Allied Nursery Trade Show (MANTS). I have been working with the folks at North Creek Nurseries and the National Wildlife Federation, the country's largest conservation organization, to create a backyard habitat creation program for sale in the independent garden center. We are making it easy to find good habitat plants through-out the Northeast (New England and Mid Atlantic) and will be bringing on new partners to take this throughout the entire nation, on a regional basis, concentrating on plant pallettes for that specific region.

[url]https://www.nwf.org/backyardwildlifehabitat/AmericanBeauties.cfm[/url]

The nice man communing with bunnies and filling feeders is my friend Dave Mizejewski (the pretty lady is Molly Pesce). They have a TV show about creating backyard habitat called, suprisingly enough, Backyard Habitat, so there's a how-to show as well. (Dave will be speaking at the TPIE show in Florida this week...)

Dave is also their Backyard Habitat Manager and they are closing on 70,000 certified habitats; this is their 70th year and they want to celebrate with the big 70 at 70. So check out the links see if your backyard has got what it takes...

If not, look for American Beauties at a garden center near you...


[url]https://www.abnativeplants.com/[/url]


Scott

[Grey]

Hey very cool! Great work!

[grandpasrose]

Sounds like a really cool idea! Great work Scott!

Val

[The Helpful Gardener]

Thanks. The nicest thing has been the validation from the cognescenti. My friend Bill Cullina at NEWFS was immensely giving of time and expertise, and Allan Armitage has asked to join the release of his new book to our program, stuff you can't buy for love or money. Most importantly it spreads the good word on native planting while securing habitat all over the country for endangered wildlife through the donation to NWF (while making it easier to buy natives at your local nursery...I'm thrilled to be part of this and the initial returns from the Baltimore show are very good; we are being talked about in a big way...

Scott

[The Helpful Gardener]

Very exciting results at the shows to the new program; press is energized and the garden centers are finally started to come around (Many still think there is no interest in native habitat gardening, so head to your local garden center and tell them what you want!)

Spent heaps of quality time with Dr. Armitage, who has been very supportive (talked up this plant program at CENTS and New England Grows). He even signed some books for me and posed for a shot to appear here soon. Even said he'd like to help out here if there's anything he might do; I am still stewing over the possibilities in my head...

If you would like a book signed by the good doctor go to...

[url]https://www.armitagebooks.net[/url]

Look for American Beauties to go national in the next few years; ahead of our schedule already, but that's a good thing...

Scott

[opabinia51]

Up here in Canada Nancy Turner is the officianado (among others) on native plants and has some great books. I recently purchased one on edible native plants of Canada.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Just got a book on foraging New England for Xmas; I can't wait to get out in the woods and start munching (Becky is terrified as I already am constantly picking things and saying "Eat this!". I think she fears this may trigger eating binges during what little exercise I do get...)

Scott

[opabinia51]

I love walking through the forests and eating all the edibles. There are also tonnes of edibles that grow in meadows and even my own back yard! It's a veritable salad bar!

This is why my dream garden (and home) is going to incorporate a food forest.

I recently purchased some alpine strawberry seeds that I will get going once My seedlings have been hardened off and moved out into the greenhouse. Alpine strawberries are so lovely when you are hiking up a mountain and you come across them, these tiny lttile berries just explode in your mouth with flavour, it's amazing to think that something so small, has so much flavour.

[grandpasrose]

I have those growing in my backyard all over the place! When we bought the property, the neighbours were mad because we had their strawberry patch. They're very hardy, and the more sun they get, the sweeter they are. The flavor in one little berry does not even compare to a normal strawberry - even one out of the garden!

Val

[opabinia51]

Yes, I still remember the first time I ate them while climbing Heather Mounttain on the (I think its) North Side of Cowichan Lake. They were growing in a cut along the roadside that my friend and I were hiking on. Wow, I could not believe the flavour! And the lovely flavour and not to mention energy that I recieved from all those sugars.

A word to the wise about growing them from seed though; they can take up to a month (if not more) to germinate! Yikes, good thing I'm a patient gardener.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Saw my good friend Stephanie Cohen speak at the Perennial Plant Conference at UCONN today (Go Huskies!) . Auntie Steph said good things about several of the fine perennials offered in the American Beauties Program, most notably what a fine hummingbird plant is our Aguilegia canadensis 'Little Lanterns' (syn. 'Canyon Vista'). For you west of the Rockies folks, Steph liked Aquilegia chrysantha, a beautiful yellow form of columbine (For those right in the Rockies A. caerulea is a blue and white one perfect for rock gardens and mountain conditions)

And she signed a book for me . Doc Armitage last month and Steph in March. Number 1 and 2 in the perennial game (No I WON'T say which is which ) Hung out with Roger Swain and Karen Boussolini at the Hartford Flower Show. Maybe some of the fame (and smarts) will rub off...


HG

[opabinia51]

Cool!

So, what family does the genus Aguilegia belong to? Any common names?

[The Helpful Gardener]

Columbines. Aquilegia is the genus and they are buttercup family (Ranunculaceae)

HG

[opabinia51]

G-narly. Thanks Scott