Establishing Native Plants Feb. 18 2026

Описание: Questions Answered:

Q1: I have a bed that gets little to no sun in the morning and scorching west sun from about 1pm to 6pm. It’s right against my dark grey garage, so it gets quite warm there. Can you suggest plants that will work there? When I plant tall plants there like common sunflower, they stretch far out to get light and I want to avoid that. Q2: Which milkweed should I grow to support Monarch butterflies?
Q2: I was told that I should dig down about a foot or so before planting so that I could add six inches of mulch around my native plants … is that really necessary?

Q3: I want to create a native plant bed in my front yard. Can you establish native plants in a clay based soil? Also, should I put a few inches of mulch on a newly established native plant bed? I was told to put 4-6" of mulch around my plants.

Q4: We have a cottage on Buffalo lake, near Stettler but have a problem getting anything to grow. It's all pasture land....thoughts? we get lots of bees, grasshoppers, dragon flies but have been unsuccess with bee balm. Lupines don't grow, lattrice doesn't, hens and chicks don't spread.

Q5: What are some underappreciated or overlooked species that you think should be included more in urban/suburban gardens? (ie, not gaillardia, hyssop, coneflowers, liatris, etc)


Q6: How long do plants take to establish themselves and how can you tell when a plant is established

Q7: Our local club has established native shrubs within a local reserve as a "rehabilitation" project.
We've been weed-whacking the encroaching plants which threaten to
crowd them out, and watering them when the weather is very dry.
How do we wean them off this pampered existence?

Q8: I have some showy asters that need to be moved. Are these easy to move?

Q9: Can I get rid of my common nettle and grow stinging nettle? By seed or by plugs?

Q10: (Not sure if this will work, as I can’t seem to send messages in the chat)- are there annual pollinator friendly native flowers? Or flowers that bloom in the first year?

Q11: Can you provide tips for stratifying native seeds? Should I place them outside in a seed tray?

Q12: We are on an acreage and would like to seed our septic area with grasses first and then fill in with drifts of forb plugs. How should we prepare the area before seeding this spring please?

Q13: We have a green space behind our house that has aggressive grass, the developer would have seeded it but it’s not well maintained. Do you have recommendations for along our chain link fence that will compete with the grass on the other side? I was hoping to introduce some native plants there!
Is it better to keep native plants separate from others or can you mix them with non-native species? For instance, I have planted a bunch of native perennials but I also grow some annual non-native flowers while they are established. Is that wrong?

Q14: Are there any native plants that can out compete creeping bellflower

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