Friday, May 22nd, 2009

Gardening with Native Plants

Insects that eat plants are an essential part of terrestrial food webs. If we design landscapes with plants that insects cannot eat, all of the animals that depend on insects for food will disappear. photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Rather than filling your home landscape with exotic plants from the local nursery or home center, why not plant species that should be in your landscape naturally? The idea of planting 'native plants' has received plenty of attention, especially in arid parts of the country. The approach has more to offer than just water savings, however. We'll talk about why growing plants that are native to your area can encourage healthier ecosystems, from insects to birds.

Guests

Doug Tallamy
Author, "Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants" (Timber Press, 2009)
Professor and Chair
Entomology and Wildlife Ecology
University of Delaware
Newark, Delaware

Related Links

Segment produced by:Christopher Intagliata

Image: Typical suburban landscapes have neither enough plants nor the right plants to support our dwindling biodiversity.
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Image: 127 species of neotropical migrants like this ovenbird are in steep decline, in part, because we have sterilized our residential landscapes.
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Image: Because all plants protect their leaves with a variety of nasty chemicals, insects can only eat those few plants for which they have become physiologically specialized.
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Image: This double toothed prominent is an elm specialist. Not only can it detoxify the chemicals in elm leaves, but it also has evolved to look like the edge of an elm leaf. This helps the caterpillar hide from birds while it is eating.
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Image: The white cocoons on the back of this tobacco hornworm each contain a Braconid wasp that has already eaten the insides of the hornworm. The small insect on the cocoons is a Pteromalid wasp that is laying eggs on the Braconids.
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Image: Hummingbirds require nectar for energy, but like most other birds they rear their young on insects. No insects; no hummingbirds!
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.

Image: If you plant an oak tree in your yard you are providing food for the spun glass slug and 533 other species of caterpillars.
photo courtesy Doug Tallamy.