Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
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Monday - May 29, 2006
From: Rockford, IL, IL
Region: Midwest
Topic: Wildlife Gardens
Title: Native plants for wildlife gardening in Illinois
Answered by: Joe Marcus and Dean Garrett
QUESTION:
I live in Rockford, Illinois. Where/How can I find information on native flowers, plants, trees, grasses and animals, and other things I can plant on our property (about an acre) to provide a home for our native animals and insects etc...?ANSWER:
Our Native Plant Information Network page can help with information about plants native to your area. If you do a combination search there, you can enter the name of your state plus the specific conditions of your site, like moisture level and light level, along with plant type preferences, and a list should come up of native plants that fit your criteria.Once you learn the names of some of the basic plants native to your locale, you can enter their scientific or common names into our Native Plants Database to get to information about the plants. Once you get to the information page for a specific plant, if you click on the Uses link near the top of the screen, any information we have about wildlife uses should appear. An internet search using the plants' scientific or common names will also bring up information about benefits to wildlife.
Contacting your local native plant society or Wild Ones chapter will also help, and the National Wildlife Federation has a longstanding backyard habitat program that can provide some pointers. Local Audubon Society chapters can provide good information, and Chicago Wilderness magazine has some good suggestions and helpful links as well.
More Wildlife Gardens Questions
Plants for butterflies and hummingbirds in Louisville, KY
March 31, 2009 - Mr. Smarty Plants,
I live in Louisville KY. I have a waterfall and ponds connected by a small stream. I want to plant several plants around my waterfall- approx. 20 sq ft on both sides of waterfall....
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Appropriate riverbed and quail habitat plantings for southwest OK
September 27, 2009 - Mr Smarty Pants, I have an area in extreme SW Oklahoma along the Red River. What native plants could I plant that are both appropriate for the sandy/saline soils in the vegetative area of the river b...
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A list of bloom times for wildflowers in Michigan
July 03, 2013 - Hello, I am new to bee keeping and live in central Michigan. Can you tell me or do you know where I could find a list of the Michigan wild flower bloom times? This would be very helpful to me.
Than...
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Species of hackberry best for wildlife from Georgetown, TX
February 21, 2014 - Which species of Hackberry tree is the best for wildlife in Georgetown, TX (just north of Austin)? Your Plant Database says Celtis occidentals is "among the BEST food and shelter plants for wildlife,...
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Non-toxic plants for dog yard from Freeport PA
June 24, 2012 - I'm looking for wildlife-friendly native plants that aren't toxic to dogs. I have a place for some small shrubs and/or flowers. And a climbing vine that I could train on a trellis would work espec...
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