Plant Michiganers
Native plants have deep,“thirsty” roots that help retain water on your site and filter out the pollutants in runoff. They help stabilize soils and prevent erosion. Try just one in your garden this year:
• For shady areas -- wild geranium is a great choice -- nice flower, foliage stays around all year, pretty fall color.
• For sunnier spots -- penstemon digitalis (beardstongue) in well-draining soil -- it is relatively short, has a good season of bloom time in early summer, and keeps its foliage. OR swamp milkweed for wetter gardens areas -- fairly tall so not usually a ‘front of the border’ plant. For more information and native plant resources, go to http://bit.ly/healthylawnhrwc. Thanks to Shannan Gibb-Randall, landscape architect at Insight Design Studio, LLC for these recommendations.