Aster: an Introduction to the Genus. When most spring + summer garden flowers have faded, native Asters take center stage—bursting into bloom in late summer and early fall just when pollinators need them most. These specifically cheerful, star-like blossoms paint fields and gardens in shades of violet, lavender, blue, pink and white. Finally, Asters in […]
Before, During, After: The Transformation of a Native Plant Garden Before During After. Every native plant garden begins with a view that appears a little underwhelming. The before stage is often bare, compacted, and unimpressive. Turf grass, invasive plants, or tired soil dominate the space. To the untrained eye, it can feel like nothing beautiful
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How to get rid of ticks on your property. How to Get Rid of Ticks on Your Property. There’s nothing quite like time spent outdoors—exhilarating, grounding, and good for the soul. But in the Northeast, many of us share one persistent worry: how to reduce tick exposure—preferably to zero. After nearly two decades of organic
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Soft Landings: A Better Way to Care for Trees and Build Habitat The practice of designing “soft landings” is transforming how ecologically minded gardeners care for the spaces beneath their trees. Instead of relying on mulch or stagnant lawngrass, soft landings involve planting gentle, shade-tolerant native perennials under the canopy. These plants create a living
Climate-resilient corporate landscaping. Climate resilient corporate landscaping is a lot more than an exterior upgrade or capital gains. (Although those tangible gains are very welcome in most campuses.) After that, a strategic investment in the health of your property, your people, and the entire region can be realized. When a corporate campus chooses native plants,
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The Eastern Cottontail Rabbit: Pest, Prey, or Ecological Partner? You’ve seen one freeze at the edge of your garden bed — nose twitching, ears swiveling, pretending to be invisible. The Eastern Cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus) is one of upstate New York’s most familiar wild neighbors. But is it a pest to manage or a partner
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Ecological Stormwater Solutions Rain Gardens, Native Plants, and Bioretention Ponds. Ecological stormwater solutions work by slowing water down, spreading it out, and letting living systems do the work. Rain Gardens with Native Plants. Rain gardens are shallow, bowl-shaped gardens placed where runoff naturally flows. When planted with deep-rooted Native Plants, they act like living sponges.
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Luna Moths: Moonlit Romance in the Night Garden. If any creature in our northeastern forests seems made of myth rather than biology, it’s the Luna Moths (Actias luna.) Pale green wings, long trailing tails, and a soft luminescence under moonlight make them one of the most romantic native species we can welcome into our gardens.
The Long Garden Game The Long Garden Game. Native wildflower gardens are certainly not just a trend. They are one of the most practical, hopeful ways we can heal land in the United States. However, they ask something difficult of us: patience. These gardens do not perform on demand. Instead, they unfold over time, rewarding
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Regenerative Landscaping Regenerative LandscapingHumans have a regenerative gear. We just need to use it. Most modern interactions with the land are quietly degrading. People mow, spray, strip, compact, bulldoze, and remove organic matter. Good intentions don’t annul the harm and fragmentation that results. Over time, the soil becomes depleted, water runs off instead of soaking
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Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) is a very tall New York native wildflower that makes an unforgettable statement in any garden. It often grows well over six feet tall, and sometimes even taller. Because of its height and vigor, the plant quickly becomes a back-row champion in larger
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Sleep, Creep, Leap: How Native Gardens Truly Grow One of the most helpful ways to understand native plant gardens is through a simple phrase: Sleep, Creep, Leap. It perfectly describes the real, honest rhythm of how native landscapes establish themselves over time. Year One is the Sleep phase. This is often the hardest stage for
Pollinator Gardens in Albany, NY To be sure, in the past few years, many customers have reached out requesting pollinator gardens in Albany, NY. We love it! Native plants are exactly what we need for urban habitat restoration. Many of our clients live in the neighborhoods surrounding SUNY Albany or the College at Saint Rose.
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Yellow Dock: What This Weed Is Telling You About Your Soil. You’ve probably seen Yellow Dock (Rumex crispus) without knowing it. It grows in disturbed ground, along roadsides, and at the edges of fields — those tall rusty-brown seed stalks that stand long after everything else has died back. It arrived from Europe and western
Beautiful Weeds Beautiful Weeds: Why America’s “Weeds” Are Actually Keystone Wildflowers Colonial Farming Nomenclature. When colonists began settling farms in the so-called “new world,” they encountered plants unlike anything they had seen before. These wildflowers grew vigorously, often appearing along fencerows, in fallow fields, and even pushing their way into crops. Instead of recognizing their
Commercial Native Landscaping: Build It Right Once, Maintain It Less Forever. Commercial landscapes do not need to be high maintenance to be beautiful. In fact, the opposite is often true. When commercial sites invest a little more intention, planning, and quality during construction, they save dramatically on maintenance costs for decades to come. This is
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Native Plants: What Are They? What are native plants? How can you differentiate a native species versus an introduced species? What designates a plant as invasive? Can a native plant be invasive? Native Plants: What Are They? We consider a plant native to a region if it existed there already before the explorers (like
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Invasive Plants in New York: What Homeowners Need to Know (and What to Plant Instead). Landscapes in New York should be thriving, biodiverse, and full of life—but many are quietly being overrun by invasive plants. These aggressive species spread rapidly, outcompeting native wildflowers, shrubs, and trees. The result is a dramatic loss of habitat for
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Low Maintenance Backyard Landscaping Ideas (Using Only Native Plants). If you want a backyard that’s beautiful, ecologically sound, and actually low maintenance, the secret isn’t plastic edging, dyed mulch, or constant irrigation. The secret is native plants, healthy soil, and design choices that work with nature instead of against it. When you follow the land’s
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Matrix Planting What Is Matrix Planting? Matrix planting is a design approach where a dominant, continuous ground layer supports and stabilizes a comparatively smaller number of feature plants that emerge through it. Think of the matrix basically as the living fabric of the garden. The structure further integrates everything else. Ecologically, this mirrors how real