By Pat Dray
The Garden Spot
Pat Dray
I recently heard about the kakapo, a large, flightless parrot that is native to New Zealand which only mates when a specific berry from the Dacrydium cupressinum, commonly known as rimu, is in bloom. The rimu is an evergreen conifer that is also native to New Zealand.
That’s why natives matter. Generally, the rimu only produces fruits every four years. The fruit then takes over a year to mature and produce berries. Approximately every five years you might hear the “booming” of the kakapo mating call.
Fortunately, the kakapo is one of the longest-lived bird species – typically living between 40 and 80 years, with some known to have lived to 100 – so they have time to mate and reproduce. But no native rimu trees mean no more kakapo. A pretty clear reason to plant natives.
Another reason to plant natives is that they are, by definition, non-invasive. The USDA defines an invasive “as a species that is 1) non-native (or alien) to the ecosystem under consideration and 2) whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health.”
In other words, not only will the native plant require less work daily, but it will also not take over the environment and crowd out other beneficial species. Over time, this improves the diversity of plant and insect species. Greater plant diversity in a habitat means greater insect diversity, which means more pollinators.
Another critical reason to plant natives is that with few exceptions, insects are herbivores that have adapted over time to eat only certain plants. Those insects are incredibly important to our pollinators.
According to entomologist Doug Tallamy’s book, Bringing Nature Home, most bird species depend on insect protein and fat for the nutrients required to make eggs and then to feed the young themselves. Tallamy’s research illustrates the importance of native plants. He found that native plants supported four times more insect biomass than non-native plants did. Planting natives means more of the essential foods that our pollinators need.
If you want to hear the birds sing (or in the case of the kakapo, “boom”) and see the fireflies at night, plant native.
If you are undertaking any landscape planning, one of the best native trees to plant in Connecticut is the white oak. One of our most beautiful native shrubs (and the Connecticut state flower) is the mountain laurel, which thrives in many environments with very little care. There are many other native flowering plans that you can easily learn about by visiting nativeplanttrust.org
As the adage goes, the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.
Pat Dray is a past president of the Garden Club of Orange and a master gardener.