Missouri Green Industry Conference, December 9th 2015
Living Together; Traditional and Native Landscapes, effective management
strategies for both
Many new corporate landscapes now have a native plant component. This is driven by, amongst other
things; landscape architects and engineers .Designers realize people want a more natural approach to
our outdoor environment. Mandates for clean water now look to our native plants as effective
infrastructure to achieve stormwater controls.
Our work encompasses many varied projects from prairie reconstructions to stormwater basins, many in
fairly urban situations. Much of our work is within what we consider to be traditional landscapes; mown
turf and planted beds. True native landscapes are often not fully understood by property owners and
managers, we find ourselves explaining the rationale! And working to make the native component fit
the site.
Since native landscaping is somewhat new to our area many installers find it hard to find the plants, we
often see substitutions for specified plants that may be the same genus but are not from the US! The
rush to get the job done leaves a native planting with non-native plants, a great start!
A newly planted landscape always needs time to establish. Our work is the same, native landscapes
typically need more time. We often sow seed, such an area will need at least 3 years to come to a young
stage – far longer than traditional landscape where instant is the norm. Native nursery stock is typically
smaller and thus takes longer to mature. We often work on larger scales than traditional plantings –
perhaps with the exception of turf!
Most native landscape professionals consider their plantings to be dynamic and expect them to change
over time. We try to read a site and design our plantings to fit ecologically; we rarely get it 100% right!
But if we are close plants adjust, either by size or reseeding so the whole is balanced. We constantly look
for improvements and stability. This can be a challenging issue to convey to property owners especially
on a young seeded landscape that changes radically from year to year.
Any native area within a larger traditional landscape must be maintained so it is fully integrated, we
have heard people state that native plantings are low maintenance. As long as it not no maintenance
and it is done professionally it will be the most interesting part of the landscape! We must stress to
owners that native landscapes need care to be successful.