Table of Contents

Introduction

The primary role of plants

Principles for helping wildlife with native plants

Types of landscaping using native plants

a) The pollinator garden (+ Example : Fundy national park)
b) The Forest Garden
c) Rain Gardens and Ponds
d) Fields and meadows
e) Other ways to help nature in your backyard

Native plant suggestions

• Large Trees
• Large shrubs and medium-sized trees
• Medium shrubs
• Small shrubs
• Groundcover plants
• Flowering plants commonly sold in nurseries
• Early-blooming plants (spring-summer flowers)
• Late-blooming plants (summer-autumn flowers)
• Ferns and grasses

Interesting links

Can you tell us where this house is located?

Try to differentiate a yard here from one elsewhere in North America. What distinguishes two yards in different regions?
Large expanses of lawn and a limited selection of non-native trees, shrubs and perennials make our yards look very similar across the continent. By using native plants, we can highlight the unique character of our region. Let’s rediscover our local pride in the plant species found in the land where we live.

A solution to the decline of animal species

Native plants are at the base of the food web. Giving them a place in our yards helps slow the decline in biodiversity, providing an essential source of food for birds and pollinators. They give us the chance to enjoy the colour and beauty of our fields and flowerbeds, just a few steps from our front door!
After talking about the role of native plants in the ecosystem, we’ll introduce you to landscaping models for different sections of your yard. We’ll conclude with a guide using examples of native plants you could use.

Native plants provide food and habitat for pollinators and birds. They also prevent soil erosion and promote rainwater absorption. This reduces the risk of pollution of watercourses through runoff, as well as the pressure on infrastructure during heavy rains.

Principles for helping wildlife with native plants

1. Preserve forest and coastal vegetation cover, as well as original soils. Don’t disturb wetlands, and avoid “cleaning up” natural undergrowth. This ecosystem is not only a source of food and a home for many animals, it is also the young forest in the making.
2. Adapt the landscaping of your yard to site conditions. You can, for example, test the soil to find out whether it is suitable for certain plants rather than others. You can also learn to identify existing vegetation. Consider preserving plants that are beneficial to nature around you, rather than amending your soil to include ones that are not easily grown in your yard conditions.
3. Give preference to native plants, especially those that are not cultivars (a name in quotation marks following the plant name indicates that the plant is a cultivar, such as “Cinderella” Swamp Milkweed). A cultivar is a cultivated, not wild, variety of a plant.
4. Avoid invasive plants. Consult this guide, Grow Me Instead, from the NB and NS Invasive Species Councils for examples of native alternatives to these exotic plants, which provide very little food for local wildlife.
5. Avoid pesticides, as they can disorient or even kill our beneficial insects, preventing them from returning to their nests.
6. Add or keep plants that bloom at different times of the year, to provide pollen and nectar throughout the season.
7. Provide a habitat with many different layers and levels by adding large trees, smaller trees, shrubs and ground cover.
8. Try to grow plants yourself, either from seed (as locally as possible) or by letting certain sections grow and monitoring the species that fill the space. This will reduce the cost of creating your landscape.
   

Types of landscaping using native plants

In your backyard, there may be different conditions that favour the use of different types of landscaping. Here are a few options that might interest you.

A)The pollinator garden

For sunny areas that you want to enhance while attracting pollinators to your yard.

Pollinator gardens provide a variety of food for beneficial insects, such as bumblebees and other native bees (Photo: Marian Whitcomb).

Flowers aren’t the only attraction of pollinator gardens. Leaves and other plant parts such as fruit can also create harmonious shapes and colors all season long.

Photo: Neil Vinson

Example of a pollinator garden: Fundy National Park

Parks Canada has created pollinator gardens in southern New Brunswick, made up entirely of native plants, at several locations including Fundy National Park. Thanks to the expertise of a few dedicated employees, it was possible to create such a habitat. You can see the main gardens at the park entrance from Alma, notably on the left as you head towards Point Wolfe. Although this represents several steps, it’s a good model to follow and you can use it as inspiration to integrate native plants into your garden, one plant at a time. Best of all, you can visit the site for inspiration!

Gallery photo credits: Neil Vinson

B) Forest garden

A type of naturalized space ideal for tree-shaded areas

Photo: Marian Whitcomb

Tips for forest gardens

• The idea behind creating a forest garden is to restore the habitat that was once present in much of our land before European settlement.
• We can’t always know what specific species were present before the landscape was transformed, but we can work towards it by planting species native to New Brunswick’s forests and shady areas.
• It may seem difficult to start with a lawn and create a forest garden. Start by planting native trees, such as sugar maple and red oak, and you’ll be rewarded in later years with shade to encourage ground cover species and shrubs adapted to the forest.

C) Rain gardens and ponds

For wet, poorly drained land, ditches and areas near gutters and asphalt

A pond can attract a large number of animals such as amphibians (frogs, salamanders) and various species of birds to your yard. Avoid planting or adding invasive species, whether fish or plants, to prevent them from spreading into the environment.

Tips for rain gardens

• A low-lying area in your yard is the ideal place to install deep-rooted plants that tolerate waterlogged soil during heavy rains.
• Plants that tolerate occasional flooding include Blue Flag Iris (Iris versicolor), Joe-Pye Weed (Eutrochium maculatum) and even Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis).
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Tips for creating a naturalized artificial pond

• It’s possible to transform a poorly-drained corner of your yard into a thriving aquatic ecosystem.
• If the pond is filled with native plants, these will filter the water to remove nutrients that could promote algae growth.
• The frogs and dragonflies that eventually visit the pond will eat the mosquitoes, preventing unwanted invasions.
• If mosquitoes are a problem, consider adding an air pump to oxygenate the water.
• The same plants as for the rain garden can be used for the sides of your pond. Some species can even grow directly in the water, such as: Sweetflag (Acorus americanus); Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata)

D) The meadow (field)

Good for sunny, low-traffic lots

The meadow or field is a sunny space made up of a wide variety of grasses and flowering plants. There are several layers, or strata. These layers vary from season to season, but it’s generally accepted that there are three main levels:

1. Groundcover plants: These plants, which don’t grow very high (pussytoes, sedges, sweetgrass, native violets), help create a shield against invasive species.
2. The seasonal layer: Flowering plants that have a specific interest over a short period (some shorter goldenrods, Asters, Red Columbine).
3. The structural layer: Anything that grows taller, such as plants over one metre (three feet): (Fireweed) Chamaenerion angustifolium; native grasses; tall goldenrods (Solidago sp.), but also field shrubs (Serviceberry/Amelanchier, Sumac, Hawthorn) that add structure to the meadow.
   (Source: Planting in a Post Wild World, C. West and T. Rainer, p. 173)

If you have a large yard, it’s excellent to keep an area of meadow for wildlife. For areas close to houses or streets, you need to demonstrate your intention to have a well-maintained yard by complying with municipal by-laws on long grass where they apply (Shediac).

Photo: Neil Vinson

Native plant suggestions

Native trees offer many benefits to animals and provide useful shade during the heat of summer, while reducing the heat island effect. In rural areas, trees like sugar maple are an excellent substitute for Norway maple (Acer platanoides), an invasive species spreading through the region’s forests. Visit EcoVision’s Native Trees page for more information on the benefits of Acadian-Wabanaki Forest trees.

 These shrubs and trees offer similar benefits due to their size and importance to wildlife. Some of the following species are interesting for their berries of different colors and shapes, which birds feed on. Their flowers provide an early source of pollen for pollinators.

The medium shrubs we propose are once again very prolific in feeding wildlife. They are ideal for creating structure in the middle of a flowerbed, without dominating the yard too much. They can also be integrated into a variety of hedges along property boundaries. You can also create a hedge of native shrubs to feed the birds. It will provide shade, wind protection, privacy and a spectacle of pollinators and birds.

Small shrubs can often be integrated into a flower bed, creating interest in all seasons.

Groundcovers are flowering plants or very small shrubs that form mats on the ground, reducing the need to pull up unwanted plants. They are accustomed to growing through the mats of fallen leaves from local trees.

Ask about these plants, which often appear in nursery catalogues in eastern Canada. These flowering plants are best suited to humid environments. Also ask about plants grown without pesticides, which can be harmful to insects and birds.

For season-long interest, opt for colourful native flowers that will enhance the colour palette of your flowerbeds, creating a buffet and habitat for pollinators! Late spring and early summer is a crucial time for beneficial insects seeking to breed on very specific host plants, or looking for pollen and nectar.

Native plants from the same family as sunflowers (the Asteraceae) are the most abundant plants to flower in late summer, from August to early October. These late-bloomers are an essential source of pollen and nectar for pollinators, including bumblebees and monarch butterflies, as they prepare for winter by hibernating or migrating south.

Ferns are a common sight in the undergrowth, but they also have their place in our gardens! Their green fronds and spiral shoots in spring make them an excellent attraction in shady areas. And let’s not forget grasses, sedges and rushes, a group of plants at the base of many wetland and dryland ecosystems, which provide food for birds and mammals.

Enjoying nature

Community Science

Participate in science by recording what’s in your landscaped space!

• iNaturalist
• eBird

Identification

Applications exist to help you discover the species that frequent your naturalized space.

• Seek by iNaturalist
• Flora Incognita
• Merlin / All About Birds

This initiative is sponsored by: