Reddit user u/tedwar recently lost several trees in their yard to Category 4 Hurricane Helene. Rather than crying over spilled milk, they've decided to turn that milk into lemonade. Okay, we're mixing our metaphors here, but you get the point. They're making the most out of their misfortune, and they're turning to r/NativePlantGardening to do it.
The OP explains that they recently moved to Western North Carolina, only to run into one of the caveats of living in this beautiful region.
"Unfortunately Helene hit us about a month after we moved," they said. "We were very fortunate in that we had no major structural damage to the house and we are uphill from the river (our heart breaks for our community and those less fortunate)."
"We did have 3 large trees come down and about 4 medium trees. Needless to say we lost a lot of landscaping and hardscaping on that side of the house," they continued. "However, we want to try and turn a hardship into a positive by creating a new garden with the new sun exposure."
It would be easy to see darkness and gloom where those trees fell, but this OP saw a whole lot of sunshine.
"We are inspired by Japanese meditation gardens and plan to put in ornamental exotics… I would love to use at least 50% natives throughout the property, for the wildlife value."
The OP then turned to the community for advice on how to curate a Japanese-inspired native plant hybrid yard.
For anyone interested in rewilding their property or going for a natural lawn, this post offers a ton of value. Maybe you have visions of a yard that perfectly matches your aesthetic, and that aesthetic is not 100% native plants. Luckily, you can have the best of both worlds.
Native plants can save you time and money on maintenance, conserve water, and save energy. They also promote a healthy ecosystem for our food-creating pollinators to thrive. Dedicating even half your property to them can make a world of difference.
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Which of these benefits is your biggest motivation in gardening? Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. |
Getting outside more 🌱 The beauty of this post is that it's a response to the strengthened natural disasters caused by rising temperatures. Much like the OP, we can find sunshine in fallen trees if we know where to look.
The commenters offered some useful advice.
"I think that an Eastern Redbud tree would suit the aesthetic," one suggested.
"Lots of native carex. Dirca, hawthorn," another offered. "Many small woodland Things particularly in masse - heuchera, tiarella, trillium."
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