COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- April is Native Plant Month in Ohio, and residents of the state can celebrate while also preserving native flora in their gardens and yards.
Chief Botanist for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Rick Gardner said that people often have the mindset that plants from Europe and Asia are better than ones from North America. He challenged this claim, and encouraged people to contribute to the continuation of the region's native plants.
"What we have here in North America is starting to go away," Gardner said. "Native plants provide just as much beauty and landscaping as our European and Asian plants."
In 2019, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill into law designating April as Native Plant Month, making Ohio the first state in the country to recognize the importance of native plants for a whole month. On March 20, the U.S. Senate approved a resolution making April 2024 National Native Plant Month.
Gardner explained how native plants are crucial to the well-being of local habitats.
"Our native wildflowers are best for pollinators because they are the plants that the pollinators have evolved with and know them best, and provide the most nourishment," Gardner said. "So, it's important to have these plants since so much of our landscape is now urban and suburban landscapes."
Regardless of environmental reasons, Gardner said there are perks to native plants a beginning gardener may enjoy.
"It's also a joy to have them," Gardner said. "Because they're low maintenance. And then you get all these pollinators coming to your yard."
Native plants that Gardner said Ohio residents can plant in their gardens and yards include:
To learn about Native Plant Month, where to buy native plants and more, visit ohionativeplantmonth.org.
