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Free Native Plant Giveaway: Times-Mail Native Tree Canopy and Understory Initiative 2019
August 30 @ 9:00 am - 5:00 pm MDT
We’re excited to be partnering with The Times-Mail to give away free native plants! Stop by the Library on Friday, August 30th to pick up some shrubs or grasses for your garden or landscape (while supplies last). These are all low-maintenance, non-invasive, and pollinator-friendly plants that help our environment to thrive. Read on to learn more about the plants we’re offering:
Wild Columbine:
An herbaceous perennial native to North America. Its showy red and yellow blooms hang downward from sparsely-branched stems in late spring to early summer. Wild columbine nectar has an unusually high sugar content, attracting hummingbirds and pollinators. The plant is best in part shade to light sun with moist to dry soil conditions. Once established, the plant is tolerant of full sun with adequate moisture (mortonarb.org).
Prairie Dropseed:
A Missouri-native perennial grass with fine, hair-like medium green leaves that grow up to 20 inches long. It is easily grown in dry to medium, well-drained soils in full sun. This grass prefers dry, rocky soils but tolerates a wide range of soil conditions. In the summer, pinkish, branching flower panicles appear on stems rising well above the foliage clump. In late autumn, mature seeds drop from their hulls onto the ground (hence the plant’s name), and the foliage turns golden orange
(missouribotanicalgarden.org).
Culver’s Root:
A native perennial wildflower that grows well in sunny locations with moist to wet soils. It is tall (3-6 ft.), durable, adaptable, and easily grown. Its showy flowers bloom from July-September are an excellent source of pollen and nectar for pollinators including butterflies and bees of many species (plants.usda.gov).
Little Bluestem:
An ornamental bunchgrass with fine-textured foliage that forms very dense mounds 18-24 inches in height. Slender, blue-green stems, appearing in August, reach 3 ft. by September and become a striking mahogany in the fall, persisting through winter snow. In winter, its seeds are an important food source for small birds (wildflower.org).
Purple Prairie Clover:
A native prairie clover featuring tiny purple flowers blooming in the summer in dense, cone-like heads up to 2 inches long. Its stiff, wiry stems typically grow 1-3 feet tall. It is low-maintenance and drought-tolerant in full-sun areas with average moisture and well-draining soil. It is readily consumed by many types of wildlife, including birds, small mammals, and grazing livestock. The flowers also attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies (missouribotanicalgarden.org).
Prior to August 9th, shrubs can be reserved (with a limit of three per person) by emailing Lacy Jones at ljones@heraldt.com.