Native plants at Lowes'

Last week I did something I never would have thought possible: I bought a suprisingly healthy looking Solidago caesia from the garden center at the Lowes' Hardware store in Newton. An acquaintance involved with the Native Plant Society of New Jersey had recently told me that Lowes' representatives contacted their organization for guidance on what species they should offer. I had been warned not to expect much. Indeed, when I arrived the selection was small, rife with odd cultivars, and completely devoid of the crowds of interested buyers I dreamed I'd see. I've had many conversations in which I vociferously argued that the only thing keeping everyone from incorporating native plants into their gardens was lack of availability. If the prime retailers were going to tap the native plant market, surely it was only a matter of time until the suburban habitat revolution began, right? Well, not quite, but capturing the interest of a big chain store is certainly a victory.

Small signs were posted at each corner of the display, touting the benefits of gardening with native plants: "Easy to grow, requires less water, needs little maintenance". The concept of a 'native plant' was summed up succinctly, "they thrive here because they belong here". There was no mention of value for wildlife, of the need for gardeners willing to create refuges for these species as they are evermore annihilated in field and forest. Of course that came as no surprise, and I wouldn't dream of asking so much. Baby steps.

I wandered around the display, examining the stock. The NPSNJ folks had guided them well, the species choices were all sensible. Attractive, easy to grow perrenials like Aquilega and Solidago, some hearty graminoids such as Carex pennsylvanica, and a few woody species; most notably several Viburnum dentatum. A group of plants nearly impossible to kill, all of which would enhance habitat value whether the gardener intended to or not. I found myself silently congratulating Lowes' consultants. This had to be a ploy on their part; a covert operation of mass suburban habitat restoration. They had infiltrated the Lowes' garden center, these hallowed grounds of golden mop cedar, Miscanthus grass, and Berberis thunbergii var. atropurpurea, and now natives were being impressed upon the store's hapless customers.

Inspired, I decided to make a sale. A woman had come up, and was examining the goldenrods. Doubt was scrawled across her face. I made my pitch, "Thats a great plant. Really easy to grow, and it will attract tons of pollinators." She seemed to consider this for a moment.
"I already have too many insects in my garden", she said, and moved on to other plant displays. I briefly considered stopping her to explain the benefits of attracting pollinators. That if she gardened vegetables, or even other landscape plants, their very lives were tied to the existence of such industrious little creatures. That habitat was vanishing at an alarming rate, and that the very simple act of buying a goldenrod and planting it in her garden would be a monumental act of environmentalism. But instead I said nothing, and she walked off. Like I said, baby steps.

I paid entirely too much for my plant, and left the store. I went home and planted it in my newly established native plant garden, among other stock I had purchased from Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve and NJ Audubon. Needless to say, it will not be possible for Lowes' hardware to replace the niche organizations like Bowman's or small specialty growers like Toadshade Wildflower Farm fill. These organizations are constantly making new species available to their customers, relying as much as possible on local ecotypes, and seamlessly weaving in their business with environmental education. They provide personal touches that the most discriminating plant buyers wont want to do without.

Many of us are drawn to gardening with native plants because it is different. But lets face it, much the way organic food has been co-opted by mainstream retail stores, it was only a matter of time before native plants crept in from the fringe. In the interest of good stewardship, we need to embrace this change. Suburbia has come to dominate too much of the landscape, and is far too crowded with foreign plants our native fauna find completely useless. Don't get me wrong, I worry about the way big box garden stores can influence the plant supply. I turn my nose up at cultivars and aspire to use only plants native to my region. However, changes across society are rarely radical, and I strongly believe in taking what you can get. Personally, I'll buy from purist growers, but I'm glad to know that when people ask me where to buy native plants I can now point them to their nearest Lowes' hardware store.