I have several areas in front of my veterinary practice that I would like to plant natives in. We are in a rapidly developing area at the edge of a metropolis. The first garden I want to address is 4’ deep with ~ 33 linear feet with a corner. I was originally thinking clumps of purple coneflowers black eyed Susan’s, and black eyed Susan’s, but I am not very creative and would love advice. This side of the building faces east, and there is a plastic drain at the front for the downspouts and, in the center, a drain trap from the hospital to the main sewer, which has to be clean every 3-6 months. There are 6 acres of second growth forest behind this place. I want this to be the first step to supporting what we can of natives.
by storm-solstice
6 Comments
Question for you- my local vet has an area of fake grass where the dogs all pee.
Do any of the areas you expect to plant seem like areas where your patients go potty? It just affects what plants to recommend.
I’m relatively new to native gardening and can’t make recommendations but just want to say thank you for doing this! It’s really awesome!
Pick salt-tolerant plants because of dog pee. If you’re in its native range, seaside goldenrod (solidago sempervirens) is a great pick.
Little bluestem!! Low maintenance and drought tolerant, also salt resistant and great for roadside plantings!
This recently published University of MD piedmont guide is probably relevant.
https://extension.umd.edu/news-events/news/new-native-plant-guide-piedmont-region-now-available/
I love little bluestem and prairie dropseed for short grasses. I’m not in NC so I don’t know if they are native there. They should be okay for dogs. Most of the stuff I planted in my yard I tried to make sure was dog safe.
Prairie Moon nursery has a landscape filter you could check to see what looks nice for landscape plants along with filtering for NC and your light/zone etc.