Just wanted to share my native planting journey in North Carolina (zone 8a)! I think I may have a couple of non-natives that I just really liked. Sorry!
A few of the plants I got are Highbush Blueberry, Hardhack, Drummond's Pink Creeping Phlox, Blue Star Amsonia, Candy Cloud Creeping Phlox, Dwarf Crested Iris, Pink Turtlehead, Ruby Spice Summersweet, Fringed Sedge, Blue Flag Iris, Swamp Milkweed, Black-eyed Susan.
The entire side of the house used to be all grass but is now all mulch and has proper drainage. Took down two bradford pear trees that will be replaced with redbud and serviceberry in the fall. The grass looks a bit rough at the moment because of the removal of the bradford pears. I think I'll be extending the mulched area on the side of the house to reach the eventual new tree so even less grass 😉
I've been having fun with the rain garden too that I built ~3 years ago and seems to get better every year!
Any recommendations on what to add?
by TrvlMike
2 Comments
Nice work! I think a Carolina Allspice would fit in well.
I’ve seen a few people posting them lately, and they are gorgeous. When it’s in bloom, it would look especially great with your brick colors.
I lived in Wilmington for a long time in deep sand. Wax myrtle did great. Long leaf pine. Water oak. I had some huckleberries, but the birds always got all of the berries. Sassafras, though it formed a thicket so give it a lot of space. But my favorite was a weeping yaupon that was pollinated by dwarf yaupons. A gorgeous specimen tree absolutely covered in berries all winter.
I live inland now, and outside of native range by 100 miles, but I put a Venus flytrap trap in a damp area, and the damn thing is growing. They don’t necessarily need swampy areas. I saw a big one growing in the middle of a sandy walking path once. I’m sure it got poached eventually.