Main Street Garden by Main Street Garden volunteer
Two sites in Greater St. Louis have been added to the Grow Native! Native Gardens of Excellence program, which features native landscaping styles in the lower Midwest
The Grow Native! Native Gardens of Excellence program has added two sites in the St. Louis area. Along with three other new sites in Kansas and Arkansas, these join the 15 sites in Missouri and Illinois that were inducted into the program when it launched in 2021.
Main Street Garden, 524 South Main Street, St. Charles, was previously a vacant lot and is now an alluring oasis consisting almost entirely of native plants with a rain garden. Located in the historic district, an arbor at the entrance entices visitors, and there are benches for seating throughout. South Grand Business District native gardens, 3012-3310 South Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, includes plantings along 6.5 city blocks between Arsenal and Utah Street. Located in a busy and dense metropolitan area, the site demonstrates how native plants can be utilized effectively in an urban environment, helping to filter pollutants and capture stormwater while also providing habitat for wildlife.
“The Grow Native! Native Gardens of Excellence program features plantings of native plants in designed, well-maintained gardens and in other native landscape plantings in the lower Midwest,” said Carol Davit, executive director of the Missouri Prairie Foundation and its Grow Native! program. “We are pleased to showcase these outstanding native gardens to inspire greater use of native plants, which provide many benefits to wildlife and people.”
The Grow Native! Native Gardens of Excellence are located in a variety of settings ranging from multi-acre plantings associated with commercial properties; formal, urban gardens; and even small community plots. All Grow Native! Native Gardens of Excellence sites are open to the public (many are free; some charge an admission fee), consist of at least 90% native plants (excluding cultivars and nativars), and are at least three years old with an established maintenance schedule. Grow Native! plans to induct additional sites as Gardens of Excellence each year. Read more about the program and explore all 20 Grow Native! Native Gardens of Excellence here.
Grow Native! is the 22-year-old native plant marketing and education program of the Missouri Prairie Foundation, a 56-year-old prairie conservation organization and nationally accredited land trust. To learn more, visit http://www.moprairie.org or http://www.grownative.org,
Environmental Echo 