Easy to grow native plants for moist soil
We are fortunate to have many nurseries in the area where you can purchase great plants for your yard. No matter where in the country you live, there is likely a favorite spot you have for buying plants.
This spring I decided to redo an area of the yard of my cabin in Maine that had all Rosa Rugosa along a fence. You might know this plant as beach rose. Contrary to common believe and the extent of the plant throughout the United States, this is not a native plant. In parts of Europe and in the United States this is basically a weed.
While I certainly don’t only plant native plants, I wanted to make this area of the yard all natives because I am there very much and the place is rented much of the summer. Native plants grow in the wild with no care and if given the correct conditions will thrive once established. All plants, even the easiest to grow, must become established before you can neglect them. This group of plants came from The New England Wild Flower Societiy’s Garden in the Woods which is in Framingham, Massachusetts.
A plant is established when the roots have grown into the soil enough so it doesn’t need to have additional water. Most trees and shrubs take about a year to become fully established although there are some plants which can put down roots very quickly. The area I was working on is very moist and I wanted to use plants that could handle being in consistently moist soil. The good news about the moist soil is I won’t have to water at all.
To give you an idea how moist the soil is, if you dig down about 12″ the area fills with water. This isn’t the case in the heat of the summer, but it is moist there all year.
I wanted to have a mix of evergreen and deciduous plants so the area has some interest all year. The evergreens I chose to plant where Chamaecyparis thyoides and the cultivar was ‘Andelye Conica’ The is a smaller version of the same plant straight species. I also planted one of those in the back as it will grown large.
Next I planted two varieties of Leucothoes fontanesiana. These low growing shrubs will stay evergreen and love the moist soil. They are also shade tolerant so they went in the area along the fence with the least amount of sunshine.
To give winter interest I planted some Cornus Sericea or red twig dogwood. The branches of the plant turn a great red color in winter after the leaves have fallen. This plant will spread and loves the moisture as well. Ilex opaca is a native holly. This evergreen plant tolerates shade. Although it will become quite large, I can keep it pruned. Another plant in the same family is Ilex glabra ‘compacta’. These are also known as ink berry. Like nearly all hollies, you need to have both male and female plants to get berries.
In the sunny area along the fence I planted several Vaccinium corymbosum or high bush blueberry. These are a great plants for fall color, their tolerance of moist acidic soil and of course their fruit.
For some summer color and a wonderful sweet scent I added Clethra alnifolia ‘Pink Spires’. This plant will flower during the summer months and spread along the fence over time. Finally, I also planted Rhodendron arborescens once of several native rhododendron.
The most important thing to remember when growing any plant is give it the right condition. Know how much light, moisture and space the plant will need. If you provide the optimum conditions for the new trees, shrub or perennial it will surely thrive.
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