Keystone plants are some of the most useful plants we can add to our yards.
They’re the trees, shrubs, perennials and grasses that do an outsized amount of work supporting the insects, pollinators and birds that make up our local ecosystems.
Here at A Better Yard, I generally use a broader term: helpful plants.
Most of our helpful plants are native plants that have co-evolved with our local insects and wildlife. But I’m less interested in putting plants into perfect native/non-native boxes than I am in asking a simpler question:
Is this plant helping?
For the final three actions in this series, we’re going to plant more of the plants that do.
1. Start With Keystone Plants
Not every plant provides the same ecological value.
Some plants support an incredible number of insects and other wildlife. These are our keystone plants, and they’re a great place to start when deciding what to add to your yard.
Think oaks, willows, cherries, goldenrods, asters and other plants that have spent thousands of years developing relationships with the insects around them.
You don’t need to memorize all of this.
Just start intentionally adding plants that provide food and habitat for something other than us.
2. Replace a Little Lawn With Helpful Plants
You don’t need to rip out your entire lawn.
Look for the parts you’re maintaining for absolutely no reason.
That weird corner.
The strip that’s annoying to mow.
The slope.
The spot along the fence.
Take 20 or 30 square feet and turn it into habitat.
Plant some helpful plants there this year. Then maybe do another little section next year.
Eventually those small changes start adding up.
3. Start Small
People assume transforming a landscape is expensive because they picture buying a bunch of huge trees and one-gallon perennials.
You don’t need to.
Start with smaller trees and shrubs. Plant perennial plugs instead of big pots. Grow an oak from an acorn if you want.
Smaller plants cost substantially less, which means you can plant more of them. They’re also generally easier to establish because we’re transplanting a much smaller plant and root system.
You don’t need a $10,000 landscape renovation.
You need some little plants and a little patience.
Plant Helpful Plants
That’s really the whole idea behind Part III.
Plant a keystone plant.
Turn a little unnecessary lawn into habitat.
Buy smaller plants and plant more of them.
None of these actions will single-handedly save the world.
But your yard doesn’t exist by itself. It’s connected to the yard next door, which is connected to another yard, which is connected to the park, the creek, the prairie and the rest of our local ecosystem.
Make your little piece of it more helpful.
This is Part III of our three-part series on nine simple actions you can take to build a healthier yard. Listen to the podcast for a deeper dive into keystone plants, helpful plants and making more room for nature in your yard.
This is Part III of a three-part podcast series on nine simple actions you can take to build a healthier yard. Listen to the episode for a deeper dive into these three sustainable lawn care practices.
- Part I: Sustainable Lawn Care: Three Ways to Build a Healthier Lawn
- Part II: Environmentally Friendly Landscape: Three Easy Changes
- Part III: Keystone Plants
Click play above to listen to go deeper on this post. Listen and subscribe to A Better Yard: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Amazon Music | iHeartRadio | Pandora