Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants

Everyone Has a Favorite

Japanese Knotweed Along the Pere Marquette

I have sometimes joked that everyone has their own favorite invasive plant. After all, you can hardly go anywhere without seeing horticultural plantings of invasive plants. Even 'in the wild,' invasive plants have a way of presenting with their own charm. They are often attractive to us in many ways. Dame's Rocket is colorful and I have heard many defend it as a natural beauty. Even Autumn Olive, an invasive I find easy to hate, has an intoxicatingly sweet smell that fills the air when it blossoms. Japanese Knotweed is stunningly beautiful when the summer blossoms crest the tops of these large plants in full maturity. Japanese Barberry presents colorful, interesting shapes to set off a landscaped yard. But all of these plants have a common personality to them: they are invasive and therefore destructive.

Consider these common characteristics that are said to define plants as invasive:

• Produce large numbers of new plants each season. 
• Tolerate many soil types and weather conditions. 
• Spread easily and efficiently, usually by wind, water, or animals. 
• Grow rapidly, allowing them to displace slower growing plants. 
• Spread rampantly when they are free of the natural checks and balances found in their native range.

All of these statement come from observation and scientific query. What needs to be added to the list, perhaps at the top, is something that's more anthropomorphic: 

• Expert at getting people to do their bidding

Michael Poulan, in The Botany of Desire, often uses anthropomorphic terms as he brilliantly describes the reciprocal, mutually sustaining relationships between domestic plants and humans. This thought process needs to be applied to the problem of invasive plants. We have to ask ourselves if we are part of the problem, the solution, or both. Then we have to consider our alternatives. What is it we can do? Some of the most readily available choices are:

• Learn to identify locally important invasive plants.
• Remove invasive plants on your property or prevent their spread.
• Only use non-invasive plants when landscaping your property.
• If your property borders a natural area, consider using only native plants in your landscape.
• Use systemic herbicides carefully as a last resort to remove invasive plants.
• Make others in your neighborhood aware of invasive plants.
• Find non-invasive or native alternatives for invasive landscape plants.

In terms of non-invasive or native, listed below are some businesses in West Michigan that are listed as carrying natives. Please note though: this list is not verified and it is not exhaustive. You might be able to find other sources nearby that are just as good or better. 

A.

Wildtype Native Plant Nursery

900 North Every Road, Mason, MI

(517) 244-1140 ‎

B.

Michigan Wildflower Farm

11770 Cutler Road, Portland, MI

(517) 647-6010 ‎

C.

Hidden Savanna Nursery

North Van Kal Street, Kalamazoo, MI

(269) 352-3876 ‎

D.

Newhouse Nursery

33 126th Avenue, Wayland, MI

(269) 792-4300 ‎

E.

Bennett & Daughters Daylily Nursery

8877 Sunfield Hwy, Portland, MI

(517) 647-6315 ‎

F.

Engel's Nursery

2080 64th Street, Fennville, MI

(269) 543-4123 ‎

1 review

G.

Rosebay Nursery

6394 Old Allegan Road, Saugatuck, MI

(269) 857-4852 ‎

H.

Mulder's Landscape Supplies, Inc.

3333 Ravine Road, Kalamazoo Township, MI

(269) 345-6900 ‎

3 reviews

I.

Country Harvest Greenhouse

6869 Whitneyville Avenue Southeast, Alto, MI

(616) 868-6676 ‎

J.

Flowerland

4321 28th St SE, Kentwood, MI

(616) 942-5321 ‎