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Creating Your Habitat, Where to Begin
Thinking of your outdoor space as 'habitat' rather than 'garden' or 'yard' helps to emphasize the need to focus not only on what you plant, but also on how the space is maintained with a focus on supporting lots of life.
Use the resources below to begin planning your space. There is a lot of information on this page and it can be at bit overwhelming at first. But, spending the time to research plants will ultimately bring you the most success! Dig in on the tools, plans and plant lists below. Contact us any time with questions. And be sure to check out our current plant lists for information on what we have available at the Emporium. Don't see what you are looking for? We welcome special orders of native perennials and shrubs. Contact us any time to discuss your needs.
Use These Resources to Research and Select Plants
The Xerces Society Pollinator Plant List for the Northeast
Providing wildflower-rich habitat is the most significant action you can take to support pollinators. Adult bees, butterflies, and other pollinators require nectar as their primary food source, and female bees collect pollen as food for their offspring. Native plants, which are adapted to local soils and climates, are usually the best sources of nectar and pollen for native pollinators. Incorporating native wildflowers, shrubs, and trees into any landscape promotes local biological diversity and provides shelter and food for a diversity of wildlife. Most natives require minimal irrigation, flourish without fertilizers, and are unlikely to become weedy. The Xerces fact sheet features regionally native plants that are highly attractive to pollinators and are well-suited for small-scale plantings in gardens, urban greenspaces, and farm field borders, and on business and school campuses.
Grow Native Massachusetts Plant Lists and Landscape Guides
Grow Native Massachusetts offers a wonderful array of plant lists and landscape guides designed for homeowners in our region on their website. Visit and dig in!
Native Plant Finder for MA Pollinator Species at Risk
The plant list resources at this site are based on years of research at the Gegear Lab at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Use these lists to help support specific species of at risk pollinators in your garden.
Massachusetts Audubon Society Plants for Pollinators
The Massachusetts Audubon Society has published a list of beneficial plants for birds & other wildlife. Explore the resource at the link below.
The Audubon Society Native Plant Database
Enter your 5-digit zip into Audubon’s native plants database and explore the best plants for birds in your area, as well as local resources and links to more information. By entering your email address, you'll receive an emailed list of the native plants you've selected and get additional tips on creating your bird-friendly habitat.
National Wildlife Federation Native Plant Database
Use this site to search by zip code to find plants that host the highest numbers of butterflies and moths to feed birds and other wildlife where you live.
University of Rhode Island Native Plant List
The Rhode Island Native Plant Guide was developed by the URI Cooperative Extension in collaboration with the Rhode Island Natural History Survey and their Rhody Native Initiative.
US Parks Department Planting for Pollinators Guide
The US Parks Department provides highly accessible and shareable resources to help you plan your home, school or public pollinator garden. The site includes regional planting cards.
Check Out These Amazing Resources for Veggie Gardeners!
Wildflowers to attract beneficial insects 🐞
Wildflowers to attract beneficial insects 🐞
Wildflowers to attract beneficial insects 🐞
All native plants play an important role in ecosystem building, but some do a better job than others of attracting the beneficial bugs that are essential to effective organic vegetable gardening. Click on the image to explore more.
Beneficial Insects for Vegetable Gardens
Wildflowers to attract beneficial insects 🐞
Wildflowers to attract beneficial insects 🐞
Enhance habitat near vegetable gardens by planting Native Flowering Plants provides two essential services, beneficial pest control and pollination. Click on the image to learn more about the beneficial bugs you want in your yard.
Pollinator Planting Guide
Selecting Plants for your Pollinator Garden
Dig in to this fantastic pollinator planting guide specific to our region. It includes helpful charts of bloom times for beneficial plants and charts host plants for our native butterflies.
Native Garden Design for Small Spaces
Have a small space? Looking to start small? This book is full of great ideas.
Native plants have developed something of a bad rap among some homeowners and even garden professionals as messy and hard to manage plants that do not fit in with the neighborhood. We vehemently disagree! But, we are also sensitive to the fact that some people are not fully ready to embrace their wild side and want a more subtle transition. Fortunately there are many beautiful native plants that not only fit well into a residential yard, but also provide multiple benefits. The book "Native Plants for Small Yards" features ideas and recommendations for these native plants that will work well in a flower garden or home landscaping project, especially for the resident with the small yard. Just click on the button below to download and start reading.
Pollinator Pathways Plant List Picks
The Northeast Pollinator Pathway has bundled together all of their favorite plant lists into one helpful place so that you can easily research native pollinator plants for your own yard. Check it out below.
Native Plant Solutions for Salt Prone Sites
Edges of Your Property Plagued By Road Salt?
Edges of Your Property Plagued By Road Salt?
Edges of Your Property Plagued By Road Salt?
Bordering properties with deep rooted native plants is a fantastic way to mitigate storm water run off and to block pollutants. But plants near roadways are subject to exposure to road salt. Focus on salt tolerant native plantings for these spaces.
Backyard Prone to Coastal Flooding?
Edges of Your Property Plagued By Road Salt?
Edges of Your Property Plagued By Road Salt?
Rising sea levels, heavy rains and moon tides converged on Barrington this year leaving some backyards flooded by nearby waterways. Focus on deep rooted native plants with high salt tolerance for maximum resiliency in these areas.
Deer Resistant Plantings
In our experience here at the Barneyville All You Can Eat Buffet, a hungry deer will snack on nearly anything, though some plants are clearly not preferred. We don't advocate the growing trend to spray plants with products that alter the smell and taste of the plant since the science is not clear on what deleterious effects this might have on the pollinators we are working to help. Deer have become a challenge in residential landscapes because of habitat loss so our real suggestion is that we need to conserve the last available wild spaces we have and build back habitat at home so there are more suitable places for wildlife to be wild. In the meantime we have found that the more aromatic a plant is the less likely a deer is to be interested and by planting densely (lots of plants) damage will be minimized. As shrubs and trees mature they also become less palatable.
Need Help and Inspiration Designing Your Space?
Be sure to visit our "Life in the Garden" Blog and explore articles on garden habitat design and maintenance.
Note that our articles also run monthly in our local community newspaper, the Barrington Times.
Maintaining Your Yard and Gardens
#LeaveTheLeaves
Now that you have planted the perfect pollinator paradise be sure to nurture your new habitat in a way that also nurtures life. Learn more about Leaving the Leaves and Saving the Stems from the Xerces Society at the link below.
Skip the Pesticides
Learn more about the harmful effects of pesticides at the link below. Many of these pesticides are lurking in commonly used lawn and garden products, please use extra caution when caring for your pollinator patch.
Connect with Other Residents Working to Build Back Habitat a