Celebrate Native Plants

With COVID restrictions lifted, visitors may enjoy Garden in the Woods without purchasing tickets in advance. Visitors paying admission and members just need to check in at the Visitor Center. Plant shopping at the Garden and at Nasami Farm no longer requires an appointment. Please note: Garden in the Woods and its Garden Shop will be open during the regular hours on Sunday, July 4, and Monday, July 5. The Garden Shop at Nasami Farm will be closed on July 4.

Native Plant Trust sanctuaries in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont are open for your enjoyment. All three states have lifted the mask mandate for outdoor spaces, if you are able to stay six feet away from people not in your household. Please avoid crowding at popular sites and also observe the rules to protect the plants.

Photo: Oconee-bells (Shortia galacifolia), Uli Lorimer ©Native Plant Trust

Native Plant Trust and The Nature Conservancy announce Conserving Plant Diversity, a new report that provides a scientific framework and detailed roadmap for conservation action and land protection at the species, habitat, and parcel scales that will save plant diversity—and thus overall biodiversity—in New England as the climate changes. The report analyzes whether more than a century of conservation has protected enough land in the right places to save the region’s plant diversity. It concludes that we need to conserve another 2.3 million acres of climate-resilient land in specific habitats, and it identifies which areas are priorities in each of the six New England states. This technical report and its mapping tool give policy makers, federal and state agencies, and land trusts in each state the detailed information needed to most effectively spend their conservation dollars. Go to the Plant Diversity Report page to read more.

Photo: Spruce-fir habitat, Michael Piantedosi ©Native Plant Trust

Native Plant's Public Programs department seeks a marketing intern to increase visibility of its public programs. This part-time, paid opportunity is open to a college junior or senior (or a recent graduate) majoring in marketing, environmental education, or another relevant field. Applicants should have well-developed verbal and written communication skills and the ability to work independently. Please see the detailed description and instructions about how to apply—by July 23—on this page.

Photo: New England American-asters (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae), Jane Roy Brown ©Native Plant Trust

We are ready for gardening season with an extraordinary selection of native perennials, grasses, shrubs, and trees to support our native insects, birds, and other wildlife. Download the 2021 Native Plants Price List on our Buy Native Plants page. We regret that our Pollinator Kits are currently sold out, but you may add your name to a waiting list on the Buy Native Plants page. Also, we are no longer accepting orders for our plant collections this season. We invite you to bring the list of plants in the collections you desire and shop for them in person.

Photo: Virginia virgin's-bower (Clematis virginiana), ©Uli Lorimer

Before she retired at the end of March, Cayte McDonough shared highlights of her inspiring career with Native Plant News. Learn how Cayte switched careers to follow her lifelong passion for plants, what it takes to grow plants from known-ecotype seed, how Native Plant Trust came to move its nursery to Nasami Farm, and more. Read Cayte's interview here. Want to make a donation in honor of Cayte? Click here.

Photo: Cayte McDonough collecting seed from inkberry holly (Ilex glabra), ©Deb Donaldson

Our new report, Conserving Plant Diversity, is getting coverage from all over the region. Check our Resources & Press page to read or listen to these stories. In other news, MassRealty.com interviews Director of Horticulture Uli Lorimer. The Boston Globe includes Garden in the Woods in a recent story about staycations. WRSI-FM's Local Hero Spotlight interviews Nasami Farm Nursery Manager Alexis Doshas about how native plants support the whole ecosystem and pollinators, insects, and birds. And Boston Magazine and onlyinyourstate.com tout Garden in the Woods as one of Massachusetts' most beautiful destinations. In a recent podcast, New York Times contributing garden writer Margaret Roach chats up Director of Horticulture Uli Lorimer about the alluring tease of trilliums, as well as what's so special about the Trillium species at Garden in the Woods. You can also read the transcript.

Photo: Bee on butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), ©Pixabay