Learn More About Your Ecoregion

When starting to landscape with native plants, people may face an odd problem. Because so much native habit no longer exists, they may not have any idea how to get started. What plants are native? What plants are cold tolerant? Drought tolerant? Sun vs. Shade? What did the old ecosystem look like before it was developed?

There are some pretty neat resources you can tap into online to answer many questions which you encounter when starting to landscape with native plants. Many of these can be found posted to the blog in the upper-right corner under "Native How To". Today I'd like to focus on some other online resources which can be fun to play around with.

The USDA Plant Zone Hardiness Map is an excellent resource to check before making any plant purchases. While this blog focuses on the Upper Midwest, the climate has considerable variability, ranging from a 5b in parts of Illinois and Wisconsin to a 2b in northern Minnesota. This means that plants which might survive the winter in LaSalle-Peru, IL will be toast in Duluth, MN. Take for example, the American Sycamore; while its native range covers much of the Midwest, people in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and the U.P. may want to consider other trees when landscaping.

Following this point, take a look at the World Wildlife Federation's Wild Finder This interactive map breaks the world up into ecoregions. The Midwest contains regions such as: Southern Great Lakes Forests, Central U.S. Hardwoods, Central Forest Grasslands, Upper Midwest Forest Savannah, and the Western Great Lakes Forests. When comparing the two maps, you may notice that the Central Forest Grasslands fit nicely in Zone 5 in Illinois and Iowa; while the Upper Midwest Forest Savannah fits into Wisconsin's Zone 4. This should hardly come as a surprise, but it is a clear indicator that the plants you find growing natively correlate to the type of weather you have.

Once selected, each ecoregion has a story you can view by clicking on "Story & Photos". You can also find a "More Details" button. For example, the story on the Upper Midwest Forest Savannah specifically calls out stands of oak and maple. Unfortunately however, it does not provide more details on specifically which kind of oak or maple. Many people have maple trees in their yards, but many of those maples are Norway Maples as opposed to Sugar, Silver, or Red Maples. The search from the WWF was setup primarily to help you identify native animals, which can be listed after selecting an ecoregion.

The USDA offers a State Search whereby you can enter a Common Name (such as "oak") and select a state (such as "Wisconsin"). The search will bring up a map or in this case maps which show the native region for the genus or the various species. For example, the Southern Red Oak is native to Illinois but not to Wisconsin.

While these maps and searches are excellent tools for getting started, don't be afraid to speak with the folks at your local garden shop. In my experience, they are often friendly and helpful.