Short articles to share

Help spread the word! Share these articles with friends through social media: Facebook / Nextdoor / Community bulletins and newsletters

As is true for all the material on our website, including the photos, you are welcome to copy and adapt these articles for your own use.No crediting is needed (although people will thank you for linking them to our resources.)

Nov 15
3 min

Alexandria neighbors bring trees to their community

Trees plant themselves and replace themselves – except in our lawns. Many Northern Virginia neighborhoods that are graced by magnificent...

Oct 14
3 min

Celebrate Fall Color!

As Northern Virginia continues to celebrate trees to mark the start of the five year regional native tree campaign, autumn colors move to...

Sep 10
3 min

Arlington National Cemetery Treasures its Trees

Arlington National Cemetery is a place to honor, remember, and explore. The beauty of the grounds and the comfort of its visitors is...

Aug 13
3 min

Fewer inputs to your landscape, more butterflies and birds

As more and more people buy native plants to beautify their yards, control stormwater and attract birds and butterflies, they are...

Jul 2
2 min

Mini Grants to Beautify Neighborhood Entrances with Native Plants

This spring, Audubon at Home partnered with Plant NOVA Natives to invite homeowners’ and civic associations to apply for funds to...

Jun 21
2 min

Planting for the Picky Eaters

Many insects are picky eaters, only able to eat the plants with which they evolved, meaning the plants that are native to their region....

May 15
2 min

Native plant sales are booming

Interest in using native plants in our yards has been growing over the past decade, gradually at first, and suddenly exponentially. It...

Apr 12
2 min

Beat the summer heat with a native plant shade garden

They say shade gardens are the gardens of the future, since it will be too hot to spend much time in the sun. That’s pretty much the case...

Feb 17
4 min

February 2021 Update

At the bottom of this page, please see the short article on native grasses, and share it as widely as possible. 2021 Spring and Fall...

Feb 10
2 min

Native grasses for our yards

When we think of grass in our yards, the image that arises is likely to be that of turf grass. But there are many other places for...

Jan 9
2 min

Spruce up your foundation plantings

When developers build a neighborhood, they almost always add some shrubs against the foundations of the houses to soften the lines of the...

Dec 2, 2020
2 min

Bringing Dragonflies to Your Yard

For anyone who enjoys watching birds at a feeder, there is another pastime available that is just as entertaining but less well known:...

Nov 18, 2020
2 min

Befriending the butterflies all winter

Where do butterflies go in the winter? If you are picturing the adults hibernating like bears, that’s actually not that far from the...

Sep 23, 2020
2 min

A new take on “curb appeal”

A strip of lawn is the default landscaping choice for the area right next to a street. But is that the only option? Not necessarily, as...

Aug 29, 2020
2 min

Making friends with the hummingbirds

Fall is a great time to work on the guest list for next year’s garden party. Hummingbirds make some of the best guests of all, or to put...

Jul 30, 2020
2 min

Making scents of your yard

Fragrant flowers can add a whole extra dimension to gardening, and the flowers of native plants are no exception. The scents are there...

Jul 1, 2020
2 min

Native plant landscaping: Three factors for success

For anyone who wants to help the birds and butterflies but is not an experienced landscaper, a few design concepts can help make the...

May 25, 2020
3 min

Lawn Care for Earth Renewal

Let’s say you want to have a nice lawn, but you also want to be a good steward of the environment. Can you do both? It turns out the...

Apr 24, 2020
4 min

Stay-at-Homeschooling for Grown-Ups

We have all heard of naturalists such as Charles Darwin and James Audubon who undertook long and fruitful journeys of discovery. But did...

Mar 30, 2020
3 min

Vegetable Gardening for Earth Renewal

Now is the time to renew the Earth – and yourself, while you are at it! Most of us are aware of the benefits to ourselves of eating...

Feb 24, 2020
2 min

Gardening for Earth Renewal

How does your garden renew the earth? Vegetable gardens, flower gardens, conventional landscaping and even container gardens can all...

Jan 14, 2020
3 min

Inside Out Gardens

Before we turn our thoughts to spring, let us take this opportunity to plan for next year’s long stretch of cold and gray. Does your...

Dec 16, 2019
2 min

Native Plants in Public Places

Shopping center parking lots and other public spaces can be tree-lined havens from the summer heat, with beautiful blossoms to induce...

Dec 7, 2019
2 min

Native plants in public spaces

Shopping center parking lots and other public spaces can be tree-lined havens from the summer heat, with beautiful blossoms to induce...

Nov 14, 2019
2 min

Using native plants to deal with drought (and deluges)

Using native plants to deal with drought (and deluges) Neither droughts nor deluges are new to Northern Virginia, but as everyone has...

Sep 12, 2019
2 min

Community Associations Supporting the Local Ecosystem

Homeowner and condominium associations make many of the decisions that will determine the future of the birds and butterflies of Northern...

Aug 14, 2019
2 min

Landscape professionals supporting our local wildlife

On August 7, over a hundred people attended Plant NOVA Natives’ first conference on native plants for professionals, including...

Jul 6, 2019
3 min

Faith in Action

A commitment to stewardship of the Earth has a spiritual foundation in most faith communities. In recent years, many have come to...

Jun 4, 2019
1 min

Summer is for visiting native plant gardens

Are you feeling inspired by the plants in the Native Plants for Northern Virginia guide but want to see them in a garden setting before...

Apr 22, 2019
1 min

Native groundcovers

Are you seeking a groundcover that is both beautiful and friendly to the ecosystem? Try looking beyond the old standbys to the new trend...

Mar 28, 2019
2 min

Your Camera as Eco-Warrior

We are surrounded by the ecosystem, even in our urban/suburban areas, but most of us never notice it. If we do see a plant, an insect or...

Feb 28, 2019
2 min

Gardening and landscaping made easy

Everyone enjoys a beautiful yard. Not everyone enjoys working in it. For those who would like to attract birds and butterflies with as...

Jan 19, 2019
2 min

“Road projects” for wildlife: Your hedge as sanctuary

If you are the only turtle living in someone’s yard, where are you going to find a mate? Asphalt and lawns are fine for moving people...

Dec 6, 2018
2 min

Mark Your Ballot: Goldenrods or Asters?

While humans are bustling about on election campaigns, the rest of the world’s citizens are frenetically preparing for winter. Bees,...

Sep 13, 2018
1 min

Plan Next Year’s Staycation Now - Plant Native Plants!

Why go on a safari when a safari could come to you? Imagine yourself sipping lemonade on your lawn chair while strange and marvelous...

Aug 9, 2018
1 min

Confessions of a Native Plant Addict

Hi, my name is _______, and I am a native plant addict. I admit that I am powerless over planting – that my shopping had become...

May 27, 2018
1 min

Let’s pledge to save the butterflies in our yards!

The butterflies of Northern Virginia need our help. We have been unintentionally starving them by replacing the native flora with turf...

Apr 28, 2018
1 min

Questions about native plants? This website is your “go-to” place!

Are you wondering what all the fuss is about? Do you want to join in the fun? The Plant NOVA Natives website has a ton of helpful...

Mar 15, 2018
2 min

Go local – Time to plant native plants!

Are you looking for plants that will beautify your yard while requiring a minimum of maintenance? The plants that evolved here are the...

Jan 21, 2018
1 min

Save the Planet for Under $30

Would you like to help the birds and butterflies but have a limited budget for landscaping? What the living world needs from Northern...

Dec 5, 2017
1 min

When a migrating bird looks down on your yard, what does it see?

As birds head down the Atlantic Flyway from their summer breeding grounds, some stop in Virginia to spend the winter, and others continue...

Oct 31, 2017
1 min

One-Stop Environmentalism: Plant a Native Tree

If you only have time to do one thing to support wildlife in your yard, let it be to plant a native tree. The benefits of trees in...

Oct 3, 2017
2 min

Get paid to mow less!

How would you like to be paid to improve the landscaping on your own property? Grants from the Virginia Conservation Assistance Program...

Aug 26, 2017
2 min

Accidental environmentalism: How yard-sign envy led to a butterfly and bee paradise

This is the story of a gardener who wanted to impress (and encourage) her neighbors by displaying an Audubon-at-Home yard sign that...

Jul 30, 2017
1 min

Shopping for plants? Try our free, searchable app for Northern Virginia!

Have you ever brought home a shrub from the garden center only to discover that you had accidentally purchased a shady swamp plant to put...

Jun 26, 2017
2 min

Beat the Deer While Living on the Edge

📷However cute we may all find Bambi, he and his relatives are responsible for large-scale degradation of the environment in Northern...

May 26, 2017
1 min

Beautifying your garden with natives, made easy

We are all learning that native plants support the environment while providing low-maintenance beauty to our yards, but how can you...

Apr 19, 2017
2 min

Plant your bird food today!

The season is underway, and now is a great time to start planning for your spring and summer garden! This spring support additional...

Feb 25, 2017
2 min

Accidental environmentalism – the case of the unexpected butterflies

This is the story of a gardener who discovered that less was more. For years, she had been weeding out the Common Violet from her garden....