Yay for Native Volunteers

Yellow violet, Viola pubescens

One of the advantages of the more relaxed “messy” gardening habit is the happy accident of native volunteers. Squirrels and birds such as blue jays are unintentional helpers distributing many native trees and shrubs. Your new native plants attract these helpers who collect seeds and sometimes find locations in your yard for storing the food for later. Sometimes they forget their hiding places and the seeds sprout. I have walnut, hackberry, oak, crabapple, and magnolia growing as volunteers in my gardens. If you catch the seedlings early you can often move them to more agreeable locations or pot them up for friends.

Removing invasive species also can bring pleasant surprises. Native plants can still be alive in the soil beneath the honeysuckle trying to crowd them out. They may sprout if the conditions are suitable. Native plants are amazingly resilient.

Native prairie and woodland plants can also be transported into your yard by birds and other animals. Ironweed, Veronia fasciculata, appeared in my pocket prairie as a volunteer. Ironweed is a tall, purple flowered, prairie plant found in moist prairies and many natural areas. It can be spotted growing along many highways in mid to late summer. It is an important pollinator plant attracting many bees, insects, and butterflies.

Another native plant that often volunteers is snake root, Ageratina altissima. Snake root is a fast spreader, very aggressive in producing seed. It is very useful for pollinators but contains toxins poisonous to humans and some animals. It contains beautiful white flowers in late summer and fall and grows anywhere. Caution is recommended in areas where domesticated animals are grown.

Indian hemp/dogbane, Apocynum cannabinum, is an interesting volunteer that shares features with milkweeds. It does not feed monarch caterpillars but was used by Native Americans to treat rheumatism and make rope. It is poisonous to dogs so don’t plant it in your dog yard. Some moths such as the hummingbird moth feed on this plant. It grows in the mid summer and has small white flowers. I’ve seen it grow as quickly as 3-4 inches a day.

Honey vine milkweed, Cynanchum leave, is another native plant volunteer. It is a vine and will grow in sun or shade. Monarchs will lay their eggs on the leaves, as their caterpillars will feed on the leaves. Honey vine is in the same family as the asclepias/milkweed family.

Fleabane, Erigeron strigosus, is an annual flowering native volunteer blooming in the summer. It has attractive daisy-like flowers and feeds insects. It is known for treating migraines and may have anti-inflammatory properties. When fleabane and honey vine first appeared in my yard, I thought they were weeds until I saw them used by insects.

Jewelweed/Touch-me-not, Impatiens capensis, is a native volunteer in the impatiens family related to the popular shade loving ornamental annual. Jewelweed prefers damp conditions. My neighbor’s gutters empty into my backyard making the perfect conditions that brought the jewelweed. It comes in yellow and orange colors with yellow being the more common variety. It’s seed pods explode when mature, giving it one of its other common names, touch-me-not. It grows about three feet tall and spreads to a thicket when permitted to do so.

Evening primrose, Oenothera biennis, is a very common native to disturbed areas left unmoed. It is brought as a volunteer by birds and has small yellow flowers that open in the evening. In gardens it can get quite tall. I had some growing by my small pond over six feet tall. It has been used to control pain from menstruation in women. All parts of the plant are edible from roots to flowers. It attracts wildlife.

Virginia creeper, Parthenocissus quinqeufolia, is a native volunteer that volunteered into my beds. It loves to extend itself up tree trunks attaching itself to the bark. Its leaves have lovely fall color turning shades of red and orange. Preferring the shade, it is content to extend along the ground too. It is tolerant of many soil conditions and can be used to control erosion. It provides shelter for wildlife.

Pokeweed, Phytolacca americana, is a marvelous exotic looking plant that can grow over eight feet tall. Since it is poisonous it should be kept out of the dog yard. It is known by many names such as dragonberry, pigeonberry, inkberry. It is used in traditional medicine and is food for songbirds. The unobtrusive flowers turn into beautiful dark red berries. It has naturalized into parts of Asia and Europe.

Canada goldenrod, Solidago canadensis, is possibly the most common native plant growing in fields and appearing in my yard as a volunteer. It aggressively spreads by rhizome and seed. It has many benefits for pollinators, livestock, and humans. Growing 4-5 feet tall, it has beautiful bright yellow flowers that are always filled with insects.

White Wood aster, Symphyotrichum ericoides, blooms in the fall with tiny white flowers. It grows in shade and at the woodland edge. It too volunteered into my gardens and spreads quickly from seed. It benefits pollinators and has a mounding habit when the plants mature.

Violets of many colors have volunteered into my shade beds. Viola sororia is the common purple violet. Viola blanda is white and somewhat viney. Viola canadensis is white and grows in clumps. Viola pubescens is yellow and very uncommon but did come by itself unassisted. Violets are wonderful ground covers and have a delicate fragrance and are edible. They are an early source of nectar for pollinators. They are food for skippers, a variety of wildlife, and the only food fritillary butterflies will eat. They’ll grow anywhere and frequently turn up in lawns.

Virginia waterleaf, Hydrophyllum virginianum, is a native volunteer that prefers damp locations, having first appeared near my little pond on its own. Its flowers are unobtrusive but its leaves are attractive making it an excellent groundcover for damp shade. It attracts bees and flies.

I will also mention poison ivy, Toxicodendron radicans, volunteers readily into any garden or woodland area. Yes, it is a native and important to many birds and wildlife as a food source. Many humans are very allergic to it. Even so, it does have its place in nature. If you have room consider letting some survive for wildlife.