Hi all. OK, here's my dilemna...

I live in a rental apartment and have private access to the dirt yard. After having read a book on the importance of native plants, I really want to introduce some to my yard, hoping that they may take hold and hopefully propagate on their own, and multiply each year. The plants I'm trying to grow either by seed or via small plants I bought are: virginia bluebell, virginia creeper, viburnum (not sure of type), elderberry, green coneflower, great blue lobelia, a few types of milkweed, blue wood aster and joe pye weed.

Normally I keep all my plants in pots; this is because I came from another rental situation where I had no choice but to garden in pots...there was no dirt yard. In addition, I may move in a year or two, and naturally if all my plants are already in pots, it will make the moving process alot easier.

My current yard is overgrown with English ivy and some other type of vine that I at least keep in check from my potted plants. The other half of the yard (which belongs to another tenant in the building) is overrun with some type of "weed". But I never allow my side to get that overrun. However, once I move, it's entirely possible that the next tenant may not keep any of the weeds or the English ivy in check.

If I keep all the plants I want to now grow (listed above) in pots, what are the chances that they will self-seed, or that birds/bees etc will help to distribute seeds elsewhere in the yard/neighborhood to propagate? And what chance of survival might they have against weeds/non-natives, if the next tenant doesn't keep them in check?

Would these particular plants have a better chance if I planted them in the actual dirt where perhaps the roots/rhizomes etc could spread? Would that give them a better chance of survival? And then perhaps when it's time for me to move, I could just dig up a bit of each plant for myself, but leave the bulk of each plant in the dirt?

Thanks everybody. I know this is a bit complicated what I'm asking...

The attached link will bring you to a webpage where you can see some photos of the vines I mentioned, growing up a tree in my yard. (If it asks for a password, try "gardenweb".) You'll also see some of the vine along a fence. This will hopefully give you an idea of what I'm up against. (My sense is that most people in my nabe aren't into gardening nor do they have any understanding of the importance of natives vs. non-natives. So my hope is to surreptitiously ensure that the natives I introduce to my yard then get spread throughout the neighborhood by way of the birds.... ;-)

Here is a link that might be useful: invasive vines