How do we as private citizens make the greatest impact on private landscapes. MY relatives have no idea on the importance of native plant usage at home.Hope more people will be inlightened in the near future.I support our local & visiting Musuem of Natural history & nature centers every chance I get. I 'm in San Diego County visiting for Christmas. I plan to do Downtown Reverside & Palm Spring this year of 2005.

Alberto1444

tinasam, I admit that until AlbertoÂs question I had just taken a very quick look at your posting before, since although Georgia and NJ do share quite a few plants in common, I didnÂt think itÂd be that useful to me. I hadnÂt noticed the similarities between your user name and the authorÂs name. Correct me if IÂm wrong, otherwise congratulations on your book! Always good to see another book on the topic!

Alberto, youÂve asked a question I definitely care about. I hope other people add to this, but there are some thoughts.

I let nurseries I go to know IÂm interested in native plants in the hope theyÂll start carrying moreÂand of course that would make my plant buying much easier.

Two things that I remembered from reading about what individual people can do (I donÂt remember where I saw these; maybe it was on one of these forums) are to start writing articles or letters for local papers, and to get involved in local government to get more natives plantings done in public areas. (or write a book on the topic for that matter)

I suppose having an absolutely stunning native garden might get more people interested.
Sharing native plants from my yard that people like is one definite way to get natives in their yards.

I mostly just try to get people interested when I can. IÂm usually focusing even more about the negative effects of invasive plants, and so while IÂm very glad if people become interested in natives, itÂs even more important to me that they know the reasons to avoid invasives. If thereÂs an appropriate opening in conversation IÂll bring up the topics. In terms of invasives, IÂve actually printed out a short handout from the US government that explains the issue that I like because I think it gets the point across quickly and clearly. Depending on somebodyÂs interest during such conversations IÂll just about always offer to supply them with links, and might lend them books and/or offer to research which native plants might work well in their gardens. If somebody is already interested in gardening for wildlife I think pointing out the benefits of using native plants is often much easier for them to see.

A book that many people will tell you is inspiring and that I also found very easy and enjoyable to read is "Noah's Garden: Restoring the Ecology of Our Own Backyards" by Sara Stein. It tells about how she became interested in this and her experiences in it. She was gardening in New York state, but I think the main points would still apply.

If you havenÂt read the thread on this forum on "Explaining Why Natives" you might find it interesting. It doesnÂt really address your question, but part of it kind of related. The first half of it had its last post in early September.

Good luck making progress.

-- Lori

yes I am the author and the book does have trees, shrubs, flowers, ferns, and vines. I am sorry there isn't much info out there yet on it. It was two months behind schedule coming out and I think that most places are waiting till Spring to really promo it.
*My fave too is the Southern Gardeners book of lists* :)

I, for one, will be very interested in hunting down your book! Congratulations!

But... this is your second book, right? What is the title of your first one?

I live in GA, and I have several acres (in the boonies) that I want to landscape on my own. I have a great interest in planting for the surrounding wildlife and using natives whenever possible.

So... I would *love* to hear what you are using to cultivate your acreage!

And Alberto... How can we make the greatest impact? "Plant a seed". Find a way to lead, and others will surely follow!

The first book was a now out of print cookbook. The book that will come out next, Georgia's Covered Bridges, is about the few dwindling covered bridges in the state of Georgia. A beautifully illustrated book, it will be out around september of 2006.

The Georgia Native Plant Guide should be at any Barnes and Noble, and if not they can get it. I'd love for it to be requested at some of the smaller independent bookstores, as I haven't begun the booksigning tour of Georgia yet.

My acreage is in Azaleas, Magnolias, Dogwoods. I am trying to get a bog going so that some Sarracenias can flourish.

Happy New Year!
Tina

My book, Georgia Native Plant Guide, has been nominated for the Special Books division of the Creative Nonfiction category in the 42nd annual Georgia Author of the Year awards (http://www.georgiawriters.org/42ndnominees.htm ). Winners will be announced at the dinner and awards ceremony on June 18, 2006. I will keep you posted.

Tina M Samuels

Congratuations and good luck today.