Clallam Conservation District- Native Plant Sale


About Us Announcements Backyard Conservation Links Meetings Native Plant Sale Newsletter Projects Reports Services We Offer Upcoming Events Home	2010 Annual Native Plant Sale The Conservation District conducts an annual sale to make affordable native plants available for wildlife habitat enhancement and environmentally friendly landscaping. The plant sale is a not-for-profit sale. Any surplus revenues are used by the Conservation District to support ecological restoration and educational programs. Pre-orders are generally taken January through February, with plants being distributed the first weekend in March. For more information on our 2010 Annual Native Plant Sale please sign up to receive our quarterly newsletter. For detailed descriptions of the plants normally available at our plant sale view our 2009 Plant Sale List, OR if you have high-speed internet connection (or patience to wait) look at our Native Plant Pictures and Descriptions which contains colored pictures as well as detailed descriptions. We also have four new Native Plant Publications available this year to help you choose the plants that best suit your needs: Tree & Shrub Planting Hedgerows & Windbreaks Common Native Shrubs of Clallam County Common Native Trees of Clallam County Why native plants? The plants native to our region have grown alongside the native insects, fungi, plant diseases, wildlife, and other native plants for thousands of years. During this time they have developed the ability to attract native animals that benefit them (such as pollinating and seed-dispersing insects and birds), and repel or survive native organisms that harm them (such as plant viruses and munching insects). As a result, native plants often attract a wider variety of native animals than do introduced plants. In addition, the plants native to our area are adapted to growing in our region's soils and climate, and so generally require less maintenance (such as watering) than do non-natives. Native plants can be used in many ways; from helping along mother nature by quickly adding variety to a planting area, to being used in restoration projects such as after home-site clearing or for erosion control. Native plants work well in these situations because of their ability to tolerate the existing conditions and get established quickly. In general, nothing needs to be added to the soil when planting seedlings. Just water. Since the plants are small, their roots are close to the surface where the soil dries out quickly. Regular watering and perhaps a layer of mulch to help retain moisture is all they need to get started.
	The following websites contain useful information and pictures on native plants: WSU Cooperative Extension: http://gardening.wsu.edu/text/nwnative.htm Washington Association of Conservation Districts Plant Materials Center http://www.wacd.org/PMC/PlantList.htm Washington Native Plant Society: http://www.wnps.org/ Some good reference books* for native plants in our area are:* Grow Your Own Native Landscape: A Guide to Identifying, Propagating, and Landscaping with Western Washington Native Plants. Available from the WSU Cooperative Extension office in the County Courthouse Building, Port Angeles. Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast – Washington, Oregon, BC & Alaska. Pojar and MacKinnon. Lone Pine Publishing. Gardening with Native Plants of the Pacific Northwest. Arthur R. Kruckeberg. University of Washington Press.
Clallam Conservation District 1601 E. Front St., Bldg/Suite A Port Angeles, WA 98362 (360) 452-1912 ext. 5 ccd-info@wa.nacdnet.org