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Shirley Heinze Land Trust
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Native Plant Resources

Why Native Plants?

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On sites that have been degraded and have lost their original plant diversity, we sow seed and plant plugs of native species to increase diversity and to provide habitat for wildlife. Insects, such as flies, moths and butterflies, bees and wasps, and beetles help many plants reproduce by spreading pollen in exchange for the nectar they harvest as food. Ants play an important role in seed dispersal, carrying seeds of some plants long distances from the parent plant. Birds and mammals eat plants and insects, and the web continues from there.

In our modern landscape, natural areas can be separated by roads, utility corridors, agricultural land, and residential neighborhoods - all potential barriers to the movement of animals… and plants. Native plants in any of these settings can provide safe passage between areas of more “natural” habitat for those important pollinators and seed dispersers, giving the “web of life” a “web” of habitat to live in. Planting native plants in your own garden can make a real difference.

Where to Acquire Native Plants

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  • Friends of the Dunes Annual Native Plants Sale Chesterton, IN (Second Saturday in April)
  • Wild Ones Native Plant Sale at Gibson Woods in Hammond 
  • Hammond, IN (First Saturday in May)
  • Midwest Native Plant Nurseries Directory
  • Cardno Native Plant Nursery Walkerton, IN
  • Naturally Native Nursery South Bend, IN (Wholesale/Retail by appointment)
  • Possibility Place Nursery Monee, IL (by appointment only)
  • Prairie Nursery Westfield, WI
  • Prairie Moon Nursery Winona, MN
  • Chesterton Feed & Garden Center Chesterton, IN
  • Niemeyer's Landscape Supply Crown Point, IN
Ask your local garden center for true native plants. 
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 PLEASE DO NOT TAKE NATIVE PLANTS FROM PUBLIC NATURAL AREAS. 


Native Wildflower Picture Gallery


219 GreenConnect

Host Kathy Sipple features guests from Northwest Indiana's green community. Topics include natural health, local food, sustainable business leaders & more. Please visit Kathy's website 219 GreenConnect and let her know that she's doing a great job by connecting Green Leaders in Northwest Indiana.

The following are shows that Shirley Heinze Land Trust has done with Kathy:
Protecting & Restoring Ecologically Significant Areas
 Volunteerism & Restoring Our Environment

Good Information

Native Plants
  • Indiana Native Plant Society (INPS)
  • Landscaping with Plants Native to Indiana 
  • What’s a Native Plant?
  • Why Landscape with Native Plants?
  • Living in the Dunes Native Landscaping Guide
  • Soak Up the Rain: Rain Gardens
  • Gardening for Nature
  • Monarch Conservation
  • The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation

Invasive Species
  • Invasive Species
  • Invasive Plants in Indiana (download a brochure)
  • Landscaping with Non-Invasive Plant Species in Indiana (IPSAWG )
  • Midwest Invasive Plant Network
  • Invasive Plant Advisory Committee
  • Species Assessments
  • Landscape Alternatives for Invasive Plants of the Midwest - Android Smart Phone App
  • Landscape Alternatives for Invasive Plants of the Midwest - iPhone and iPad App

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Rain Gardens​
  • Save the Dunes: Living in the Dunes Guide
  • Rain Gardens A How-To Guide
  • Rain Gardens: Why You Need One
  • Rain Garden Planting Guide
  • Benefits of Building a Rain Garden
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