Importance of Native Plants

Native vegetation provides an easy, dependable food supply for birds. While native plants are a great source of fruits and seeds for birds, they also provide important habitat for native insects. Native milkweeds, for example, can host caterpillar eggs and, later, caterpillar food. These caterpillars can become food that birds depend on to feed their young.  Non-native plants can be harmful in that native insects may not have adapted to eating or inhabiting them, making non-native plants unsuitable hosts for insects that birds rely on (See recent research about insects and non-native plants). With no natural deterrents or predators, some non-native plants can become invasive, choking out native plants, and can be difficult to remove. It is important to garden with native plants due to the interspecific relations they share with local insect and bird populations.