Lands Green Waters Clean offers simple, practical solutions for transforming your own yard into a blooming oasis that supports birds and butterflies, protects local streams, and inspires a wave of action across your community. Click the topics below to get resources for being an environmental hero without leaving home.
Native Plant Words
Canopy Trees: Native trees that are placed in such a way that they will eventually shade or cover hard surfaces, such as driveways or rooftops. Canopy trees clean our air and water, provide valuable habitat for birds and butterflies, and can lower your heating and cooling costs.
Conservation Landscape: A garden that contains at least 75 percent native plants, instead of turf grass (lawn) and exotic ornamentals. Conservation landscapes slow and filter rain runoff (also called stormwater), which helps reduce or eliminate harmful pollutants, such as fertilizers and pesticides, that can wash into local streams. These gardens also provide food and shelter for local wildlife. Conservation landscapes are easy to maintain, giving you more time to enjoy watching the ever-changing life that happens in them! Conservation landscapes are also called native plant gardens.
Cultivar: A plant that has been bred for specific traits. A cultivar can be derived from a native or non-native species.
Invasive Plants: Plants that evolved far away, arrived in a new place, and began spreading in a way that harms native species and natural ecosystems. Many invasive plant species cannot be used by wildlife for food and shelter, or they offer very poor nutritional value to wildlife. Most invasive plants arrive in places they don’t belong when the horticulture industry imports them from other countries and then encourages property owners to invite these non-natives onto their land. You can help stop the spread by choosing locally native plants.
Nativar: A cultivar derived from a native plant.
Native Plants: Plant species that have developed over thousands of years in a particular region and are adapted to the local growing season, climate, and soils. These plants require less water, fertilizer, and pesticides than the exotics (non-native plants) found in many lawns and gardens. Native plants are generally deeper-rooted than non-natives, which helps them filter more stormwater. And, since most animals rely on the plant species they evolved alongside, native plants are far better than exotics at providing food and shelter for local wildlife.
Non-Native Plants: Also known as exotics, non-native plants are plants that humans have brought from another area. Non-native plants generally need more chemical pesticides and fertilizers than native plants, and attract fewer birds, butterflies, and other animals. Some non-native plants become invasive.
Rain Barrel: Container used to capture rain water that runs off a home’s roof. Rain barrels are typically connected directly to the gutter downspout and come in various sizes, ranging from 30 gallons to 100 gallons. Rain barrels reduce water runoff that causes pollution and flooding, plus they provide a free source of water for the plants in your garden.
Rain Garden: A shallow depression filled with a special soil mix and deep-rooted native plants. These gardens collect rain from hard surfaces – such as your roof or driveway – to slow and filter rain water before it runs into local streams. To build a rain garden, approximately two feet of dirt is removed (along with any turf grass on top of it) and replaced with a mixture of sand, topsoil, and compost to help hold water. Native plants adapted to periods of extreme wetness are used to design an attractive garden. Rain gardens can help prevent erosion and flooding as well, but they are not suitable for every site (such as swampy or sloped areas). Rain gardens are designed to hold water for less than one day – enough to filter polluted runoff but not long enough to breed mosquitoes.
Stormwater: Water from rain storms or melting snow that does not soak into the ground becomes stormwater – also called “runoff.” Stormwater can carry pollution into storm drains, which lead directly into our lakes, streams, and rivers. Runoff from yards can carry pesticides and fertilizers with it, while runoff from roads and parking lots can carry chemicals, dirt, and oil.
Turf Grass: Turf grasses are those species that we use in our lawns. They tolerate frequent mowing, which makes them useful as recreational surfaces and for some aesthetic purposes. But these short-rooted species don’t soak up much water when it rains, and they usually need a lot of pesticides and fertilizers to stay in good condition. Plus, almost all the grass species we use in our lawns in America aren’t native!
Watershed: The land area that drains into a specific stream or other body of water. Watersheds come in many different sizes; the watershed of a small creek may also be part of the watershed for a larger river. For example, water flows into the Chesapeake Bay from 64,299 square miles of land in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and West Virginia. That’s the Chesapeake Bay watershed – and each of the more than 150 rivers and streams that drain into the Chesapeake Bay has its own smaller watershed as well.
Weed: A plant growing out of place.
General Information
Books
- Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
- Bringing Nature Home, The Living Landscape, and Nature’s Best Hope, by Douglas W. Tallamy. Find all three books.
Websites
- Montgomery County has a rich website with many links to help with all aspects of your project.
- Eartheast (a not-for-profit) provides plant lists for their project on Darnestown Road as well as helpful tips for homeowners.
- The Wild Ones are the only national organization promoting the use of native plants in landscaping. Their local chapters host plant swaps and are very friendly and helpful!
- Pollinator Partnership has a wealth of information about pollinators and their relationships with native plants, including regional guides to gardening for pollinators.
Find Native Plants
Tips
- Ask your nursery if the plants they are selling are native to our region and if they are locally sourced. Are they grown from seed? Note that only retail outlets are listed below. There are additional wholesale nurseries. A landscape professional may provide access to additional resources.
- Find friends who are native plant enthusiasts. They are usually willing to share once they have lots of plants that are flourishing.
- Before hiring a contractor for design and install, ask if they have a certified Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional on staff.
Native Plant Databases
- The Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center provides a list of native plants in Maryland along with images showing the plants in bloom. You can also access information about plants preferred by butterflies or bees, find plants that are deer-resistant, and narrow your search by color, sun or shade requirements, plant size, and other categories.
- The Alliance for the Chesapeake and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service offers a searchable database of native plants.
- Search by zip code and see native plants ranked by the number of butterfly and moth species that use them as host plants for their caterpillars.
Not-For-Profit Nurseries
These nurseries offer 100% local-ecotype natives grown from responsibly collected regional seed sources. (“Local-ecotype” means the individual plant is not just native to your region, it’s descended from generations of plants that lived near where you’re gardening. That means the plant you’re getting is specifically adapted to your local conditions.)
- American Plant (Bethesda, MD)
- Chesapeake Natives (Derwood, MD)
- Earth Sangha (Springfield, VA)
- Environmental Concern (St. Michael’s, MD)
- Herring Run Nursery (Baltimore, MD)
- Kollar Nursery (Pylesville, MD)
- Stadler Nursery (Laytonsville, MD)
- Wakefield Valley Nursery (New Windsor, MD)
The Maryland Native Plant Society offers a list of additional nurseries that have native plants (though they may not have local ecotypes).
Native Plant Sales
- Muddy Branch Alliance (MBA) – We typically offer a native plant sale in the spring. Supplies are limited and plants sell out quickly. Subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know when the sale is open.
- Locust Grove Nature Center
- Friends of Black Hills Spring Plant Sale
Make a Plan and Get Financial Help
Montgomery County and the City of Gaithersburg offer rebates for conservation landscaping practices that reduce the amount of rainwater running directly into storm drains and streams. Activities that qualify include:
- Replacing turf grass with native plants
- Installing a rain barrel on your gutter downspout
- Installing a rain garden to capture rainwater on the ground
The City of Gaithersburg Rainscapes Rewards Program offers rebates to property owners who…
- Install rain barrels. Rebates of $1 per gallon, minimum of 40 gallons captured and maximum rebate of $250. (For lots larger than half an acre, the numbers are 55 gallons and $1,000.)
- Replace turf grass. Rebates of $1 per square foot (minimum 200 contiguous square feet with maximum rebate of $500) for replacing turf grass, impervious surface, or invasive species with plants and shrubs, at least 75 percent of which must be native. (For lots larger than half an acre, the numbers are 500 square feet and $1,000.)
The Montgomery County Rainscapes Rewards Program offers rebates (lifetime total of $7,500 per residential property) to homeowners who…
- Install rain barrels or cisterns. Rebates of $1 per gallon of rainwater captured with a minimum of 200 gallons for single-family homes (100 gallons for townhomes) with a maximum rebate of $500
- Install a rain garden. Rebates of $10 per square foot with a minimum rain garden size of 75 square feet
- Use other conservation landscaping techniques. Rebates for other eco-friendly landscape techniques such as removing pavement, installing green roofs, and using permeable pavers
The Montgomery County program also offers rebates for commercial, HOA, multi-family, and institutional properties. Visit the County’s website for information on the requirements and rebate amounts for these property types.
To qualify for rebates through the Gaithersburg and Montgomery County programs, homeowners must develop a project plan and have it approved by the city or county before they start a project. Follow these easy steps to make your project a success:
- Ensure you live in the project area. Apply for a rebate from Montgomery County unless you live in the jurisdictional boundaries of the City of Gaithersburg, City of Rockville or City of Takoma Park. A mailing address of Gaithersburg does not necessarily mean you live in the jurisdictional boundaries of Gaithersburg. If you have a green recycling bin, you are likely within the City of Gaithersburg boundaries. To be sure, check the map for your street.
- Evaluate conditions. Your goal in installing a native plant garden or rain barrel is to lessen your impact on the environment. By evaluating sun exposure, soil moisture, and soil type, you can select plants which will thrive with limited need for added water or chemicals. Spend a few minutes evaluating how much water comes out of each gutter downspout – and where it ends up.
- Think about the outcome you want. In addition to observing what’s going on in your yard now, imagine what you would like to see happen there in the future. How would you like to be able to use your outdoor space? Where could native plants help absorb water from a persistently soggy spot? What types of birds, butterflies, or other wildlife do you hope to see in your yard? And how much lawn are you willing to tear out in order to realize your new vision?
- Select a site. Ease of maintenance and an open view of the birds and butterflies your new garden will attract are important considerations. You may also want to place native plants where they can capture rain that runs off of your roof or driveway. A downspout that currently sends water spilling into your driveway or street is the ideal spot for a rain barrel, but you should also consider how you want to use the water you collect.
- Develop a plan. Consider your goals and constraints – including budget, maintenance, design style, and types of wildlife you want to attract – to create a garden design or install a rain barrel. Check your homeowner association rules for any applicable restrictions.
- Do a test run. Use a rope or garden hose to mark off the area of turf grass you might want to replace. Use this temporary marker to help you visualize how the new garden will look in your yard. Shift the marker around until you’re happy with it – then place stakes along the line you’ve drawn, so you can easily come back to it later.
- Look up – look down. Before settling on the site you’ve marked, make sure there are no underground utility lines in that area. There should be a free service in your town that will come out and check this for you. Also, if you’re thinking about planting a tree, think about the long term: make sure your growing companion won’t end up tangled in any wires.
- Plan for waste.The turf grass you’re about to remove won’t go away when you dig it up. Plan now for what you will do with it. You might move it to another spot on your land where the grass is looking a little thin, pile it in a back corner of the property where it can turn into compost, or take it to a waste collection facility that accepts sod.
- Submit your plan for approval. The application process for both rebate programs starts with a simple online form and may also include a property inspection.
- Wait for approval. Both rebate programs specify that if a project is started before it is approved, the project is not eligible for a rebate. So plan ahead and be patient!
- Once your project is approved, dig in. Once the city or county gives you the green light, you have three months for Gaithersburg, or six months for Montgomery County, to complete your project. In addition, you need to ensure what you install matches what the city or county approved. Hold onto all your receipts – you’ll need them for the rebate application.
- When your project is complete, apply for your rebate. Then sit back and enjoy your wonderful new landscape!
Need more inspiration? You can follow or modify these sample designs to create your one-of-a-kind native plant garden.
- Designs for sunny meadows and shady glades in Montgomery County, Maryland.
- Design for a native fern garden, which is good for shady, moist sites.
- Design for sunny and shady sites in three different areas – coastal plains, piedmont forest, and mountains. These templates offer ideas for gardens of various sizes, shapes, and functions, such as butterfly habitat, bird habitat, or fragrance.
Rain Barrels and Rain Gardens
Rain Barrels
Attaching a rain barrel to your gutter downspout is an easy way to prevent flooding and erosion, keep rainwater from washing pollutants into local streams, save money on your water bill, and conserve drinking water for drinking! Rain barrels can also help you qualify for the rebates described above.
Rain barrels come in a variety of sizes, from 30 gallons to 100 gallons. Rain barrels can be added to any building that has gutters and downspouts. Each barrel has an outlet that can be connected to a garden hose to allow you to water your lawn and gardens. Rain barrels also have overflow outlets that can be directed to a native plant garden or rain garden on your property or into a grassy area away from the house foundation.
To install your own rain barrel, follow the same steps you would for any home project: make a plan, buy and install the rain barrel, and maintain the rain barrel. Our Rain Barrel fact sheet has all the details.
Rain Gardens
Rain gardens prevent flooding and erosion, attract colorful birds and butterflies, reduce maintenance in your yard, and save you money on all those pesticides and fertilizers you no longer need. Planting a rain garden can also help you qualify for the rebates described above.
A rain garden is a shallow depression filled with a special soil mix and native plants. These gardens collect rain from hard surfaces – such as your roof or driveway – to slow and filter the water before it runs into local streams, eliminating pollutants such as fertilizer, car oil, road salt, and dirt.
To create a rain garden, follow the same steps as for any gardening project: make a plan, buy and install plants, and do some basic maintenance. Our Rain Garden fact sheet has all the details.
Trees
Like other plants, trees play an important role in protecting water quality, providing habitat for wildlife, and creating enjoyable spaces for people. Also like other plants, trees can be either native or non-native. But because trees are larger and longer-lived than other plants, they benefit us and our environment to a greater degree than their smaller cousins… and whether they are native or not can make an even bigger difference.
When it comes to choosing trees, native species are enormously productive in offering food and shelter to birds and other animals, while most non-native trees offer virtually nothing to our local wildlife. Towering oaks are recognized as the number-one best tree for wildlife in our region – but smaller native trees, like native cherries, are also valuable in this regard. When deciding on a tree for your yard, be sure to consider how it will fit around buildings, power lines, and other plants; how it will grow and change over its long lifetime; and how it will provide a wealth of benefits to both human and non-human inhabitants of your neighborhood. The Montgomery County Tree Care Manual has more information about how to choose and care for trees.
Learn more about the benefits of trees in this short video.
Each spring, we work with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to give away hundreds of free trees. To get notified when the annual tree giveaway is coming, subscribe to our mailing list.
We also work with the City of Gaithersburg and Montgomery County to provide donated trees to plant in public spaces. We especially look for opportunities to plant trees along streambanks, which reduces erosion while providing crucial habitat for birds, mammals and aquatic creatures. If you have a project in mind or would like to donate a tree in memory of a loved one, please email us.
Together with the Seneca Creek Watershed Partners, we had a successful Free Tree event in March 2023, giving away over 400 bare-root native trees. Native trees are a foundation for creating habitat and make a great addition to a bed of native perennials. Bare-root trees are super easy to plant and generally thrive, though they do need deer protection.
Get Professional Assistance
Search Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professionals (CBLP) for certified individuals offering a variety of services.