Native Plants
Support Wildlife, Plant Native Plants
Native Plants and Wildlife
Native plants have evolved with our local animals and they have come to rely on each other. Some species require certain plants in order to go through their life stages. Such as milkweed and monarchs.
Better Adapted to Local Environent
The same evolution that helps native plants support wildlife also contributes to their survivability. Native plants have adapted over time to our climatic conditions and are more tolerant of sour seasonal change.
With the right native plant choice for your growing conditions, they rarely require watering which saves resources, time, and money.
Use Less Water
Plant these to save me!
Flooding in the Lou
Outdated Combined Sewer System
St. Louis has an old sewer system that combines untreated or partially treated sewage with stormwater. With moderate to heavy rain events, the sewers tend to overflow as seen in the picture to the right. In some cases, there are overflow discharges directly into streams and rivers increasing pollution.
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The EPA and MSD have agreed to a settlement that will cost $4.7 billion over 23 years to revamp infrastructure and reducing pollution in our waterways.
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MSD's Project Clear is a result of that settlement. The goal of this project is to improve water quality for the St. Louis region and resolve issues caused by St. Louis' outdated sewer systems.
How Native Plants Can Reduce Flooding in STL
Deep Roots
Many of our native plants have extensive root systems, as shown in the diagram below. Kentucky Blue Grass which makes up much of our turf grass lawns has mere inches compared to some natives with over 15 feet of roots.
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Deeper roots increases water percolation, allowing more stormwater to be soaked up by the soil and plants, rather than pooling and flooding.
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There is an added bonus of these deep roots: they reduce erosion. They are able to hold more soil together and are well-rooted for this job.
This diagram from the Conservation Research Institute compares the root systems of various native prairie plants compared to Kentucky Bluegrass which is commonly used in turf-grass lawns. The deeper and more extensive roots allows for greater water percolation and filtration , which reduces flooding.