Understanding your gardening goals can determine the plants you select and how much maintenance your garden will require.

• I want to support wildlife. This means providing food, water, and shelter for pollinators and birds.
• I want to address a problem in my yard. Native gardens can help solve wet areas, soil erosion, and even lack of privacy.
• I want an eye-catching, aesthetically pleasing yard. There are hundreds of native plants with a variety of unique blooms, smells, and structures.
• I am tired of lawn care. Native gardens require no chemicals, no mowing, and less water.
• I am tired of watering my lawn. Native plants require no chemicals and much less water.

1. Define whether your home habitat is a prairie, glade, wetland, or woodland. Use Deep Roots’ site assessment checklist.
2. Determine how sunlight levels in your yard change throughout the day and across different seasons.
3. How does water move through your yard? These observations will help predict the soil moisture where you want to plant. Pay attention to the moisture level in the space you want to plant. Also consider where it pools, this could be a great opportunity for a rain garden.
4. Before you dig, identify the locations of both overhead and underground utility lines in your yard. Call 811 to request a utility survey. When working near buried utilities, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.

Need help assessing your site and planning your space? Consider our Nature Advisors consulting program.

Watch one of our webinar episodes for more information on:

• Planning Your Native Garden Project
• Defining Home Habitat, and
• DIY Native Landscape Design

1. Measure the dimensions of your garden bed. The amount of space available will help guide plant selection (spread and height).
2. Plan pathways and access points to the garden.
   1. Position frequently used walking paths to border and define planting areas. If you have dogs, consider their paths too!
   2. Include paths that allow easy access throughout the garden. This will simplify maintenance and make it easier for you to explore your homegrown habitat.
3. Include hardscaping and garden features:
   1. Use stones to define edges or as places to sit or kneel when you’re working in the garden.
   2. Add structural components like bird baths, native plant signage, and sculptures emphasize the intentional design of your garden.

1. Consider your goals, site assessment, and space dimensions when selecting each plant.
2. Start with a limited variety; aim for three to five species.
3. Pay attention to each plant’s sociability to prevent one species from taking over the space. Is the plant considered gregarious (it spreads easily) solitary (grows in small, tight clusters, or somewhere in between? Pair plants with similar sociability levels for best results.
4. Choose plants with stagged bloom times to ensure visual interest throughout the season and provide continuous resources to wildlife.
5. Visit our Garden Design and Maintenance page for helpful plant selection advice.

1. When designing the layout of where each plug will be planted, consider structure
   1. Structural layer: bushes and trees,
   2. Seasonal theme layer: blooms, textures, and colors,
   3. Groundcover: green mulch
2. Determine how much space each plant will require at full maturity, and use that information to guide your layout.
3. Plant each species in clusters of three or more. This approach creates a more intentional look, makes weed identification easier, and helps pollinators locate plants more efficiently.

Explore the Deep Roots Sweet 16 list for examples of garden bed designs and beginner friendly plants.

1. Identify and remove invasive species. Reference the Missouri Department of Conservation invasive plant species list.
2. Methods to remove your lawn:
   1. Lasagna method (cardboard and compost):Layer cardboard and compost over your lawn to smother the grass beneath.
      ii. Solarization: Place a clear tarp over the planned garden area to trap heat and kill the grass.
      iii. Physical removal: Dig out the top layer of soil and sod.
      iv. Chemical removal: Use herbicides to kill your grass. Depending on your sod type, like Bermuda Grass (Cynodon dactylon) this may be the only effective option—always read and follow instructions carefully.

1. Purchase plants from native plants nurseries or visit Deep Roots’ Native Plant Sales.