attract pollinators • preserve our natural landscape • provide wildlife habitat• use less water & chemicals

planning and planting your native garden

In this virtual workshop, you will learn how to identify your soil types and pick the best native plants for your yard and garden. You’ll also hear about some of our favorite natives, why they are important, and where to plant them.

Workshop partners include the Luckiamute Watershed Council, North Santiam Watershed Council, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Willamette Habitat Restoration Fund, and Polk, Marion, Benton and Yamhill Soil & Water Conservation Districts​.

Enrich your LAND with native plants
​Bare root sale - trees and shrubs

POLK SWCD annually hosts a native plant sale featuring both bulbs and bare root plants. With a wide variety of native plants to select from, customers can conveniently order online and then pick up their order on the designated pick up days.

native plant resources

Lists of Plants for Purposes

uNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (usda)
​NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE (nrcs)

The PLANTS Database

The PLANTS Database provides standardized information about the vascular plants, mosses, liverworts, hornworts, and lichens of the U.S. and its territories. It includes names, plant symbols, checklists, distributional data, species abstracts, characteristics, images, crop information, automated tools, onward Web links, and references. This information primarily promotes land conservation in the United States and its territories, but academic, educational, and general use is encouraged
(USDA, NRCS. 2021. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 12/21/2021). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.)

culturally significant plants

Traditionally, native plants were integrated into every facet of daily living among indigenous people. This collective wisdom about how to tend, judiciously harvest, and use native plants has evolved over thousands of years. As populations of useful native plant species continue to dwindle on tribal and public lands, there is increasing need to assist in the reestablishment of culturally significant plants in various landscapes.
Find information and images of plant species that play a significant role in the lives of Native Americans involved in cultural activities utilizing plants. Guides also contain cultural information about where the plant grows, when and how it is harvested, how it is prepared and used, and its general role in maintaining tribal ethnicity.
(PLANTS Help. (n.d.). Retrieved December 21, 2021, from https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov/assets/docs/PLANTS_Help_Document.pdf#page=4)

pollinator habitat

Select and get recommendations on plants which will enhance pollinator populations throughout the growing season. These wildflowers, trees, shrubs, and grasses are an integral part of the conservation practices that landowners, farmers, and ranchers install as part of their conservation plan.
(Pollinator Habitat | NRCS Plant Materials Program. (2021). Usda.gov. https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/plantmaterials/technical/publications/?cid=stelprdb1044847)

Oregon State University

OSU Extension - Native plants

This publication provides an introduction and guide for those who are interested in Pacific Northwest native plants and would like to incorporate natives into their home gardens. Included are:
  • Basic information about selection, establishment, and care
  • A list of recommended Pacific Northwest native plants
(Prepared by Linda McMahan, Extension horticulture faculty, Yamhill County, Oregon State University)
This handy chart shows recommended native plants for home gardens in western Oregon. It's categorized into trees, shrubs, groundcovers, herbs and ferns, and annuals. You'll find each plants':
  • Scientific name
  • Common name
  • Description
  • Drought tolerance
  • Light requirements
  • Wildlife Value
Source: Native Plant Gardening | OSU Extension Service (oregonstate.edu)
OSU Extension has great information on collecting soil samples, finding soil and water testing labs and soil test interpretation.

Oregonflora

OregonFlora is based in the Department of Botany & Plant Pathology (BPP) at Oregon State University. For over 25 years, they have been gathering and sharing information about the plants of Oregon to help land managers, gardeners, scientists, restorationists, and plant lovers of all ages understand the plant diversity that surrounds us.
(OregonFlora Gardening with Natives. (n.d.). Oregonflora.org. Retrieved December 21, 2021, from https://oregonflora.org/garden/index.php)

garden ecology lab

The Garden Ecology Lab of OSU studies gardens: the plants, insects, animals, people, decisions and managements practices that either improve or degrade a garden's ability to promote environmental and human health. The underlying premise of their work is that gardens are important and understudied systems, that are key to building more sustainable, healthy and just communities. 

xerces society

The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is an international nonprofit organization that protects the natural world through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitats. As a science-based organization, they both conduct their own research and rely upon the most up-to-date information to guide conservation work.
​Go to their Pollinator Conservation Resources for the Pacific Northwest! You'll find region-specific collections of publications, native seed vendors, and other resources to aid in planning, establishing, restoring, and maintaining pollinator habitat—as well as materials to help you learn about the species of invertebrates and native plants you might encounter. 
(The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. (2019). The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. https://xerces.org/)

native plant society of oregon

NPSO works tirelessly for plant and habitat conservation. State conservation chairs track major issues and chapters are involved in local efforts to protect and conserve threatened and endangered species. They carry out rare plant surveys and monitoring programs; They have developed guidelines and policy regarding native plant gardening, ethics, grazing, mining, and forest management; and we are involved in plant salvage and re-introduction.
(NPSO - Home page. (2020). Npsoregon.org. https://www.npsoregon.org/)

Audubon Society

Enter your 5-digit zip code to use Audubon’s native plants database and explore the best plants for birds in your area, as well as local resources and links to more information. You can also receive an emailed list of the native plants you've selected, get additional tips on creating your bird-friendly habitat, and help to keep track of your contributions to our efforts to get 1 million native plants for birds in the ground.
(Native Plants. (n.d.). Audubon. https://www.audubon.org/native-plants)
Plant Materials Resources for Western OR and WA​