While Extension personnel don't perform one-on-one residential site visits, Master Gardener volunteers can be a valued resource for local presentations, workshops, and demonstration gardens. MGs also do not perform site visit consultations, but there is an exception for properties undergoing Bay-Wise certification, which you can learn about in the linked page.

You are welcome to send questions via Ask Extension (and inquire with Master Gardeners in person, like plant clinic events) about feedback on plant selection based on the site conditions. If you wanted to hire a landscape designer or firm to help you with installations or planning, one resource could be the Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional program (use the "find a pro" link on their main page), which provides training for sustainable landscaping techniques. Specializations can include stormwater management and rain garden installation, native plant use, and meadow maintenance.

Some nurseries sell locally-sourced native plants and some do not, and sometimes plant labeling is a bit lax when it comes to defining what is "native," with species sometimes native several states away from Maryland (and not found here in the wild) being lumped-in with local natives. Oakleaf Hydrangea is one example; it's native to the southeastern U.S., but not here. While arguably much better than the alternative (a non-native invasive species), just be aware that this point of confusion can exist with plant tags and catalog listings. Various native species lists exist for Maryland, and they can disagree slightly for a handful of species, but for the most part, they include the same plants.

The genetic source of a propagated plant is called provenance, and it's best to choose plants with as local a provenance as possible. This not only minimizes the risk of genetic "contamination" by out-of-area plant populations, which have had to adapt to different conditions, but also helps the plants to stay "in sync" with local pollinators and wildlife, so they bloom at the right time. Unfortunately, you won't be able to find local provenance for everything, though availability is slowly improving. One issue with trying to find local provenance is with supply and demand, where local supply can't always meet the demand, and plants are sourced from further afield. You can always ask a nursery what the provenance is for any native species they're selling, though it's possible they will not know. If they don't know what provenance is, that might indicate they are not as well-versed in native plant sourcing as they could be, but to be fair, not all salespersons at a garden center are trained or experienced in this subject.

There is an online program called The Woods in Your Backyard that might be useful, and as of today, spots still remain for the upcoming Sept. 9 course start date. The linked page provides more information about that resource.

We are gradually expanding our native plant content as resources allow, so you can explore the web pages in that category as well, if they prove useful. Topics include pollinator garden planning and maintenance, recommended native plants (just a small sampling for now), and how to begin a meadow.

Once you've removed invasive or unwanted plants, we recommend starting with the planning of the most prominent and space-consuming features, trees and shrubs, and then working your way down to smaller plants like perennials. Take note of any need for multiple plants of the same species, such as for certain shrubs that have either only male or female flowers on each plant, requiring pollination partners in order to produce berries or seed. (Some plants that don't produce separate flowers still need a pollinator, so would also require a second plant of the same species for that purpose.) Examples of native plants requiring (or benefitting from) more than one plant, at least when it comes to the fruit production being decorative or for wildlife value, include hollies, viburnums, pawpaw, persimmon, blueberries, bayberry/waxmyrtle, and hazelnut.

Miri

Miri,

You're welcome!

Extension doesn't have a catalog per se of all of Maryland's native species, and those we feature on particular pages are just the tip of a vast iceberg, so you have lots of choices beyond those we happen to feature online. Native species reference lists can include those linked below, though most are already narrowed-down to species a person would most likely be able to get a hold of or notice in the wild; plenty more that are more "weedy" or otherwise aesthetically uninteresting might be skipped in some of the guidebooks for gardeners.

• Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping: Chesapeake Bay Watershed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
  • you can use what is essentially a web version (and searchable and filterable) of this via the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay's Native Plant Center
• Native Plants of Maryland by UMD Extension
• Landscaping with Native Plants by the Maryland Native Plant Society
• Native Plants for Northern Virginia (still applicable here)
  
• Vascular Plants of Maryland (the primary reference for all things native or not as it is currently understood from research...this publication includes plants of either status, if it's a plant growing wild in the state); specific symbols, found in the introductory section, are used denote non-native species

For help in finding sources of native plants, these compilation pages might be handy (Extension doesn't currently compile this info.):

• Maryland Native Plant Society vendors list
• Mt. Cuba Center nursery resources (this is a native plant-focused public garden in the piedmont region of Delaware)
  

Miri