parks
THE RETURN OF THE NATIVE
Park groups take native plantings beyond the urban wilds story by bernard brown • photography by chris baker evens
Someday this seedling will improve a park for humans and wildlife.
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uilding on philadelphia’s history as the “Garden Capital of America,” conservancy groups, landscape designers, urban horticulturists and backyard growers in our region are taking part in a revolutionary shift in gardening. By incorporating native plants — the trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants that flourished here over 200 years ago — into local landscapes, these practitioners are moving beyond gardening for people toward gardening for people and the planet. “In the past, we have asked one thing of our gardens: that they be pretty,” writes Doug Tallamy, entomologist, author and founder of nonprofit Homegrown National Park. “Now they have to support life, sequester carbon, feed pollinators and manage water.” Choosing native plants is a simple, transformative act we can take. Allison Schapker, chief projects officer at the Fairmount Park Conservancy, shares the reasons the conservancy’s work includes going native. “In every landscape we manage, regardless of scale or location, we are always thinking about providing beautification and spiritual uplift for residents, while providing ecological uplift.” To get the most from their financial investments, the conservancy designs gardens to deliver a broad range of benefits: natural beauty, wildlife food, even stormwater management. Their ongoing work at FDR Park includes numerous native plant installations. Next up is the creation of a native plant habitat at the Johnny Sample Recreation Center in Cobbs Creek Park. Roxborough Manayunk Conservancy (RMC) stewardship coordinator Tom Landsmann is a passionate propagator of natives. On an ingeniously designed compact property, Landsmann operates a private nursery for RMC’s reclamation projects. Landsmann, a lanky former marathoner largely self-taught in horticulture, recalls riding his bike to Pennypack Park, his childhood playground. He remembers the park as a mess of illegal dumping and neglect, but it introduced him to the quiet enjoyment of nature. In 2005 Landsmann began converting his secluded riverfront plot from a weed-choked junkyard into a richly fertile nursery. Since then, Landsmann estimates that, under the dappled shade of graceful trees, he has nurtured