Native plant material offers a solution to some of the bigger issues facing landscaping and gardening as we begin to come to terms with our responsibility to our environment as individuals and communities. Water conservation is rapidly becoming a major concern in Canada as our population grows and housing developments eat up the countryside one acre at a time. It is the peak summer demand for water that threatens to exceed the supply and creates the need for water rationing. As gardeners we need to evaluate our individual water consumption during these times and look for ways to improve. One way is to move towards xeriscaped yards by matching conditions with plants and using drought tolerant plant material for naturally dry sites. Indigenous plants are accustomed to our seasonal precipitation patterns and don't require supplementary watering once established. They deal with drought by employing deep root systems to tap into water reserves down in the soil. Incorporating wildflowers and native woody plant material in your yard will help reduce your summertime water usage.

Native plants are also naturally pest and disease resistant reducing the need for insecticides and they do not require fertilizing to be vigorous and healthy. Choosing plants that don't required chemical assistance to grow and prosper will reduce the amount of chemicals that are slowly degrading the quality of our water. Indigenous plants are more likely to survive the extreme weather conditions that occur in our Chinook zone, especially over the winter making them a more solid investment for your time and money. The surge in development that has taken place in and around Calgary and the vast acres of farmed land that surrounds us has slowly eaten away at our native prairie.

Spraying and mowing to control weeds un-landscaped areas kills the native wildflowers and grasses that when left to grow un-mowed could provide a natural; sustainable weed control by allowing them to go to seed. Native grasses and wildflowers have complementary root systems that work to choke-out weeds by providing stiff competition. Mowing areas actually make it easier for low growing weeds to take over by removing the competition. The weeds produce their seed head close to the ground where they are unaffected by mowing. Some sources suggest less than 1% of native prairie grassland still exists in North America.