You Might Not Want to Plant That!

When choosing plants for your garden, consult the ‘Grow Me Instead’ guide for native or non-invasive plants. Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko

Invasive Species Councils release ‘Grow Me Instead’ Guide for New Brunswick and Nova Scotia Gardeners

[Fredericton, NB] - Local gardeners will now have a new tool to help them grow non-invasive plants in their gardens. The New Brunswick and Nova Scotia Invasive Species Councils have teamed up to create a ‘Grow Me Instead’ guide that identifies invasive plants to avoid and provides recommendations for better native (or at least non-invasive) alternatives.

“Many of North America’s invasive plants were originally brought here on purpose as garden ornamentals from other parts of the world,” says Kristin Elton - Program Director for the New Brunswick Invasive Species Council. “If these plants just stayed put in our gardens, they wouldn’t be a huge problem, but they have a tendency to spread into surrounding natural areas where they outcompete native plants and alter our ecosystems”.

Modeled after similar guides in other provinces, the Grow Me Instead guide was developed by looking at which garden plants are known to be invasive in the region along with those expected to become invasive with climate change, what alternatives would be suitable replacements based on desired characteristics and growing conditions, as well as industry feedback on which alternatives are actually available in the region for gardeners to get their hands on.

“Most people don’t want to intentionally plant invasive species, it’s just that there is a lack of readily available information about which horticultural plants are known to be invasive and even less about what you should plant instead. This guide aims to fix that,” says Hughstin Grimshaw-Surette who is a Project Coordinator with the Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council.

Gardeners may be surprised to see that many plant commonly available for sale in the region are listed as ‘invasive’ in the guide: some are even top-sellers.

“The guide isn’t intended to be a recommended ban on these plants, but rather a tool to educate gardeners. We recognize these species are currently a big part of the horticultural industry in our region, so our goal is to gradually shift the market away from the invasives by increasing demand for alternatives, thus ensuring that businesses aren’t negatively impacted” says Elton.

You can access an online copy of the guide by visiting www.nbinvasives.ca/plantwise.

We’d like to thank Environment and Climate Change Canada and the New Brunswick Environmental Trust Fund for their support of this initiative. The New Brunswick and Invasive Species Councils are chapters of the Canadian Council on Invasive Species. For more information, visit www.nbinvasives.ca and www.nsinvasives.ca.

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Media Contacts

New Brunswick

Claire Ferguson - Outreach & Communications Coordinator

New Brunswick Invasive Species Council

claire.ferguson@nbinvasives.ca

(506) 262-1661

Nova Scotia

Hughstin Grimshaw-Surette - Terrestrial Project Coordinator

Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council

hughstin@nsinvasives.ca

902-307-0930