Get to Know Your Native Plants

By Liv Martin

Photo courtesy Timber Press

Gardening has never been more Minnesota-friendly with The Midwest Native Plant Primer, the newest book from Midwestern horticulture expert Alan Branhagen. Set for a release on July 21 by Timber Press, it profiles more than 200 native plant species and provides detailed gardening instructions and information on native ferns, grasses, wildflowers, perennials, vines, shrubs, trees, and pollinators like birds, butterflies, and bees. By planting specimens native to the Midwest, gardeners can create easy-to-maintain ecosystems that readily adapt to climate change and attract wildlife.


Branhagen, the director of operations and an instructor at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, has years of expertise in native plants under his belt, including his own 3-acre garden. In addition to The Midwest Native Plant Primer, Branhagen is also the author of Native Plants of the Midwest and The Gardener’s Butterfly Book, as well as a contributor to Fine Gardening and Missouri Gardener, among others.

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