Rewilding My Lot

In spring and summer of 2024, there was a significant display of native wildflower plants here that had volunteered or been introduced by seed that I sowed in the previous fall. For now, I will keep at least half of that area for the same purpose.

I presume that by now there is a considerable “seed bank” in the soil from things that flowered this year — especially Bluebonnets, Firewheels, Standing Cypress, and Sunflowers.

In order to enhance diversity, in two particular areas I’ve added a few more seeds to the back yard that I either purchased or was given.

Towards the back of the garden there’s an area that I intended for “tall seeds.” Of the three kinds of seed I planted there, only one grew, which was Standing Cypress (Ipomopsis rubra). This plant is supposed to be biennial and so I had already bought more seed to provide a flowering population in alternate years. However, a surprising proportion of the first-year plants flowered and seeded anyway, so with the extra seed, this area should be very attractive to hummingbirds in upcoming years!

As well as Standing Cypress, I also added a few more seeds for Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) and Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa).

I mixed the seeds with some planting soil and scattered them in the designated area. That’s all I do; I’ll let nature take it from here.

The second area where I added new seed was near the right-side fence where I previously was growing “Three Sisters” mounds. The mounds have been taken down and the mulch of the nearby pathway removed.

The seeds I used were small packs of two different assortments from Native American Seed (Bee Happy Mix and Butterfly Retreat). Theoretically, these seeds could include the list below, although I don’t expect everything to grow. The garden can decide what works well in this environment, and I will have my work cut out for me in the spring to try to identify what’s growing in order to eliminate weeds and/or move things to a better location.

• American Basketflower
• Bergamot
• Black-Eyed Susan
• Blue Wild Indigo
• Bluebonnet
• Bush Sunflower
• Butterfly Weed
• Clasping Coneflower
• Common Sunflower
• Cowpen Daisy
• Cutleaf Daisy
• Cutleaf Evening Primrose
• Frostweed
• Gayfeather
• Gayfeather Blazing Star
• Golden-Wave
• Greenthread
• Huisache Daisy
• Illinois Bundleflower
• Indian Blanket
• Lanceleaf Coreopsis
• Large Flower Coreopsis
• Lazy Daisy
• Lemon Mint
• Maximilian Sunflower
• Mealy Blue Sage
• Partridge Pea
• Prairie Goldenrod
• Prairie Verbena
• Purple Coneflower
• Purple Prairie Clover
• Rattlesnake Master
• Showy Milkweed
• Sleepy Daisy
• Slender Mountain Mint
• Smooth White Penstemon
• Standing Cypress
• Stiff Goldenrod
• Swamp Milkweed
• Tahoka Daisy
• Tall Goldenrod
• White Prairie Clover’
• Winecup (Annual)
• Woolly Croton