i have compiled some native plant gardening tips for those of whom are new to it based on my own experiences and trials and errors, so here goes:
if you're germinating seeds, dont use coco coir. it sucks. ignore anyone who tells you to use it. it doesnt hold moisture well at all and doesnt decompose well. look for a "seed starter" soil instead, it will have a bunch of beneficial nutrients n such to get the seeds and their roots going. if you're concerned about peat, there are plenty out there that don't have any, coast of maine comes to mind. I used to think I needed to grow them in a sterile env, mostly to prevent mold, but I find that nearly impossible to avoid, so on to my next tip:
you're better off trying to start your native seeds outside. even if you wanna use cell trays, thats fine (bring them in when it freezes though), but preventing mold when germinating inside, especially in your fridge with all your food you sometimes forget is there and gets moldy, i've found to be nearly impossible. granted, mold isnt always a bad thing, it can help eat the seed coating so the roots can grow, but this obviously isnt true for all seeds and especially not small seeds. outside is your best bet, I just find less mold grows out there. might be good to make a mini green house of sorts to keep your seed trays in, obviously thats unnecessary if you're growing them in the ground.
if you're like me and have no real ground space and only have a patio or balcony and have to grow everything in pots, I have a couple tips for you actually, but for now lets focus on winter protecting your plants. most suggest burying them under ground... im assuming like me that isn't really an option for you, so we're gonna come up with another solution. you're probably going to need to invest a good amount of money into this, depending on if you have the material around or not. but to start off:
huddle all your pots together. they can help insulate eachother better and keep eachother warm. i try to put the least cold hardy ones in the center, if you can, put them all together in a larger container like a bucket or something and cover it with lots of mulch. water sparingly and lightly, enough to wet the soil but not enough to drip through the bottom of the pot. you should be sparingly watering anyways in winter, but especially so here since they'll probably be in a container that doesnt drain unless you want to drill in holes on the bottom. try to make sure the pots dont touch the sides of the containers if they're plastic and fill in the gaps with mulch or something, plastic isnt the best material to use for pots regardless, unfortunately its the cheapest and most readily available and comes in varying sizes so I cant get mad at you for using it.
heavily mulch your plants. maybe put some straw on top of the mulch too if you have any. I used to think leaves were enough but there's too much airy space between them, you want to make the insulation as compact as possible. if you're wanting to make a place for bumblebees to hibernate i'd suggest making an entirely different leaf pile or something unrelated to your plants. (obv doesnt apply to ppl growing stuff in the ground bc you have the privilege of being able to sprinkle leaves wherever you want. bastard.)
invest in some burlap fabric and some cheap towels or blankets for even more insulation, the fuzzier the blanket the better imo, but it should be fine whatever you choose, just try not to get too thin of a fabric. the burlap and blanket/towel might not be necessary to use every day but definitely on days where its below freezing. these also will last you every year, assuming you take care of them right. cover the tops of pots but also wrap around the sides of them and maybe put a layer or two of burlap down on the ground under them, esp if they're on cold hard concrete.
if you have any plants with tuberous roots, they are more vulnerable to freezing if they're in a pot and will need extra protection or to be brought inside during a freeze, to not shock it with a temperature shift try putting the pot in the fridge if you can, otherwise again it might be good to try to make a mini green house of sorts, maybe turn one of those plastic window well covers into one? or put it in a garage if you have something like that. they also, maybe obviously but just in case, dont need to be watered as often since they have lots of water stored in themselves.
putting your pots really close to the walls of your house can also help keep them warm. not sure if its enough to prevent them from freezing but combined with everything else? well, it's survived many of my plants over the last couple years (though i didnt know about the tuber thing until recently and it explains so much why certain plants didnt make it >_>)
ok moving on from winter. lets go back to talking about pots, bc seriously if you can get your hands on ANYTHING besides a plastic pot, jump on it. they suck universally. they suck in winter and in summer. their only benefit is providing some humidity but that's not really something I personally need as someone in a temperate climate. also, the lighter the pot the better. dark plastic pots can cook the roots of your plants in the sun in summer so you have to be extra careful. also, the deeper the pot the better for native plants.
because you're growing native plants in pots, they're going to need a lot more extra care. native plants in the ground can pretty much be neglected since nature takes care of it all, but you have to provide the water, soil, fertilizer, etc. so lets talk about that:
you dont need to water every day necessarily, the old trick of watering when the top 1-2 inches is dry is your best method to go by. if you live in the midwest or northeast or anywhere it gets heavy rain, it would be good to give them a deep watering every now and then, I try to follow what the rain does and water at the same frequency as it. it would be good to water daily (maybe only a small amount if the soil is still somehow wet) on really hot days even though you dont have to water every day, like on days above 90 degrees. also the best time to water, especially in summer, is early in the morning, ideally some time before 8, 9 is ok but 8 is better imo bc it gives the roots more time to absorb the water before the sun evaporates it, and around 10 is when that starts happening. if you have to water at night, water early at night and try to avoid watering the leaves if you can as water left over on them overnight can cause mold, mildew or other diseases. if you have to water mid day, at least wait until the sun isnt directly on the plants so they can actually absorb some of the water.
since you have to provide your own water and cant rely on rain, you also have to provide your own fertilizer. I mean you already did before, but I mean liquid fertilizer. rain transfers all kinds of vitamins and minerals to the plants that receive it, but you're likely not getting nearly as much in your tap, and since your pots likely aren't being shat in by various woodland creatures, they're getting even less fertilizer. so you have to provide the fertilizers, both slow and liquid. I thought I could just get by with slow release but the plants seem to do better with liquid too, especially when in bloom. if you use slow release you dont need to use the liquid fertilizer as often, and you also likely dont have to use the liquid as frequently as it says on the bottle, since native plants generally require less nutrients to begin with, but of course this is something you'll probably have to test on your own to see how much your plants want and tolerate. I have a whole feeding schedule I can share if you want. some brands I've been using for liquid fertilizer are foxfarm (they have good soil too), microlife, and maxsea (technically a powder but you mix it with water) and for slow release is foxfarm again, jobe's organics, and lilly miller's. I'm trying to use as organic of materials as I can since I'm growing the plants for native wildlife and pollinators and I dont want to negatively effect them as much as possible. if anyone wants to know what products I use specifically hmu or leave a reply.
I trust you're able to figure out your soil situation on your own, but here's some tips just in case: try to avoid brands like miracle grow since I'm pretty sure it has inorganic materials in it, generally I'd aim for the most organic thing you can find, assuming you're growing native plants for the same reason I am, for nature. also, take those messages about well-draining soil seriously, you can use perlite but also some soils are just lighter than others, I find foxfarms is pretty light and drains well.
during winter, leave the plants as they are, dont cut them down. lots of bugs and animals have made nests or homes or have cocoons n such in there. you can cut it down in the spring when frost is nor longer a concern, but dont throw it in the trash either bc the bugs might still be sleeping in them but will be less vulnerable now that winter is gone.
ok that's all I can think of for now, I'll add on to this if I think of anything else, but hopefully this is helpful for someone out there :]
