Native Plants at the Santee National Wildlife Refuge

The Santee National Wildlife Refuge maintains a Native Plant Pollinator Garden at the Visitor Center.  This garden is constantly being modified as we learn what plants are adapted to the site.  Part of the site was previously a parking lot and is full of stones making digging almost impossible. The original planting is partially under a Red Maple whose roots have invaded the garden.  We have had some overly aggressive plants such as the Swamp Rose (Rosa palustris) and the Giant Goldenrod (Solidago gigantea) spread and takeover large areas. Ideally these need to be contained in large pots or an area with defined with concrete or wood borders. Our Northern Obedient Plants (Physostegia virginiana) have not done well for lack of water.  We have seen these in other areas with consistent irrigation and they are beautiful, but spreading aggressively.

In November of 2018 we seeded a section of the lawn on the left side with native wildflowers and grasses. As of January 2019 we appear to have had good germination and growth of the plants.  We hope to add another seeded area in the Spring of 2019.  The purpose of these plots is to demonstrate ways to reduce lawn area while providing habitat for wildlife.  First flowers were blooming on Feb 7, 2019.   Written by Mike McCully

* Don't forget to visit the Santee National Wildlife Refuge and Pink Dogwood Garden Club web sites in Summerton, SC..