Here Are The Best Native Plants For Bensalem Gardens

BENSALEM, PA — Planting season, as Bensalem gardeners know, is officially upon us. And before you dig out those dusty trowels and gloves, take note of the plants that naturally grow in the area.

We're talking about native plants, which grew here long before Europeans started building settlements. They're the foundation of the region's biodiversity, and provide key food sources and shelter to birds.

Fortunately the folks at the National Audubon Society have done all the hard work to ensure gardeners have what they need to find the best native plants. The group has a database that includes perennials, shrubs, grasses, succulents, trees, vines and evergreens. Each entry also details what types of birds the plants attract.

The database allows users to filter results by plant type, resources and bird species they attract.

Regional Audubon experts hand-select the "best results" for each. In Bensalem, some of the best flowers to grow this season include Allegheny Monkeyflower and Allegheny Service-Berry.

Here's a roundup of some great local options:

Allegheny Monkeyflower

• Allegheny Monkey Flower, or Square-stemmed Monkey Flower, is a herbaceous perennial that typically grows 1 to 3 feet tall and blooms open-mouthed, lilac-purple flowers from June to September.
• Birds They Attract: Waxwings, sparrows, wood warblers, vireos, more

Allegheny Service-Berry

• Growing 15 to 25 feet tall, this serviceberry is a small, shrub-like tree with dense branching and smooth, striped bark.
• Birds They Attract: Orioles, wood warblers, waxwings, thrushes, more

Alternate-Leaf Dogwood

• Also known as Pagoda Dogwood, this small, perennial, deciduous tree or large multi-stemmed shrub typically grows 15 to 25 feet tall with distinctive layered, horizontal branching.
• Birds They Attract: Woodpeckers, wood warblers, thrushes, crows and jays, more

American Basswood

• Also known as American Linden and Bee Tree, this perennial, deciduous tree grows 60 to 80 feet tall, sometimes even taller.
• Birds They Attract: Wrens, orioles, thrushes, titmice, chickadees, more

American Beech

• Also called White, Red, or Ridge Beech, this large, deciduous tree typically grows 50 to 80 feet tall with a dense, rounded crown.

• Birds They Attract: Chickadees, titmice, cardinals, grosbeaks, finches, more

For many more local gardening options in Bensalem, visit the Audubon Society Web page linked above. For a list of local nurseries that sell native plants in and around Bensalem, click here.

Americans spent a record $47.8 billion on lawn and garden retail sales in 2017, according to the National Gardening Survey. The average household spent more than $500 on gardening. And while older adults accounted for 35 percent of all gardeners, millennials were getting their hands and knees dirty at all-time high levels. Adults 18-34 accounted for 29 percent of all gardeners, the survey found.

Among the recent trends — more people are investing in raised beds as opposed to digging holes, and they're spending money on apps rather than glossy gardening books.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.