Hello!

I'm a high school plant nerd who enjoys travelling to parks across Ohio to find cool native plants. I used to have a list here of my favorite native plants I've seen in the wild, but now it's too long to fit because I have so many favorites! I believe planting native plants is one of the best ways that all of us can work together as a community to give a helping hand to our struggling wildlife and preserve biodiversity. I know from personal experience that rebuilding habitat in your yard and watching the life return is very fulfilling and exciting, and I think everyone should get into it. If you haven't read Doug Tallamy's books I would highly recommend reading them as soon as possible. They completely changed my outlook on gardening and my career plans post high school. Go native!

Native Plant/Animal Statistics:

• In 1 hour a lawn mower can produce as much pollution as a car driving 100 miles
• 1 hour of leaf blowing is equal in pollution to driving 1,100 miles
• Somewhere between 34 and 83% of invasive species were originally introduced as ornamentals in gardens
• 95% of the US has been converted into farms, housing, lawn, pavement, or other development, all of which is essentially worthless to wildlife
• The recommended percent of native plant biomass in yards is 50 - 70% for maximum biodiversity
• One clutch of chickadees needs on average 6,000 to 9,000 caterpillars as food over 16 to 18 days
• Just 14% of native plant genera support 90% of butterfly and moth caterpillars; these genera are called keystone species, examples of which are oaks, cherries, willows, and goldenrods
• 90% of insect herbivores are specialists on eating a specific variety of mostly if not entirely native plants
• About a third of native bees are specialists on a small group of native plants
• 80% of plants rely on insects for pollination
• Globally insects are declining at a rate of 3% per year

Indoors, I love cultivating and researching succulents and other xerophytes from across the globe, as well as a few random tropical plants. Someday I hope to travel around the world to see some of these amazing plants in the wild, and I especially want to visit South Africa, Borneo, Madagascar, Chile, Socotra, and Mexico.

I've also become more interested in the huge diversity of environments and plants found in the United States, and I especially love all of our conifers. I would love to eventually visit the cypress swamps, pine savannas, and subtropical forests of the South, the Smokies and Appalachians, the boreal forests of the Northeast, the remnants of the Great Plains, the redwood forests, alpine forests, and mountains of the Pacific Northwest, and the Sonoran Desert of the Southwest.

I can communicate in English or Spanish, but English is my first language.
Puedo comunicar en inglés o español, pero inglés es mi primer idioma.

Year in Review 2023