DAE think the whole "native plants are always better" rule is way too simple?

Andrew Craig · 2026-10-17T14:50:04.707373+00:00

I read a study from the University of Delaware last winter that kind of broke my brain. Researchers looked at 20 common garden plant types and compared native cultivars to the plain wild versions, and the cultivars got visited by way fewer bugs, sometimes over 50% less. But here's the part nobody talks about: a few of the cultivars actually did fine, and some plain natives in bad spots got ignored too. So the whole thing depends on the plant, not just the native label on the tag. I get why people push natives, I really do, but acting like every native cultivar is a bug magnet feels lazy to me. What's your take, have you seen cultivars hold their own in your yard or is it always a letdown?

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DAE think the whole "native plants are always better" rule is way too simple? | Botany Lovers - Rigidtalk