Native plants are built to thrive in their natural environments, but it's still surprising to see just how hardy they can be. One Reddit user shared photos of their blue wood aster that was still blooming amid dropping winter temperatures.
Shared in the r/NativePlantGardening subreddit, the original poster wrote: "Not sure how this blue wood aster is still flowering, we've had multiple nights in the mid 20s and 2 - 4 inches of snow earlier this week."
The photos show dozens of tiny, pale blue flower blooms emerging from a ground covered in dead leaves.
Effortlessly thriving even in harsh temperatures is just one of the many perks of native plants. Gardeners who grow native plants enjoy decreased water bills and service fees due to the plants requiring less irrigation and maintenance to survive.
Native plants also create a healthier ecosystem for pollinators such as butterflies and bees, which is great news for humans since pollinators protect our food supply.
Homeowners who switch to a natural lawn can also enjoy these benefits. Clover and buffalo grass are excellent replacements for traditional turf grass — a type of non-native lawn that requires copious amounts of water, treatments, and maintenance.
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Xeriscaping — a visually interesting landscaping option — incorporates native plants such as cacti and succulents that require low to no irrigation along with other gardening materials.
Even a partial lawn replacement or small native-plant garden can allow homeowners to reap these rewards and help the environment.
Other Redditors commented on the OP's photos, sharing their admiration for wood asters and other native plants.
🗣️ Would you want a garden that can take care of itself?
🔘 Sign me up 👍
🔘 Depends on the price 🤔
🔘 No — that ruins the fun ☹️
🔘 I don't like gardening ❌
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
One user said: "Our native plants are beasts!"
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Another Redditor shared: "I have a theory that at some point the plants are kind of zombies above ground. The soil is too cold for them to draw energy downwards so everything above ground just hangs out, and if the leaves were already filled with their antifreeze chemicals, they just sit there."
"Mother nature is doing what she has to do to help even her littlest creatures," another commenter pointed out.
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