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Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, Updated and Expanded Paperback – Illustrated, April 1, 2009


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This "miracle" of a guide book shows readers how to maintain harmony within their environment (Margaret Renkl, The Washington Post).

In his groundbreaking book 
Bringing Nature Home, Douglas W. Tallamy reveals the unbreakable link between native plant species and native wildlife—native insects cannot, or will not, eat alien plants. When native plants disappear, the insects disappear, impoverishing the food source for birds and other animals. As development and habitat destruction accelerate, there are increasing pressures on wildlife populations. 

Luckily, there is an important and simple step we can all take to help reverse this alarming trend: everyone with access to a patch of earth can make a significant contribution toward sustaining biodiversity by simply choosing native plants. By acting on Douglas Tallamy's practical and achievable recommendations, we can all make a difference.  
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From the brand


From the Publisher

Book cover image of Bringing Nature Home by Doug Tallamy

Bringing Nature Home

A blueprint for halting the extinction crisis by using every backyard in America.

Answers to Tough Questions

Image of a kingbird preparing to enjoy a meal of alternate-leaf dogwood berries

Why can’t we let nature take its course and just leave the alien plants alone?

Through eons of evolution by natural selection, living things adapted to their physical environment and the organisms around them in ways that enabled them to survive. These natural processes worked well within the ancestral setting that created them, but we humans have changed that setting drastically.

The plants and animals in today’s world have had no time to adapt to these sudden changes and so are still operating under the rules that worked before humans took over landscape management. The end result is that without direct intervention by the humans who have placed them at risk, most organisms will not survive under our rules.

Image of a typical suburban home with manicured green lawn

Isn’t habitat destruction a more pressing problem than alien plants in the landscape?

Habitat destruction is a huge problem everywhere. That is precisely why we can no longer rely on natural areas alone to provide food and shelter for biodiversity. Instead, we must restore native plants to the areas that we have taken for our own use so that other species can live along with us in these spaces.

We can start by restoring native plants to our gardens. This is a manageable task for both suburban and city dwellers, with tangible results in a few short seasons as individual gardens begin to attract the birds and the insects that will sustain them.

Image of a tiger swallowtail enjoying a Joe-Pye weed planting.

My house sits on an eighth of an acre. Is that enough land to make a difference if I use natives instead of aliens?

Your small plot is connected to other plots, which are connected to others and others and others. Collectively they are North America. Changing the plant base of all of suburbia is quite an undertaking, but all you have to worry about is your eighth of an acre.

The important thing to remember is that even if you seem like the only one in all of North America who uses more natives than alien plants, wildlife will be better off for your efforts. The effects will be cumulative, and probably synergistic, as more and more people join you.

Image of a rabbit on a lawn of grass

Why is biodiversity important?

Around 50,000 alien species of plants and animals have colonized North America. It is crucial to keep noncontributing alien species from displacing the native plants and animals that play a critical role in the ecosystem. This is best done by maintaining a full diversity of native organisms in an ecosystem. A diverse ecosystem has more niches filled by competing organisms and is able to more successfully resist invasion by alien species.

Image of a mature white oak (Quercus alba)

Why are native plants important?

Nearly every creature on the planet owes its existence to plants, the only organisms capable of capturing the sun’s energy and turning that energy into food for the rest of us. Because animals directly and indirectly depend on plants for their food, the diversity of animals is closely linked to the diversity of plants. When there are many species of plants, there are many species of animals.

Image of author Doug Tallamy

Author Doug Tallamy

Professor of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, Doug Tallamy has taught insect-related courses for 40 years. Among his awards are the Garden Club of America Margaret Douglas Medal for Conservation and the Tom Dodd, Jr. Award of Excellence, the AHS B. Y. Morrison Communication Award, and the Cynthia Westcott Scientific Writing Award. Doug is co-founder with Michelle Alfandari of HOMEGROWN NATIONAL PARK. Learn more at HNPARK.org.

Nature's Best Hope
Nature's Best Hope (Young Readers' Edition
The Nature of Oaks
The Living Landscape
More Doug Tallamy books from Timber Press How you can sustain wildlife with native plants How you can save the world in your own yard The rich ecology of our most essential native trees Designing for beauty and biodiversity in the home garden hardcover

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A fascinating study of the trees, shrubs, and vines that feed the insects, birds, and other animals in the suburban garden.” —The New York Times
 
“Provides the rationale behind the use of native plants, a concept that has rapidly been gaining momentum. . . . The text makes a case for native plants and animals in a compelling and complete fashion.” —
The Washington Post

“This is the ‘it’ book in certain gardening circles. It’s really struck a nerve.” —
Philadelphia Inquirer

“Reading this book will give you a new appreciation of the natural world—and how much wild creatures need gardens that mimic the disappearing wild.” —
The Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
“A compelling argument for the use of native plants in gardens and landscapes.” —
Landscape Architecture
 
“An essential guide for anyone interested in increasing biodiversity in the garden.” —
American Gardener

“I want to mention how excited I am about reading
Bringing Nature Home. . . . I like the writing—enthusiastic and down-to-earth, as it should be.” —Garden Rant

“An informative and engaging account of the ecological interactions between plants and wildlife, this fascinating handbook explains why exotic plants can hinder and confuse native creatures, from birds and bees to larger fauna.” —
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
 
“Tallamy explains eloquently how native plant species depend on native wildlife.” —
San Luis Obispo Tribune
 
“Will persuade all of us to take a look at what is in our own yards with an eye to how we, too, can make a difference. It has already changed me.” —
Traverse City Record-Eagle
 
“Delivers an important message for all gardeners: Choosing native plants fortifies birds and other wildlife and protects them from extinction.” —
WildBird Magazine

“There’s an increasing interest among homeowners and others to include more native species in their landscape, thanks to books like
Bringing Nature Home, by Doug Tallamy, which extol the virtues of native plants over exotic ornamentals for attracting and sustaining beneficial insects.” —Andover Townsman

“Doug Tallamy weaves an interesting story of how exotic invasive plants affect birds and other components of a healthy forests. It’s a compelling and important story to understand.” —
The Bradford Era

From the Back Cover

“This updated and expanded edition. . . is a delight to read and a most needed resource.” —Cabin Life

As Doug Tallamy eloquently explains, everyone can welcome more wildlife into their yards just by planting even a few native plants. With fascinating explanations and extensive lists of native plants for regional habitats, this scientifically researched book can help us all to make a difference. No prior training is needed to become a backyard ecologist—but Tallamy's book can be a vital first set. For more information, please visit www.plantnative.com.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Timber Press
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 1, 2009
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 2nd
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 360 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0881929921
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0881929928
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.52 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.81 x 9 inches
  • Best Sellers Rank: #17,374 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

About the author

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Douglas W. Tallamy
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Douglas W. Tallamy is Professor and Chair of the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware in Newark, Delaware. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities.