Native Plant Community Types
The term “native plant community” refers to the collection of plant species that originally occurred under site specific growing conditions of a given geographic location. Each type of plant community was comprised of a collection of species that evolved over centuries to co-exist under the varying climatic, mineral and hydrologic conditions that occurs on the landscape. When referring to “native plant communities” of the U.S., people are most often referring to the species that naturally occupied different regions, prior to the massive alteration of the landscape that took place with European settlement in the 1800’s.
 |
Native plant community types can be classified into several general classifications, with different types within each classification. Wetlands, for example, can be divided into different types based on hydrologic and soil conditions. Native prairies also can be classified as “dry” “mesic”, or “wet”, depending on the growing conditions of the site and the species they are composed of.
Minnesota Native Landscapes can help you with a wide range of native plant communities ranging from wetland edges, to woodlands, to dry prairies.
Click on the links below to learn more about: