James Dillon, PCH

@nativehavens.bsky.social

575 Followers 208 Following

Owner of specialized landscape co. using (mostly) natives designing and installing gardens for people and planet that I hope will help slow the catastrophic extinction crisis wildlife is facing and sooth our souls. Ridge and Valley Ecoregion 67b, Zone 7

A picture from the late summer. A large traffic circle island with plantings and no turf grass. A 15' Sugar Maple Tree in the center contrasts the other finer textures with a dark black-green hue. Diverse plantings with various shades of tan, light and medium green, along with ground cover and the remnant flowers of 'Fireworks' Goldenrod.
A fall garden scene comprised of native plants, turning fall colors. The copper, tan, black and grey of the season contrast with evergreen Inkberry and bright red berries of Winterberry.
Pic from late June: A small front yard native flower meadow started from seed is vibrant with the blooms of Purple Coneflower, yellow Black Eyed Susan, and bright orange Butterfly Flower.
A digital rendering closeup of a xeric area of the planting that's raised with some soil and featuring a decorative pot with a punch of color and the delicate blades of grass in concert with many other native perennials like Purple Coneflower, lavender spikes of Blazingstar, Bright flashes of red from the Blanket Flowers growing in the dry soil mound area at the base of the planted urn.
Rendering of a lush native garden designed by Native Havens, featuring a winding gravel path through layered plantings of colorful wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs beside a brick house. The design includes a mix of blooming perennials such as bee balm, coneflowers, and asters, framed by small trees and evergreens. The composition creates a naturalistic, ecologically rich landscape that supports pollinators and provides year-round beauty.
Closeup of a small fairy garden constructed in a container that's about 12 inches across. A stone "river" made of blue and turquoise pebbles held in by larger natural rocks runs through the center. A water lily floats and the owl watches, the bunnies play and the fairy holds her baby. Lanterns wait unlit for the eve. A fern, groundcover and tiny tree set the scene.
View looking up concrete paver steps, winding through a planting of mostly native plants. Black seed heads of spent Black Eyed Susan contrast with other colors of fall like the yellowing of Sweetshrub foliage, red hues of Little Bluestem, punctuated by the tan color of a potted annual entering dormancy.
A front garden of this small cottage showing hints of the season. Black foliage of the spent Coreopsis contrasts with white misty flowers, reddish tones of the Little Bluestem grass, groundcovers, a dwarf conifer, and pale yellow Threadleaf Bluestar creates the backdrop and separation from the neighboring property.
Spent blooms on the Onion punctuate the foreground with yellow Goldenrods proliferating the garden. The short one in the center is bright yellow with compact spikes. The 'Fireworks' in the background has a lacy flower texture.
An extraordinarily fuzzy grass lights up red and glowy in the foreground... a see through effect, with the black seed heads of Coneflower behind. Yellow in the upper left is 'Fireworks' Goldenrod. Lots of seed heads from the 'Summer Beauty' Onion remain and punctuate. A stylized meadow effect in this garden.
Various yellow blooms fill this little cottage garden. The furniture on the cozy covered front porch beckons respite. Barely visible is a low concrete bird bath with water offered.
A grotesque scene: Construction worker and a bulldozer pushing the remains of a 80+ year old Hickory that was demolished to put a driveway in for a new construction.
Picture of a fresh tattoo on my forearm of a Coneflower with approaching butterfly.
Digital rendering of a large conservation planting design. View is looking down a sedge "river" winding into the rain garden space, flow directed by berms w/ boulders covered with blocks of plantings that create a rhythm through the space. Ribbons of native plants densely vegetate this 300' x 40' area designed by the author with the intention of slowing the infiltration and temporary holding of stormwater runoff from the adjacent road, building, parking lot, and turf.
Lush diverse planting in a narrow strip between properties flows into a small depression also loaded full of plants, including the conspicuous blooms of Purple Coneflower with its pink petals and copper colored daisy-like centers.
Diverse foliage textures and shades of green fill this small front yard space. A signature here might be the diversity (80%+ native plants) including a non-native conifer in the middle. Grass in front with upright, wheat like flowers standing tall but see-through (left) is a sterile non-native called 'Karl Foerster'. Many native abound like Ironweed (fine texture, front), Dwarf 'Golden Fleece' Goldenrod in front right, with 'Little Henry' Sweet Coneflower behind.
just a little zoomed out from the previous photo. Showing only a hint of the low concrete birdbath, more plants (of course) and a bit of sheen of low bright light off the slick concrete patio.
Closeup view of the rich greens in Butterfly Weed's leaves and narrow seed pods. Some white misty Mountain Mint in the background, and a tiny spot of pink and dark copper from Purple Coneflower.
A warm glow of light coming from underneath a low table at twilight illuminates a cozy nook, looking down our back deck. Brightly colored solar system prayer flags drape across the space in front of a privacy "L" shaped wall that creates a room like space. A sunflower (an important plant for some pollinator specialists) is visible in the low light.
A sun-soaked meadow with bright colors and diverse forms planted densely from seed.
Vibrant orange flat-shaped flowers of Butterfly Weed (a Monarch host plant) abound in this seeded meadow along with yellow radial petals of Black Eyed Susan and chartreuse buds of upland Beebalm getting ready to open.
Diverse native perennials bloom in a seeded meadow in front of a large solar panel.
Pink reflexed petals and bright copper colored cones of Purple Coneflower dot along with yellow blossoms of Black Eyed Susan in this dense diverse native meadow planted all by seed.
A garden in the fall to contrast with the previous pic of the garden in summer.... now displaying shades of tan, copper, grey, black, and green.... lined with cobble and river stones. This garden was designer for multiple seasons of interest. What's not visible yet are the vibrant Winterberry shrubs that will be bright red all winter.
A dense, layered, diverse garden along the road and driveway edged in granite cobble and river stone is dotted with color. White and Pink Coneflower, white misty flowers of Calamint, yellow of Coreopsis, and textures abound. A mass of white Mountain Mint flowers are visible in the far left corner. Grasses are coming on the right. Fall in this garden is electric, and in the winter, forms, evergreens, and Winterberry Holly shine. A four-season garden.
White spire-shaped flowers of Veronicastrum virginicum standing six feet tall offer contrast with the vibrant red blooms of 'Jacob Cline' Beebalm.
A cluster of fully expanded as well as emerging/opening Purple Coneflowers with their pink petals and copper colored cones.
Afternoon light filters across this native perennial planting dotted with light purple Liatris s. 'Kobold', pink colors of Purple Coneflower, and the elegant tall strait species Liatris spicata rising up out of the foliage like an Egret.
A glorious Monarch butterfly feeds on light blue flower spires of Anise Hyssop amongst hundreds of Purple Coneflower blossoms. This pocket meadow sown from seed completely takes the place of turfgrass in this small front yard.
Dusty rose colored petals of Purple Coneflower surround the young central cone with a full circle of bright yellow pollen around the perimeter of swirling copper and black bristly central cone.
Vibrant orange Butterfly Weed and bright yellow flowers of Coreopsis dot all along this front foundation landscape. Colors are a bit washed out because it's such a bright sunny day in the early afternoon.
Sunny patio planting with vibrant yellow Coreopsis 'Zagreb' and orange flowers of Butterfly weed (I think you need some of that in your garden, because it draws you in, and the Monarch butterflies will thank you).
Diverse flowers of blue, white, orange, and red, and forms of perennials planted along this pole barn. Definitely not just a landscape bed of sheared green meatballs in a sea of mulch : )
Small front yard meadow alive with flowers sets a whimsical tone for this small brick home with quaint front porch.
A dense front yard meadow is dotted with pink flowers of Rose Milkweed, yellow of Rudbeckia, some Purple Coneflowers are coming in and the white misty effect from the volunteer biennial Fleabane.
Vibrant yellow Black Eyed Susan steal the show in this small front yard meadow in front of this small house with a quaint covered porch.
A tapestry of textures, shades of green and some flowers proliferate, vegetating a large area in front of a neighborhood's common house building.
2nd year of this native perennial planting. Bright yellow of Coreopsis verticillata, and vibrant orange of Butterfly Weed. Prairie Dropseed emerges out of the Pussytoes groundcover. A summer and fall full of blooms await.
A tapestry of groundcovers stitching together. Yellow flowers of the Gold Star, small whitish daisies on the Robin's Plantain, light blue on Wild Geranium, red/yellow on the Columbine.
Small white daisy flower create a haze above the Erigeron ground cover plants. Red Columbine dot around and a bronzy Coral Bells hybrid is a little punch of foliage color in the center.
A small sea of gold flowers forming what seems like a monoculture. What you can't see are the diverse seedlings below, waiting...
Short meadow with lots of orange colored Butterfly Weed blooms replaces lawn.
Slide from presentation on the potential Limiting Factors to plant growth on a site. Ex. existing vegetation, sun/shade, wet/dry soil, soil texture, hydrology, soil pH, exposed/windy site, reflected heat, aspect (direction slope is facing), soil fertility, engineered soil, salt exposure, deer herbivory.
Pink and purple haze of Redbud tree buds and flowers are the backdrop to still dormant trees with white and black bark.
Crabapple Tree laden with white flowers has a wide-spreading clean form taking up some real estate in this front yard.
Flowers of different colors and morphologies paint a scene with diverse plant forms, textures and foliage colors in front of a large brick house on a gray sky day.
Digital rendering of a conservation planting designed with native plants. Patterns of plant drifts, blocks and accents fill this large site with many foliage color shades of green, tan, copper, blue-gray, and pinkish purple of the flowers.