Five years ago, I’m not sure I’d even heard the term “native plant.” I’d been gardening for years but never connected the dots.

Who knew butterflies, moths and other insects need certain host plants to lay their eggs on? Who knew caterpillars don’t eat those beautiful, non-native, ornamental plants most of us have in our gardens? (Some of which could easily become invasive in years to come.) Who knew a pair of chickadees need about 6,000-9,000 caterpillars to raise one brood of chicks?

Thank you, Doug Tallamy, who wrote “Bringing Nature Home” and “Nature’s Best Hope” (which he optimistically believes is us). Thank you, Robin Kimmerer, for “Braiding Sweetgrass” — she believes as we work to heal the earth, the earth heals us.

Wildlife probably saved me during the pandemic. And I garden differently now as a result. Now when I look at the landscape around my house, I don’t just look for superficial aesthetic beauty. I certainly ask, “Who are you feeding, who are you providing a safe haven for?”

Each year I add more native plants and I am grateful for the life, the heartbeats of creatures large and small, that bless my surroundings.

Susan Humphrey

Weybridge