by Douglas W. Tallamy

Published by Timber Press, Inc., 2020

I heard about Homegrown National Parks through two separate sources and wondered exactly what it was about. Looking on the website, it is a place for homeowners to participate and log their native plantings space to add to the collective “National Park.” This book is the companion book that describes the purpose for the Homegrown National Park.

Tallamy outlines the reasoning for using home landscapes. He points out that while preserves, reserves, and national parks, are set aside for wildlife, he argues that it is not enough for wildlife to prosper. The other is that wildlife such as birds, insects, and other pollinators, don’t follow boundaries and need areas between wildlife spaces to wander and to rest.

Tallamy came up with the idea as we are running out of space, we should add more native plantings to existing spaces so that homeowners can aide with wildlife. This includes front lawns, backyards, containers, and any other space by our homes. By his calculations, the collective spaces from homes would equal to about 20 million acres or the size of 13 major national parks. Which is how he came to call it one large national park with many different locations: the Homegrown National Park.

Tallamy lists four native plants considered generalists in that they attract large variety of insects and have high benefits including goldenrod and asters. The other end of the spectrum would be milkweed that is a specific plant for one type of butterfly, the monarch.

This book is participatory in nature. He explains in detail the reasoning of why we should even participate in this project. He explains why natives versus non-native plants. And finally he asks people to be stewards to conservation. He even points out the benefits that nature provides for us, a reduction of stress, and believes that one grown at home can help assist with that.

I picked up this book because I thought it was ironic that it was discussing the Homegrown National Park and that it served as the companion to the website. Immediately from the first chapter, it grabbed my attention. The writing is clear, easy to understand while providing facts, and he has a down-to-earth persuasive style. Some may find a few of his points controversial, but it is within the realm of conservation. While reading, it became evident how this was the book that pinpointed exactly what I wanted to know, how to attract more pollinators to my garden.

Link to the companion website: https://www.homegrownnationalpark.org