Picture this: You step into your garden. The beds brim with flowers. Birds, bees, and butterflies congregate around you. You feel like Snow White! The creatures are merrily eating seeds and gathering pollen. You just stand there and look pretty (or handsome, of course).

Is this a result of your hard work? Not really. Your plants need barely any care at all.

When God designed the world, He made each kind of animal and plant to live in a certain place. In their proper homes, animals and plants have the nutrients and conditions they need to survive. They become food for other native creatures. That keeps their populations in balance.

All that can be true in your garden too. How can you “go native” in your own backyard?

Think about bugs. Lure pollinators. You need bugs if you want your garden to produce flowers, fruits, and vegetables. Use plants they recognize as food. If you think about it, our lives depend on insects: Without them, flowering plants can’t produce food. Birds also need plants for food. They disperse seeds while keeping harmful insect populations in check.

Choose native plants. Native plants don’t need much maintenance. That means less watering, less fertilizing, and less fussing. They’ve been doing quite nicely growing wild by the side of the road, thank you. They’ll do the same in your garden.

Ready to begin late summer and fall planting? Find out what’s native to your location. Check online at:

• the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
• the Biota of North America Program
• the Xerces Society
• Audubon Native Plants Database