A yearly community bike-planting event that provides free native plant gardens to benefit wildlife and create colorful neighborhoods.
Welcome to a BEECYCLE garden
portlandbeecycle
Explore the native plants
Click each plant picture to learn more
Prairie Junegrass
Goldenrod
Western Yarrow
Mock Orange
California Poppy
Red Flowering Currant
Showy Milkweed
Pacific Aster
Willamette Valley Gumweed
Toughleaf Iris
Foothill Penstemon
Kinnikinnick
Roemer’s Fescue
Blue Wildrye
Cooley’s Hedgenettle
Meadow Checkermallow
Native plants are those that occur naturally in a region where they evolved. They are the ecological basis upon which life depends, including birds and people. Without native plants and the insects that co-evolved with local birds cannot survive.
Why are we using native plants?
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In addition to providing vital habitat for birds, many other species of wildlife benefit also benefit from native plants. The colorful array of butterflies and moths, including the iconic monarch are all dependent on very specific native plant species. Native plants provide nectar for pollinators including hummingbirds, native bees, butterflies, moths, and bats. They provide protective shelter for many mammals. The native nuts, seeds, and fruits produced by these plants offer essential foods for all forms of wildlife.
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Once established, native plants generally require minimal maintenance as they are adapted to the local climate and soil conditions.
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Lawns and bark-mulched landscapes often require profuse amounts of artificial fertilizers, synthetic chemical pesticides, and herbicides. The traditional suburban lawn, on average, has 10x more chemical pesticides per acre than farmland. By choosing native plants for your landscaping, you are not only helping wildlife, but you are creating a healthier place for yourself, your family, and your community.
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Native plants are adapted to their local environmental conditions meaning they require far less water, time, money, and perhaps the most valuable natural resource, water.
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Many native plants offer beautiful showy flowers and produce abundant colorful fruits and seeds. Some native plants display brilliant seasonal changes in colors from the pale, thin greens of early spring, to the vibrant yellows and reds of autumn.