As we celebrate all things green this month in honor of the 50th annual Earth Day celebration, our focus is on sustainable building practices. When it comes to environmental stewardship in the building world, native plant rescues are a not often talked about yet highly impactful practice that allows the preservation and proliferation of valuable and, in many cases, increasingly rare native species.
A plant rescue is just what it sounds like. It is a volunteer effort in which native plants that lie in the path of development or construction work are safely collected and relocated. The collected plants may be relocated to other parts of the site in natural areas or landscaping plans or taken for use in personal gardens or donation to schools, churches or public gardens. Many plants found during rescues are difficult, if not impossible, to find in the commercial nursery trade. In addition to just saving native plants, the rescue effort and the sites themselves offer valuable educational opportunities.
At Sweet Apple in Milton, GA, Brightwater partnered with the Georgia Native Plant Society to conduct plant rescues on the site. The Sweet Apple site was found to be home to more than 150 unique native plants species, many of them quite rare, with a variety of specimens able to be safely conserved or relocated, many among the pristine woods and green spaces preserved within the neighborhood.
While native plant rescues may not be well known or well publicized, they are an integral part of preserving and perpetuated our native natural environment. It’s just one more way the Brightwater team is committed to smart, sustainable and responsible building every day. Learn more about Sweet Apple here or see more thoughtful designs from Brightwater.