Up in the Air

My initial intent for this blog site was to use it as a home page for Uwharrie Mountain Native Plant Farm. I've since discovered that it best serves as a point for updated and short-notice information.


In an attempt to remain more current I am going to strive to make regular posts here while working on a dedicated, actual, honest-to-goodness web page. Hopefully the new page will debut by the time new growth begins in the Spring.


When that happens, my followers here will know it as the URL currently points to this blog. The new page will sport a direct link to this page.


Up in the Air


The title of this writing explains my attitude toward my business at this point. There are several things going on that will determine which way UMNPF will go into the future.

1. I am striving to increase the offerings of native plants to my community. Right now I am limited by a lack of space in my current nursery, being located in the backyard of a residential lot. This location prevents me from conducting retail business from the site, not as much because of the location, but because our driveway is shared with our next-door neighbor. Out of respect for the neighbor's privacy all retail sales have been done through a third-party retail business.


2. I have recently learned that the third-party retail business, through which all sales have been conducted, will be relocating after the first of the year. Unfortunately the new location will not offer the outdoor space needed or the security behind a locked gate that I currently enjoy.


The ideal solution to these problems is not so easy to remedy. I have been driving main roads and back roads throughout the Uwharrie Mountain area in search of a small parcel that could host a small agricultural enterprise (i.e. the nursery). The location would have a working well, small pond or other surface water suitable for irrigation; access to electricity for pumps, lights and a small office; and be a reasonable distance from my home to commute.

A couple of cleared or clear-able acres would offer all the space needed. An old mobile home lot would be wonderful. I don't want to have a huge nursery, but one that I can pretty much manage on my own. As I'm nearing the 60 years old mark I don't foresee the time or energy needed to aim for a large plot. I should have been doing this 30 years ago!


So, it's all up in the air. I'll continue to add to and grow the selection that is currently offered and we'll see where the road leads. It all works out for the best in the long run.

A Sad Day for our Native Neighbors

Yesterday, as I was exploring the gravel back roads of our little community in the Uwharries, I was excited to run across a stand of native Narrow-leaf Mountain Mint growing in the power line right-of-way beside the woods. I was excited because I had never seen it growing locally, except for the transplants I have in my beds, that I was given by a friend who lives about an hour away.

This morning, before 8:00 am, I was awoken by Cindy yelling for me to look out the window. Two pickup trucks were slowly making their way down our lane, tanks on the back, followed by two men with backpack sprayers walking along the roadside.

They suddenly jumped onto the back of one of the trucks and sped past our house, further down the lane, not spraying immediately in front of our home (thankfully, we have beehives).

I quickly dressed, discussed the incident with Cindy, then got in my car and drove in the same direction they had gone.

I caught up with them on the next gravel lane over. When I pulled up alongside one of the trucks I didn't have to say a word because the driver immediately started telling me they were spraying along the power lines. I asked him what they were spraying. He misunderstood and replied, "just along the sides under the power lines.""

I restated my question to "what CHEMICAL are you spraying?"

"Roundup," he replied.

Cindy and I have spent the past several seasons watching the native flowers grow, excited to find some we'd never found locally before. Saw Indian Pink this year for the first time here, enjoying the Green and Gold, Joe-Pye, Butterfly Weed and others.

We were somewhat concerned when Randolph Electric contractors came through during the winter, grinding and chewing up the same rights-of-way that are now being sprayed. My take on it was that it would bring up seeds from below the surface that may have been laying dormant for years.

Sadly, they had already sprayed the area where I discovered the Mountain Mint, just yesterday.

I'm really sad as I write this. These small native gems, that will never ever grow tall enough to impede the electricity, are being sacrificed.

It seems to me, if they can walk along the right-of-way and indiscriminately spray to kill everything in sight, why can't they just as easily trade the backpack sprayers for Swedish axes and just target the small tree saplings that would grow into the lines in future years.

Will the invasive Paulowinia that has been growing back every year near the Mountain Mint succumb to the spray?

I have my doubts.

This is a partial list of the native plants we offer. All varieties are subject to crop loss and prior sale. As time allows these entries will be expanded to include photos and more detailed information on each plant.

Please message or email us if you are seeking a particular plant.

American Holly (Ilex opaca)
Aromatic Aster (Symphiotrychum oblongifolium)
Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana)
Bee Balm (Monarda didyma)
Black Cherry (Prunus serotina)
Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida)
Blazing Star (Liatris spicata)
Blue False Indigo (Baptisia australis)
Bluestar (Amsonia hubrechtii)
Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Button Bush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)
Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens)
Coreopsis (Coreopsis auriculata)
Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum)
Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis)
Flame Azalea (Rhododendron calendulaceum)
Florida Azalea (Rhododendron austrinum)
Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)
Fringe Tree (Chionanthus virginicus)
Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea)
Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
Green & Gold (Chrysogonum virginianum)
Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)
Hearts'a Bustin' (Euonymus americanus)
Inberry Holly (Ilex glabra)
Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium fistulosus)
Lupine (Lupinus perennis)
Lyreleaf Sage (Salvia lyrata)
Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum)
Mountain Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum)
New England Aster (Symphiotrychum novae-angliae)
Ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius)
Oxeye Daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare)
Pawpaw (Asimina triloba)
Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)
Pin Cherry (Prunus pensylvanica)
Pinxterbloom Azalea (Rhododendron periclymenoides)
Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida columnifera)
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana
Red Maple (Acer rubrum)
Redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Rough Goldenrod (Solidago rugosa)
Serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis)
Smooth Aster (Symphiotrychum laeve)
Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)
Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum odoratum variegatum)
Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum)
Spice Bush (Lindera benzoin)
Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana)
Stokes Aster (Stokesia laevis)
Swamp Azalea (Rhododendron viscosum)
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
Swamp Sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius)
Sweet Azalea (Rhododendron arborescens)
Sweet Bubby (Calycanthus floridus)
Sweetbay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Virginia Rose (Rosa virginiana)
Wax Myrtle (Morella cerifera)
Whute Oak (Quercus alba)
Winterberry (Ilex verticillata)
Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria)
Yellow False Indigo (Baptisia 'Carolina Moonlight')

Our mission is to grow natives to help offset the loss of native plants that are vital to our ecosystem. We grow our native plants from locally collected seeds and cuttings, along with plugs and liners that we purchase from other nurseries.

Please check back regularly as we add information to this site. Please feel free to text your message to (910) 975-2373.

Uwharrie Mountain Native Plant Farm looks forward to providing you with the plants that are preferred by pollinators and local wildlife.