With the hope of an early spring, I’m committed to turning over a new leaf. My best laid plans will surely germinate in the plant world. Perhaps the calling will be to grow flowers from seed, launch an herb garden or try out a different propagation technique. Predict 2024 will be full of green adventures.

Horticulture is one of those hobbies you just can’t exhaust. The more you experiment in the soil, the more you want to explore. Efforts pay off with an improved garden appearance and a sense of community when sharing extra plants and produce with neighbors.

The best teacher is Mother Nature, if we observe and pattern our gardening after her successes. This is especially true with native plants (and often their well-mannered cultivars). Indigenous plants have traits that are well-adapted to local conditions (soils, climate, moisture levels and insects). These trees, shrubs, vines and perennials hold the key to sustaining a low maintenance garden and attracting birds to our habitats.

Frosty mornings showcase the simplicity of white in the landscape. Ice crystals are hard to come by in the heat of summer, yet by using the right plants you can achieve a cooling sensation. Let’s take a peek at a few stunning examples of native plants with white blooms that might round out your design. Extension publications spotlight native plants that are remarkably ornamental.

The fringe tree (snow flower) is just as happy serving as a specimen tree as it is grouped as understory in a woodland border. Come spring, this flowering tree is cloaked in lacy tassels of creamy white, fragrant blossoms. At the end of summer, bluish drupes (on females) attract many species of birds including the helpful garden bird — the bluebird. Glossy leaves turn a bright yellow in the fall.

Sweetspire is the cat’s meow of a shrub. The dwarf cultivar, Little Henry, provides colorful contrast when grouped near a limestone outcropping. Cylindrical clusters of tiny white flowers blanket this shrub in spring, noticeable even from a distance. Hues of colorful autumn foliage range from red to purple.

With a common name like Virgin’s Bower, you know this twining vine is worth adding to a trellis or hardscape display. The vine rapidly trails with twisted stems. Be mindful not to overwhelm tree branches if allowing it to run free. Left unsupported, this vine will travel along the ground, making for an attractive cover for a tree stump better obscured than seen. Easily recognized when blooming, it often drapes in underbrush along creek banks in areas south.

Few resolutions are as refreshing as those involving plant works. “Going cultivar native” in the garden will be one resolve worth keeping for years to come

Kristi Hendricks is a graduate of Shepherd College and West Virginia University and a Master Gardener with the Virginia Cooperative Extension. She can be reached at belowthejames@yahoo.com.