To the Editor:

I applaud Sustainable Princeton’s recent attention to the invasive plant species that abound in our wooded areas. I would also like to invite people to walk around their yards and think about replacing the so commonly used landscaping plantings that are both highly invasive and that give no sustenance or shelter to our native pollinators.

These include boxwood, English ivy, barberry, burning bush, butterfly bush, autumn olive, Callery pear, pachysandra (there is a native pachysandra!), and many others. These all are devoid of pollinator support. And for each of these there is an equally attractive native plant species that could be used that would help stem the disastrous worldwide decline of our native pollinators. This decline is due to the lack of food and shelter for them and the pervasive use of pesticides and herbicides that tear apart the necessary eco-community that is entirely interdependent for their continued existence.

Native plant gardens are designed to look beautiful — with a seasonal arc of blooming of choices from a full palette of colors, textures, and heights. Plant those trees, bushes, grasses, and flowers and they will come! 

Judith K. Robinson
East Broad Street, Hopewell