Southern Ontario Native Plant Nurseries:
A Cultivated Art Inc., Ottawa region.
Dropseed Native Plant Nursery, Picton.
Ephemeral Ark, Paul LaPorte, Port Perry **bulk orders only**.
Forest View Native Plants, Cannington.
Grow Wild! Native Plant Nursery, Omemee.
Haliburton Micromeadows, near Minden.
In Our Nature, Alton.
Natural Themes Nursery, Frankford.
Native Plants, Claremont.
Northern Wildflowers, Whitefish.
Ontario Native Plants, online orders only.
Ottawa Wildflower Seed Library, has plant sales in the Ottawa area only. You can order seed for free from them starting Dec. 26 as long as seeds are available.
Swallowtail native plants, Oak Ridges Moraine.
Vandermeer Nursery, Ajax. Has a dedicated native plant section and does not sell or promote invasive species
Wildflower Farm, Coldwater.
Wildlife Gardening, Ingersoll.
Local Native Plant Initiatives:
LEAF, resources for shrubs and trees, sales, and volunteer opportunities.
Little Forests Durham, news/blog & volunteer opportunities in Durham.
Friends of Second Marsh local organization, various events and volunteer activities.
Watch for Native Plant Sales:
Pollinator Garden, Toronto.
Cliffcrest Butterflyway, East Toronto.
NANPS, in May at Toronto Botanical Garden.
Oshawa Garden Club, in May at South Oshawa Community Centre.
Information About Native Plants, Seeds, Winter Sowing:
Blooming Boulevards, Mississauga – website and webinars.
Canadian Coalition, for invasive plant regulation.
David Suzuki Butterflyway Project.
Grow it Build it, a blog site and youtube channel with really great information.
Heather Holm’s website, highlights the importance of native plants and native pollinators, tons of charts and information.
NANPS, North American Native Plant Society.
The Native Plant Gardener.
Oak Ridges Moraine Land Trust, in Schomberg.
Ottawa Wildflower Seed Library, includes Youtube videos.
VASCAN, a Database of Vascular Plants of Canada.
Recommended Reading:
Gray, Rick and Shaun Booth (2024). The Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants of the Southern Great Lakes Region. Firefly Books Ltd.
Holm, Heather (2014). Pollinators of Native Plants. Pollination Press LLC.
Johnson, Lorraine (2005).100 Easy-to-Grow Native Plants for Canadian Gardens updated. Whitecap Books.
Johnson, Lorraine and Sheila Colla (2022). A Garden for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee. Douglas and McIntyre (2013) Ltd.
Steiner Lynn M. (2016). Grow Native. Cool Springs Press.
Tallamy, Douglas W. (2007). Bringing Nature Home. Timber Press.
Inspirational Reading:
Kimmerer, Robin Wall (2013). Braiding Sweetgrass. Milkweed Editions.
Kimmerer, Robin Wall (2024). The Serviceberry. Scribner.
Lewis, Hannah (2022). Mini-Forest Revolution. Chelsea Green Publishing.
Places to Visit:
Biidaasigeh Park at the bottom of Cherry Street in Toronto.
Gold Point Wildlife Reserve in Oshawa at Stevenson and Phillip Murray.
Riverwood Conservancy, Mississauga.
Rose Valley Park , Oshawa.
Royal Botanical Garden, Hamilton.
Non-Native Gardening Resources:
Whitby Library Seed Share Program, has some native seeds too.