At Wild Ones, we’re dedicated to connecting people and native plants. Our Native Plant News blog delivers the latest stories on native plant conservation, scientific discoveries, and habitat restoration from across the nation. This monthly, volunteer-written feature is designed to educate, engage, and inspire action, empowering readers to support biodiversity and promote sustainable landscaping with native flora.
Texas: New Bee Species Discovered with a Taste for Purple Sage
Texas’s official state native shrub, cenizo (Leucophyllum frutescens) or Texas purple sage, has a big fan in a newly discovered bee species.
Named Andrena cenizophila, its species name literally meaning “lover of cenizo”, depends almost exclusively on cenizo according to field observations and pollen analyses by researchers. This bee species was first collected decades ago by melittologist Jack Neff, who couldn’t identify it. Molecular analysis by study author and entomologist Silus Bossert and his lab, combined with physical traits, confirmed that it was a new species and that it was most closely related to a mining bee species in central Mexico.
Cenizo, commonly called Texas purple sage or Texas ranger, is a native drought-tolerant evergreen shrub with silver-gray leaves with pink and purple blooms. The small mining bee’s life cycle appears closely tied to cenizo’s unpredictable bloom time which is after rainfall and only for a week. “Andrena cenizophila needs to get all the food for its brood during the main bloom,” Bossert said. “That tight window is very unusual for a bee. What does it do during the rest of the year?”. Researchers plan to continue studying this species by trying to find its nests and document its life cycle.
This new Texas bee loves purple sage as much as Texans do-MSN.com
Bossert, S., Zabinsksi, W., & Neff, J. L. (2026). A new species of Andrena (Labergeia) from Texas with an unusual phenology and floral host, including a redescription of Labergeia (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae). Journal of Melittology, 141. https://doi.org/10.17161/jom.vi141.24606
Missouri: Reviving Prairie, Restoring Quail
Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and Quails Forever are restoring remnant prairie in northern Missouri. Acquired in 2025 through the Build a Wildlife Program, Blazing Prairie is located in the Grant River Grasslands near The Nature Conservancy’s 3200-acre Dunn Ranch Prairie and is home to bobwhite quail, a species declining due to habitat loss.
Since this is remnant prairie, native species are likely dormant in the soil and just waiting for the right conditions. Staff removed invasive plants and woody encroachment and will conduct prescribed burns to create conditions for those native species to emerge. Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi), Indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans), slender mountain mint (Pycnanthemum tenuifolium), goldenrod (Solidago spp.), and compass plant (Silphium laciniatum) have been identified in Blazing Prairie, so staff hope more rare species are also present. The diversity of native plants found on remnant prairies provides food and habitat to wildlife.
“Anybody who spends ten minutes out here will understand why this is important and why we need to protect it,” said Eric Systma, a habitat protection officer for Quail Forever who was instrumental in acquiring Blazing Prairie. “Being a part of the team that protects these landscapes is truly a privilege.”
Restoring the Blazing Prairie-QuailForever.org
New York: 600 Acres Returning to Indigenous Care
The Six Nations Iroquois Cultural Center (6NICC), with funding from The Nature Conservancy, has purchased 600 acres of land from Paul Smith’s College in one of the largest private land return initiatives in New York State. This purchase, along with 330 adjacent acres already under 6NICC care since 2022, will be a Haudenosaunee gathering place and Indigenous youth camp. The return of 600 acres of Kanien’keháka (Mohawk) territory, the eastern door of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, supports efforts of the Haudenosaunee to maintain their cultural identities and reconnect with their traditional territories.
“The land ethic of care and preservation has been a central part of the 6NICC’s mission since its founding by Ray and Christine Fadden in 1954,” said David Fadden, 6NICC director, and grandson of Ray Fadden, who founded 6NICC. “This acquisition of over 600 acres will serve as a classroom to share and learn Indigenous ecological knowledge for Native and non-Native students alike for generations into the future. The Haudenosaunee look to the seventh generation yet to come while we live our lives and make thoughtful decisions that ensure those who come after us will have clean air, water and land to live healthy lives. This philosophy is shared by the organizations that enabled this land transfer to take place, and we are most grateful.”
Located in Onchiota, NY, adjacent to the 6NICC, the 600 acres are mostly northern hardwood forest composed of red maple (Acer rubrum), yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis), and black cherry (Prunus serotina).
600 Acres in the Adirondacks Return to Haudenosaunee Care-Nature.org
A New Lifeline for Tennessee’s Grasslands
Austin Peay State University (APSU) has received a $10 million grant to restore grasslands in Middle Tennessee thanks to funds from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and America’s Ecosystem Restoration Initiative.
APSU will restore 2,500 acres in 7 sites, including Lytle Bend Park and Shelby Bottoms Park in Nashville, grasslands at two farms in Robertson County, lands adjacent to Montgomery Bell State Park, and a prairie at the Google Data Center in Montgomery County. This work includes seeding and regrowing grasslands over the next 5 years.
“You have prairies converted to row crop; meadows and some oak savannahs converted to pasture land, and then you had some types of savannahs also that were basically allowed to grow up into closed canopy forest and now because of that, we’ve lost well over 90%, it’s probably more likely 95% to 99% of our grasslands have been lost,” Dr. Dwayne Estes, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Southeastern Grasslands Institute and an APSU professor of biology.
$10 million awarded to restore Tennessee grasslands-WKRN.com
From Roadsides to Sand Dunes: Spotted Knapweed Continues to Spread
Spotted knapweed (Centaurea stoebe), originally found in eastern Europe, is becoming a serious problem. Not only found in disturbed habitats like roadsides and pastures, but it’s also now being found in sand dunes and lakeshore, displacing native plants that help keep those ecosystems from eroding.
Also known as star thistle, spotted knapweed has a light purple flower, and its seeds are spread via wind using little hairs (pappuses). The plant also forms a tumbleweed, which also helps spread the thousand seeds it will produce in its lifetime. Not only does it displace native species by spreading quickly and taking up sunlight and nutrients, but it also releases chemicals (allelopathy) that inhibit the growth of nearby plants. Despite this plant’s invasive characteristics, pollinators visit its blooms, and honeybees produce honey from it, which is highly prized by beekeepers.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is considering biocontrol using a weevil species that feeds on this plant to control the spread of spotted knapweed in that state. Other ways to control this plant involve hand pulling, grazing, and herbicides.
Idaho: Rebuilding Bald Mountain Through Tree Planting and Restoration
More than 1,000 trees were planted on Bald Mountain in a joint effort by students, local community members, Sun Valley Company, the National Forest Foundation (NFF), U.S. Forest Service (USFS), and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). These efforts were part of the Bald Mountain Stewardship Project to improve forest health, reduce fire risk, and preserve recreational experiences on the mountain.
The project was awarded $2.3 million from the Joint Chiefs Landscape Restoration Program in 2020. Following the 2007 Castle Rock Fire and the 2013 Beaver Creek Fire, many trees were dead or dying due to insects or disease. These trees were removed and replaced, invasive weeds were treated, and MCH (3-methylcyclohex-2-en-1-one; a pheromone repellent) bubblecap application was applied to keep Douglas fir beetles from entering trees. Sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) and bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata) were also planted, and native plants were seeded.
Dead trees were donated to the Wood for Life program, which gives logs to local Tribal communities to distribute to elders and those in need in the community for home heating.
Pennsylvania: Out with the Invasives, In with the Natives
For the second year in a row, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) will cover the costs for Pennsylvanians who remove up to 3 non-native invasive shrubs and trees and replace them with native species through the Pennsylvania Invasive Replace-ive Program. Native species are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.
“Invasive plants disrupt natural habitats and make it harder for wildlife to flourish,” said DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn. “Last year’s program drew tremendous interest, and it is inspiring to see so many Pennsylvanians eager to plant native species. Replacing invasive trees and shrubs with native plants helps restore healthy landscapes and supports the birds, pollinators, and other wildlife that depend on them. With more than 2,000 native species in Pennsylvania, there are plenty of great options for yards and community spaces.”
Last year, the program distributed 1,313 plants. The project aims to replace some of the state’s most invasive species, which include Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana), tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima), princess tree (Paulownia tomentosa), Norway maple (Acer platanoides), Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii), burning bush (Euonymus alatus), and butterfly bush (Buddleja spp.).
Any Pennsylvania resident can participate by 1) removing an invasive tree or shrub from their property or with permission from the land owner; 2) taking a photo of the removed plant and submitting it via the pre-registration form; 3) attending one of the events in May to receive a replacement native tree or shrub. Pre-registration opens March 31st and more details are in the link below.