Keep South Carolina Wild

Category: Native Plants

Chapin Goes Green…er

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Written by Cindy Chin.

Published in Chapin Magazine on June 18, 2026:

https://www.chapinmagazine.com/home/2026/6/18/chapin-goes-greener?fbclid=IwY2xjawSzkYJleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFIYUpuZDBPekpTMktaWWpYc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHl6HvBhLAbzUY6vFusRdNdgdBp0QTYI9ITbx1e_swe5P06Ktt0SN-QRJ2kBn_aem_urN1NwhEGCP_PFZ-RPykbw

 

Chapin Goes Green...er

 

Chapin Garden Club Strives to turn Chapin into
South Carolina’s Largest Per Capita Community Wildlife Habitat

In 2000, Chapin Garden Club launched two initiatives supported by the Garden Club of South Carolina: a Carolina Fence Garden at the Chamber of Commerce and participation in the Backyard Habitat program. Both programs were a success…  So Chapin Garden Club did what anyone in their position would typically do: moved the goal posts and upped the ante. Twenty six years later, they aim to turn Chapin into the largest per capita Community Wildlife Habitat in the state by 2030. But this time, they need your help…

 

How It Started

From the outset in 2000, CGC’s members embraced the challenges wholeheartedly—every member achieved certified habitat status to do their part in the Backyard Habitat program. The efforts established an enduring club tradition: membership meant maintaining a certified backyard. But what exactly is a “certified” backyard, and why does it matter? A Certified Wildlife Habitat® through the South Carolina Wildlife Federation (SCWF) is a greenspace that provides essential elements for local wildlife: food, water, cover, and places to raise young, while also utilizing sustainable practices such as reduced usage of chemical pesticides, the conservation of water, and a reduction in lawn area. Having these conditions in place helps combat habitat loss by supporting birds, butterflies, and pollinators with native plants.

For members of the Chapin Garden Club in the year 2000, the decision to get their yards certified was an easy one. By 2013, an influx of new members shifted focus temporarily; the yard certification tradition had begun to subside. To reignite interest, Bonnie Porter presented a refresher on habitat certification at the October meeting. Then-president Cindy Chin challenged members to certify their own yards and recruit others to do the same. The effort gained traction through flyers, local media, and community outreach.

 

Photo by Cindy Chin

The club’s commitment aligned with a broader goal—supporting South Carolina’s national leadership in wildlife habitats per capita. With guidance from Sarah Green of the South Carolina Wildlife Federation, Chapin added 32 new certified habitats by summer 2014. They celebrated with a gathering at Timberlake Country Club.

A pivotal moment came in 2019 when Jay Keck delivered a program on attracting birds and butterflies. His presentation sparked a lasting partnership with the South Carolina Wildlife Federation and deepened the club’s focus on conservation education.

 

Chapin Goes Green

In May 2021, Keck introduced the idea of designating Chapin (ZIP code 29036) as a Certified Community Wildlife Habitat. Recognizing the opportunity, the club launched “Chapin Goes Green” and registered with the National Wildlife Federation in June 2021.

Certification required community education, media engagement, and achieving 225 habitat points through certified properties. The club undertook a coordinated effort that included:

  • Publishing articles on wildlife, native plants, and habitat gardening

  • Hosting workshops, presentations, and an annual Wildlife Trivia Night

  • Partnering with local organizations, schools, churches, and civic groups

  • Securing official support from the mayor, town council, and community associations

A major achievement was the creation of a 70-by-8-foot pollinator garden at Chapin Town Hall, developed in collaboration with multiple partners and supported by a Dominion Energy grant. The club also worked with the South Carolina Bluebird Society to establish a bluebird trail at Town Hall. Since 2021, the Cindy and Ed Chin Bluebird Trail and participating backyards have documented 153 successful fledglings. Additional enhancements included installing an outdoor message center and a bluestone seating wall at Town Hall, offering educational materials and trail maps to visitors.

 

“We are proud to work with our community to protect and connect critical habitats for wildlife.”

— Cindy Chin

Reaching the required number of certified properties proved the most challenging step. Engaging more than 200 property owners, businesses, and institutions required sustained outreach—but the effort succeeded. On February 15, 2024, Chapin was officially designated a Certified Community Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.

The community celebrated on June 18, 2024, with a ceremony at Town Hall featuring tours of the pollinator garden and bluebird trail. Mayor Al Koon issued a proclamation recognizing the project’s impact, and state leaders and conservation partners attended. Local students also contributed, creating a video to promote habitat certification.

The project drew inspiration from other successful communities. Kelly Long of the Camellia Garden Club in Greer shared insights from their five-year certification journey, highlighting initiatives such as distributing milkweed seeds to support Monarch butterflies and engaging residents of all ages in conservation.

Today, Chapin has 208 certified properties, including parks, schools, places of worship, government buildings, and private homes. Maintaining certification requires annual renewal, and the Chapin Garden Club remains committed to education, outreach, and expanding participation.

Cindy Chin, who chaired Chapin Goes Green, describes the multi-year effort as a labor of love: “It is an honor and privilege to have Chapin recognized by the National Wildlife Federation. Chapin is now the 161st Community Wildlife Habitat in the U.S., the 14th in South Carolina, and the first in Lexington County. We are proud to work with our community to protect and connect critical habitats for wildlife.”

Through sustained collaboration and grassroots engagement, Chapin Garden Club has created a model for how communities can preserve natural beauty while fostering meaningful connections between people and wildlife. Today they ask: Will you help them?

What is a Community Wildlife Habitat?
It’s Community

The Community Wildlife Habitat is a NWF program that helps communities create sustainable wildlife friendly spaces while engaging residents in conservation and education. They partner with cities, towns, and neighborhoods in urban and suburban areas to incorporate wildlife practice and promote biodiversity in communities across the United States. These practices include using native plants, reducing pesticides, conserving water, and integrating wildlife considerations that support insects, moths, butterflies, caterpillars, birds, etc.. Communities are recognized when property owners such as individual homeowners and businesses, churches, schools, parks, government properties, etc. certify their properties as Certified Wildlife Habitats.

What is a Certified Wildlife Habitat?
It’s Personal

The South Carolina Wildlife Federation (SCWF) was South Carolina’s first conservation group. Established in 1931, it has been safeguarding our state’s wildlife for nearly a century and relies on proven scientific methods to protect and preserve the health of delicate ecosystems. It is the SCWF that administers the Wildlife Habitat program to assist homeowners, businesses, churches, schools, parks, etc. to individually certify habitat.  This requires providing 4 essential elements for wildlife: food, water, cover, and places to raise young plus incorporating some (not all) sustainable gardening practices. These practices can be very small changes that make a big difference and save time and money. Per the SCWF:

  • Stop Using Pesticides
    Yes, they kill the bad critters, but also poison bees and butterflies, birds and other animals whose diet consists of insects. Without pesticides, your flowers and vegetables will pollinate more aggressively -that means more flowers and fruits.

  • Plant Native Plants and Trees
    These plants are already adapted to our climate, and the native wildlife has adapted to these plants. Keystones native trees such as oaks support over 500 species of insects, moths, and butterflies. Native flowers such as goldenrod and asters also support over 100 species of the same. And, we have individual natives such as milk weed which is the only food for our beautiful monarch butterflies. Lastly, natives are generally more drought resistant and easier to grow.

  • Reduce Fertilizer Use
    If you must use fertilizers, be sure to closely follow the directions. Excessive chemical fertilizer will not help your plants any more and will pollute our waterways. You can create your own organic fertilizer by beginning a compost pile.

  • Let One Tenth of Your Yard Grow Wild
    Untouched areas left to their own devices support much healthier ecosystems allowing insects, moth, butterflies, fireflies, bird, etc. to proliferate and thrive.

  • Reduce the Amount of Turf
    Grass is time consuming and expensive, and has no benefit to any wildlife whatsoever. Instead, increase the size and diversity of your flower beds which attracts a diversity of wildlife.

How to Certify Your Yard

Certifying one’s habitat is extremely easy and takes less than 20 minutes. Sign on to the South Carolina Wildlife Federation site and follow the link to certified wildlife habitat.

Certification is a one-time event; there’s no annual renewal. The cost is $25.00 and you can also purchase a sign which identifies your property as a wildlife habitat. Proudly display it where all your friends and neighbors will see it and ask –

“What is this about?” And you can answer, “Well, it’s about:

  • enhancing livability and health in our communities

  • saving wildlife

  • creating beautiful environments for our children and grandchildren

  • educating the public on wildlife conservation and sustainable practices

  • and increasing the economic value of our homes and neighborhoods… “

A Bold New Goal – 2030 Vision

 

There’s so much to gain, and little to lose by certifying your yard. Every individual habitat is the key to maintaining Chapin as a Community Wildlife Habitat. Chapin Garden Club President, Shawn Grover explains, “If Chapin residents do not continue to certify their properties, Chapin will lose this extremely valuable and important designation. That would just be so heartbreaking for our community. But our goal, be it lofty, is to build Chapin into the largest per capita Community Wildlife Habitat in the state by 2030!

Please help the Chapin Garden Club and the whole town by certifying your yard today. For more information about certification, what to plant with purpose, questions, or technical assistance, go to SCWF.org or contact:

Savannah Jordan, Associate Wildlife Biologist®
South Carolina Wildlife Federation
email  savannah@scwf.org
O: 803-256-0670 | M: 864-398-6373

SCWF Partners with South Carolina State Museum to Build New Carolina Fence Garden

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On May 30th, 2026, SCWF helped the South Carolina State Museum install a new Carolina Fence Garden in Columbia, South Carolina. This native garden educates visitors on local wildlife habitats and supports native pollinators. Visitors can find the new Carolina Fence Garden at the museum’s entrance at 301 Gervais St, Columbia, SC.

 

The garden features native plants like goldenrod and wild indigo that will support pollinators, birds, and other wildlife while also connecting visitors to South Carolina’s natural heritage. The Carolina Fence Garden concept is an initiative promoted by SCWF to attract native animals and celebrate the state’s natural history. It incorporates several specific cultural and natural elements such as:

  • A Fence: A traditional split-rail fence serves as the structural anchor.
  • State Symbols: Gardens typically feature the Yellow Jessamine (state flower) and a display of Blue Granite (state stone), both of which create ideal basking and foraging spots for butterflies and bees.
  • Native Plants: The garden utilizes native, local plants that provide food and nesting material for birds, pollinators, and small mammals.
  • Wildlife Housing: A mounted Carolina Wren House often provides dedicated shelter for South Carolina’s state bird.
Thank you to the South Carolina State Museum for partnering with us on their Planting South Carolina Roots initiative and to all of the volunteers who spent their Saturday morning with us to make this possible! We can’t wait to watch this garden grow! Learn more about how to support pollinators and built your own Carolina Fence Garden at: https://www.scwf.org/carolina-fence-gardens/ 

The 2026 Milkweed for Monarchs Program: More Than 10 Years of Monarch Conservation in South Carolina

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We are thrilled to announce the successful mailing of 5,000 packets of native milkweed seeds to residents across South Carolina, marking the eleventh year of the Milkweed for Monarch’s Program! This program allows residents of our state to sign up to receive packets of free native milkweed seeds (Common, Swamp, & Butterfly Milkweed).

Because monarchs only lay eggs on milkweed plants, they must have native milkweed along their 3,000-mile journey to survive. Over the past twenty years, there has been a sharp decline in the monarch butterfly population along their normal migration routes from Canada to Mexico. During this time, these important pollinators have dwindled by almost 97 percent. Native milkweed plants, however, are the key to helping these iconic pollinators thrive.

This program helps SCWF make a statewide impact for monarchs, and we are so grateful to every single person who signs up to receive a seed packet. We recently received some photos from our milkweed seed recipients, and that is one of our favorite parts of this project! If you have any photos of monarchs that you would like to share with us, you can email us at mail@scwf.org.

We hosted 20 volunteer days dedicated to hand-mixing and packaging milkweed seeds this year! We are incredibly grateful to the many volunteers who generously donated their time to support this important effort. Thanks to their hard work, SCWF can continue providing milkweed seeds that help create habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators across South Carolina.

Thank you to Comporium for sponsoring the 2026 Milkweed for Monarchs Project!

Columbia’s Downtown Pollinator Garden

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By Arlene Marturano

Published in the Columbia Star on May 28, 2026 – https://www.thecolumbiastar.com/articles/columbias-downtown-pollinator-garden/

Volunteers with the South Carolina Wildlife Federation (SCWF) planted a native plant pollinator garden in their wildlife habitat in front of their downtown office at 1519 Richland Street. As spring transitions to summer, the plants are flowering and fruiting. In a relatively small space there are over 20 species attracting bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. The garden also features the four basic wildlife habitat elements: food, water, cover, and places to raise young.

Three natives planted for monarch larvae are swamp milkweed, Asclepias incarnata; common milkweed, A. syriaca; and butterfly weed, A. tuberosa.

Passionvine, Passiflora incarnata, is deliberately planted in containers to keep it from spreading across the landscape via its underground rhizomatous roots and taking over the garden. The vine hosts the eggs and larvae of gulf fritillary and variegated fritillary butterflies.

A striking blue flowering perennial plant is false indigo, Baptisia australis. Native Americans and early colonists used the flower to produce a blue dye before the Asian indigo, aka true indigo, Indigofera tinctoria, was introduced to America.

False indigo is a host plant to many butterflies such as orange sulphur, clouded sulphur, frosted elfin, eastern tailed blue, hoary edge, and wild indigo duskywing.

Common yarrow, Achillea millefolium, is a flower attracting an incredible number of pollinators because of the design of the flower face. The nectar that bees and butterflies need is easy to access on the broad flat flower face making for perfect landing and feeding platforms. Insects can stay still and sip from the many tiny florets. American lady, checkerspots, fritillaries, hairstreaks, skippers, and sulphurs visit yarrow for nectar.

Common St. John’s Wort, Hypericum perforatum, is a host plant to the larvae of the gray hairstreak butterfly. Female azure butterflies lay their eggs on the flower buds and the caterpillars eat the flower parts and developing fruits. The plant also hosts moths like the wavylined emerald, scallop moth, and gray half-spot moth.

Coreopsis ‘Moonbeam,’ Coreopsis verticillata, will start blooming from mid-summer all the way until the first hard frost. Something to consider when planting a pollinator garden is to select a palette of plants for spring, summer, and autumn bloom.

Two varieties of blueberries grow in the pollinator garden: Vacinnium darrowii ‘Rosa’s Blush’ and Vacinnium x Perpetua. Planting blueberries in the garden creates a mutually beneficial relationship between the plants and pollinators. Blueberry flowers provide spring nectar for native bees and the bees perform “buzz pollination” to ensure a large, healthy harvest.

Visit the SCWF downtown pollinator garden to view the entire garden and take home ideas for your landscape.

Published in the Columbia Star on May 28, 2026 – https://www.thecolumbiastar.com/articles/columbias-downtown-pollinator-garden/

SCWF Celebrates Garden for Wildlife Month

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SCWF staff, partners, and volunteers recently joined together to install five pollinator gardens throughout the state – talk about busy bees!

As development increases, the resulting habitat loss is a major challenge that affects many pollinator species in South Carolina. Pollinator gardens provide pollinators and other wildlife with critical habitat that can beautify any space, increase native biodiversity, increase pollination services and biological control of pest insects, and provide community engagement and learning opportunities.

These gardens create and enhance habitat for pollinators and other wildlife by incorporating native flowering plants, which are important sources of food and shelter for bees, butterflies, and countless other species. Native plants are adapted to the region’s climate and require less watering, fertilizer, and use of pesticides. Pollinators also require specific native host plants which provide nutrition and habitat to their larval and adult stages. Milkweed, the host plant for monarch butterflies, was planted in each garden to give the adult females a place to lay their eggs and to provide the caterpillars with a source of food.

 

 

By installing the gardens in public areas, they also serve as demonstration sites to allow community members to connect with imperiled pollinator species and play a part in conservation efforts by replicating the gardens at their own homes. Educational signage was also installed with each garden that displays information about pollinator species, their importance, and how native plant gardens help them.

 

The first garden installation took place at the Museum of York County, where museum staff and volunteers joined to plant a variety of native plant pathways that lead to spaces where nature-themed outdoor musical instruments will be installed late this summer, including a bumblebee, butterfly, firefly, dragonfly, and ladybug. The museum’s garden is also a Certified Wildlife Habitat, which provides natural sources of food, water, cover and places to raise young and is maintained in a sustainable way that incorporates native plants, conserves water, and does not rely on the use of pesticides. The museum received its certification in 2005 and also has created a Carolina Fence Garden.

 

The Catawba Nation is the only federally recognized tribe in South Carolina, and SCWF is honored to partner with the reservation’s Wildlife and Habitat Program on multiple conservation projects, including Project Prothonotary and the Pollinator Garden Project. At the Catawba Nation, reservation staff and volunteers helped to plant a variety of native plants for pollinators at the Cultural Center and at the preschool on the reservation.

 

 

The Catawba Bend Preserve is York County’s newest park, a 1,900-acre preserve in Rock Hill, spanning nearly five miles along the Catawba River. Operated by York County, the preserve offers a serene, natural escape focused on passive outdoor recreation and wildlife conservation. While the preserve is open and walkable, it is designed to be an evolving outdoor destination. Future amenities in various stages of development include mountain biking and disc golf courses, stocked fishing ponds and rebuilt earthen dams, the first mile of a paved, riverfront greenway, primitive tent camping, event spaces, and a motor coach park.

 

Anne Springs Close Greenway is a 2,100-acre nature preserve in Fort Mill, South Carolina. Dedicated in 1995, it protects native forests, lakes, and pastures from urban development, offering the public a natural escape for outdoor recreation and environmental education. The pollinator garden was installed with the help of staff from the Greenway and volunteers with the Catawba Master Naturalist Program, and it is located next to the Greenway’s Forest Playground. Bluestar (Amsonia) was chosen as one of the focal plants to honor the Greenway’s founder, Anne Springs, who was also a prominent South Carolina conservationist, philanthropist, and outdoor advocate.

To learn more about how to create your own pollinator garden, see our webpage for Enhancing Pollinator Habitat and be sure to follow along with us during the month of June, which is National Pollinator Month!

Savannah Jordan, SCWF’s Habitat Education Manager who led the project stated, “Each garden plays such an important role in providing and connecting habitat for pollinators. No matter how large or how small their size, each one makes a difference. To see pollinators like bees and butterflies checking out the plants right after we put them in the ground goes to show that if you plant them, they will come!”

Savannah Jordan, SCWF’s Habitat Education Manager, stands still as a butterfly lands on her hand, almost as if to say “thank you”!

 

SCWF would like to thank Skyline Design and Landscape for their assistance in the design and installation of the garden, as well as providing all the native plants and materials. SCWF is also grateful for the following partners and volunteers for their involvement: Anne Springs Close Greenway, Catawba Master Naturalist & Alumni group, Museum of York County, Catawba Bend Preserve, York County Parks & Rec, Catawba Indian Nation, and Landsford Canal State Park.

 

 

 

 

 

This project was made possible by Duke Energy’s Catawba-Wateree Habitat Enhancement Program.

 

Spring Habitat Workshop

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SCWF and the South Carolina Forestry Commission (SCFC) hosted a Spring Habitat Workshop on May 6th at Harbison State Forest. During this interactive workshop, participants learned how to create and enhance wildlife habitats by planting native plants, providing a water source, and adding feeders and nest boxes from SCWF Habitat Education Manager Savannah Jordan.
SCFC Environmental Program Manager Matt Schnabel led everyone on a tour of Harbison State Forest’s certified wildlife habitat garden and gave an overview presentation about SCFC. The event ended with a short hike, led by Manchester State Forest Director Daniel Tew, that included stops at three forested stands that show different management objectives and practices to teach people how forestry practices can affect and benefit wildlife populations. Learn more about how to certify your yard here!

Legalizing the Right to Grow Native Plants

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Article by Brianna Randall, National Wildlife Federation

Published March 26th, 2026

https://www.nwf.org/Home/Magazines/National-Wildlife/2026/Spring/Gardening/Native-Plant-Laws

Homeowners and NWF affiliates are fighting to change restrictive local landscaping laws in favor of native plants

Lou Lesesne stands in his Charlotte, North Carolina, front yard (above), which brims with sundrops, coneflowers and other nectar-rich plants that support pollinators such as sweat bees.

FIVE YEARS AGO, when Lou Lesesne moved to a new house in Charlotte, North Carolina, he decided to “get rid of the grass and bring in the pollinators.” Today, his yard boasts expansive beds of ironweed, purple and cutleaf coneflower and other native plants that support native wildlife. “I like to do my part to help the birds and the insects find habitat,” Lesesne says.

This past June, however, Lesesne received a letter from the city of Charlotte warning him he was in violation of a property-maintenance code requiring homeowners to keep nonwoody plants shorter than 12 inches. The city told him to mow down his natural garden or pay a fine of up to $500.

His experience is hardly unique. Across the country, wildlife-friendly gardeners are running afoul of local laws that prioritize “nice, tidy green lawns that are mowed low to the ground,” says Patrick Fitzgerald, the National Wildlife Federation’s senior director of community habitat.

But thanks to advocacy efforts by homeowners like Lesesne—often in collaboration with NWF affiliates—such rules increasingly are being challenged and subsequently repealed or revised. “We’re seeing a lot of momentum to change local landscaping ordinances, especially as more people bump up against rules that don’t allow them to grow native plants,” Fitzgerald says.

Dating back to the early 1900s, municipal property maintenance ordinances are intended to keep neighborhoods looking cared for and neat. The rules often prohibit homeowners from growing nonwoody plants above a certain height, typically 10 to 12 inches. But that requirement stymies the efforts of gardeners who choose natural landscaping. Native plants can grow several feet high—and need to before they can flower and reseed. When mature, some of the ironweeds adorning Lesesne’s yard, for example, can stretch up to 10 feet tall. Allowing such plants to reach their full height provides the pollen, nectar, seeds and other food wildlife need, as well as vertical structure that creates habitat for a variety of species, from insects and birds to reptiles and amphibians.

When Lesesne received his citation, he contacted the North Carolina Wildlife Federation (NCWF), an NWF affiliate, for advice on how to save his native plants. He wasn’t the only one, and NCWF has been happy to help. Changing municipal ordinances to encourage natural landscaping is “commonsense conservation,” says Alden Picard, NCWF’s conservation coordinator, who has fielded dozens of calls, emails and visits from concerned native gardeners like Lesesne. “This is something everyone can get behind. It’s a gardening for wildlife campaign. It’s a campaign to let our milkweed, ironweed and joe-pye weed grow tall, flower and go to seed,” he says.

In July 2025, NCWF joined forces with six other local and state conservation groups to create the Coalition to Protect Our Urban Nature. The coalition successfully rallied residents of Charlotte to submit several hundred comments as well as attend public forums to lobby for exempting native gardens from the city’s vegetation-height requirement

Ed Murray, a Charlotte homeowner with more than 100 native plants in his yard, testified on behalf of the proposed change at a city council meeting in fall 2025. He framed native landscaping as a family issue that benefits children. “We live in a very urban area, so it’s not like you can drive 10 minutes and get a lot of biodiversity. But you can still have a place where your kids go out into the yard and see interesting things,” he says. Murray believes that interacting with the native plants, insects and birds in their yard gives his 4-year-old daughter “a significant leg up in understanding the way the world works.”

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles found such testimonies so convincing that, last October, she pledged to exempt native plant gardens from the vegetation-height requirement. This February, the city council approved the change, paving the way for homeowners in the nation’s 14th largest city to create more wildlife-friendly gardens.

Another North Carolina city, Winston-Salem, passed a similar ordinance in 2025. Next up, Murray hopes the Charlotte coalition sets its sights on requiring native plants—and prohibiting the planting of invasive species—on city-owned properties, a policy adopted by Greensboro, North Carolina, in 2024.

In South Carolina, another NWF affiliate, the South Carolina Wildlife Federation (SCWF), also is helping reshape rules in the state capital, Columbia, to help homeowners grow—not mow—native gardens. After hearing complaints that residents were being penalized for growing native plants, SCWF teamed up with the Gills Creek Watershed Association and the South Carolina Native Plant Society Midlands Chapter to lobby the city to change its property maintenance ordinance. In May 2025, Columbia amended its rules so that homeowners certified through a recognized program, such as NWF’s Certified Wildlife Habitat® program, can register their yard with the city to avoid fines.

“South Carolina is one of the fastest-growing states. It’s more important than ever that we are able to replace some of the habitat that’s removed when new neighborhoods are built,” says Sara Green, SCWF’s executive director. When homeowners re-create lost habitat by planting native gardens, she adds, it benefits at-risk wildlife, including songbirds and native pollinators. Green has received requests from several other NWF affiliates seeking to change their local landscaping rules.

To support such efforts, NWF published the Guide to Passing Wildlife-Friendly Property Maintenance Ordinances in 2021. “The National Wildlife Federation prioritizes landscaping ordinances because they represent a key lever for increasing native plant habitat in communities,” Fitzgerald says, adding that “there’s been a recent groundswell of interest in advancing local policy changes to benefit wildlife.” In the coming year, he says, NWF will survey its affiliates to assess local advocacy efforts underway, including which of them can be replicated elsewhere.

Legalizing protections for wildlife-friendly gardens at the city level “is a much better return on investment than trying to change rules one homeowners association at a time,” Picard says. “It’s time for local government to wake up, to move forward, so that we have monarchs and bumble bees and songbirds in our yards 50 years from now.”

Banner image by Dave Ozric

The 2025 Milkweed for Monarchs Program: a decade of impact in South Carolina

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“One reason this program is valuable is because it is accessible for all residents of our state. Also, because SCWF sends these seeds statewide, we are able to offer monarchs many options along their long journey!”

–Connor Chilton, 2025 Monarchs & Milkweed Program Lead

We are thrilled to announce the successful mailing of 5,000 packets of native milkweed seeds to residents across South Carolina, marking the tenth year of the Milkweed for Monarch’s Program! This program allows residents of our state to sign up to receive packets of free native milkweed seeds (Common, Swamp, & Butterfly Milkweed).

Because monarchs only lay eggs on milkweed plants, they must have native milkweed along their 3,000-mile journey to survive. Over the past twenty years, there has been a sharp decline in the monarch butterfly population along their normal migration routes from Canada to Mexico. During this time, these important pollinators have dwindled by almost 97 percent. Native milkweed plants, however, are the key to helping these iconic pollinators thrive.

This program helps SCWF make a statewide impact for monarchs, and we are so grateful to every single person who signs up to receive a seed packet. We recently received some photos from our milkweed seed recipients, and that is one of our favorite parts of this project! If you have any photos of monarchs that you would like to share with us, you can email us at mail@scwf.org.

Thank you to Comporium for sponsoring the 2025 Milkweed for Monarchs Project!

SCWF Holds Interactive Habitat Workshop in the Upstate

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SCWF recently held a Habitat Workshop in Anderson, an interactive workshop designed to teach participants how to create a Certified Wildlife Habitat in their own yards to help support local wildlife. This workshop is part of our new  Explores Series for 2025. 

A Certified Wildlife Habitat is a designation given to properties that provide essential elements for wildlife, such as food, water, cover, and places to raise young, while also employing sustainable gardening practices. Once a yard is certified, it not only helps wildlife thrive, but it also is recognized by the National Wildlife Federation and helps to spread the message of wildlife-friendly gardening to neighbors and the community.

During the classroom portion of the workshop, participants were given an engaging and informative presentation from SCWF’s Habitat Education Manager, Savannah Jordan, where they learned about how to incorporate each of the essential elements into different landscapes and looked at pictures of their own yards to discuss ways for improving their own yards for all sorts of wildlife. They also learned about the value of native plants and the different types of plants to include for certain species of wildlife like monarch butterflies and other important pollinators.

Following the classroom portion, participants met at Green Pond Landing, a 33-acre facility on the shores of Lake Hartwell designed as a high-capacity launch facility for fishing tournaments as well as recreational boating and fishing. Managed by Anderson County Parks, Green Pond Landing features 200 paved truck/trailer spaces and 100 paved single space parking as well as grass areas utilized for overflow parking. Green Pond Landing boasts the deepest launch lanes and most dock space on the lake as well as a two-story state of the art restroom facility. In 2021, Green Pond Landing completed the development of a 1,300-seat amphitheater which has hosted tournament weigh-ins and special events. Green Pond Landing turned 10 years old in December 2024 and celebrated an economic impact to the upstate of South Carolina that exceeded $100 million during the first decade.

 

While enjoying lunch by the lakeside amphitheater that was generously provided by Visit Anderson, participants planted their own native  milkweed seeds in peat pots that they took home to their own gardens to help monarch butterflies. A few lucky participants won door prizes in the form of native plants, including native purple coneflower and oakleaf hydrangea from a nearby nursery.

 

 

Participants took a tour of Green Pond’s brand new Certified Wildlife Habitat and Carolina Fence Garden, which was designed and installed by the city of Anderson. The group observed the variety of native plants in the garden and discussed the different habitat features and examples of how to improve habitat quality for a diversity of wildlife from bees and butterflies to birds and mammals. The workshop ended with the installation of educational signage in the garden that informs visitors about the different types of plants and pollinators that can be found in the garden.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neil Paul with Visit Anderson stated, “It was an honor and a privilege to partner with the South Carolina Wildlife Federation and host the Habitat Workshop at Green Pond Landing. In Anderson County, we have taken a great deal of pride in establishing our facility as a leader, not only in hosting fishing tournaments, but in conservation and protecting our resource. Being able to partner with the Wildlife Federation to develop a ‘Certified Wildlife Habitat’ is another step in that leadership. The habitat garden provides an educational component for gardeners of all levels and adds to the beauty and the landscape of our lakeside facility. This project was a tremendous partnership, and we look forward to more opportunities to collaborate with the South Carolina Wildlife Federation.”

Learn more about Certified Wildlife Habitats and our other programs at https://www.scwf.org/habitat-restoration/.

To see SCWF’s upcoming workshops and other events, visit https://www.scwf.org/events/.

 

Thank you to the Duke Energy Foundation for sponsoring this workshop.

 

SCWF Celebrates Garden for Wildlife Month

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SCWF staff, partners, and volunteers recently joined together to install five pollinator gardens throughout the state – talk about busy bees!

As development increases, the resulting habitat loss is a major challenge that affects many pollinator species in South Carolina. Pollinator gardens provide pollinators with critical habitat that can beautify any space, increase native biodiversity, increase pollination services and biological control of pest insects, and provide community engagement and learning opportunities.

These gardens create and enhance habitat for pollinators and other wildlife by incorporating native flowering plants, which are important sources of food and shelter for bees, butterflies, and countless other species. Native plants are adapted to the region’s climate and require less watering, fertilizer, and use of pesticides. Pollinators also require specific native host plants which provide nutrition and habitat to their larval and adult stages. Milkweed, the host plant for monarch butterflies, was planted in each garden to give the imperiled species a place to lay its eggs and to provide the caterpillars a source of food.

By installing the gardens in public areas, they also serve as demonstration sites to allow community members to connect with imperiled pollinator species and play a part in conservation efforts by replicating the gardens at their own homes. Educational signage was also installed with each garden that displays information about pollinator species, their importance, and how native plant gardens help them.

 

The first garden installation took place at the Lancaster County Library, and volunteers of all ages joined to plant a variety of native plants, including a group of high school students from Lancaster High School’s Agriculture department. The library’s garden is also on its way to becoming a Certified Wildlife Habitat, which provides natural sources of food, water, cover and places to raise young and is maintained in a sustainable way that incorporates native plants, conserves water, and does not rely on the use of pesticides.

 

At Andrew Jackson State Park, park staff and volunteers helped to clean up the existing pollinator garden and planted more native plants. The Friends of Andrew Jackson State Park donated a pollinator house to the park’s garden, which provides nesting sites for pollinators that nest in cavities or burrows.

 

Camp Canaan is located on a 100-acre island along the Catawba River in Rock Hill, and the pictures above show the progression of a bare patch of grass to a brand new garden bed! The camp staff plans to incorporate the new garden into their environmental education program for their youth attending summer camp.

The Catawba Nation is the only federally recognized tribe in South Carolina, and SCWF is honored to partner with the reservation’s Wildlife and Habitat Program on multiple conservation projects, including Project Prothonotary. The pollinator garden was installed just outside the reservation’s food distribution center, which holds a weekly farmer’s market for those who live on the reservation. Juncus, commonly known as rush, is a culturally significant plant that was added into the garden, as well as the endangered Schweinitz’s sunflower.

Sun City Carolina Lakes Community is a Certified Community Wildlife Habitat, and the pollinator garden is just one of the many ways their community is making a difference for wildlife. Visitors enjoy seeing monarch butterflies fluttering around in the garden, and we even spotted an adult monarch laying eggs on the milkweed that was planted years ago! Each garden also received a pollinator waterer, which is made using a shallow terra cotta saucer filled with stones for pollinators and insects to easily crawl out after getting a drink of water or cooling off.

 

 

Savannah Jordan, SCWF’s Habitat Education Manager who led the project stated, “Each garden plays such an important role in providing and connecting habitat for pollinators. No matter how large or how small their size, each one makes a difference. To see pollinators like bees and butterflies checking out the plants right after we put them in the ground goes to show that if you plant them, they will come!”

Savannah Jordan, SCWF’s Habitat Education Manager, stands still as a butterfly lands on her hand, almost as if to say “thank you”!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SCWF would like to thank Skyline Design and Landscape for their assistance in the design and installation of the garden, as well as providing all the native plants and materials. SCWF is also grateful for the following partners and volunteers for their involvement: Andrew Jackson State Park, Camp Canaan, Catawba Nation, Lancaster County Library, and Sun City Carolina Lakes Community

 

 

 

 

 

This project was made possible by Duke Energy’s Catawba-Wateree Habitat Enhancement Program.