Launch of Plant RVA Natives Campaign

In spring 2019, the Virginia CZM Program, in collaboration with more than 20 partner state agencies and non-governmental organizations, launched the Plant RVA Natives campaign, part of a coast-wide regional native plant marketing effort initiated and funded in large part by Virginia CZM through grants from NOAA.

The launch was hosted by Maymont and coincided with Herbs Galore and More, a popular event with gardeners, and a key audience for the campaign’s message. The launch featured a presentation by Dr. Arthur Evans, entomologist and co-host of “What’s Bugging You?” (WCVE radio), sponsored by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) Habitat Partners© Program. The campaign also was highlighted on WCVE’s Virginia Home Grown (www.pbs.org/show/virginia-home-grown/episodes/).

In addition to publishing the guide “Native Plants for Virginia’s Capital Region,” the campaign is partnering with local providers on point of sale marketing, such as signage and plant tags, to make it easier for consumers to identify plants as native to the region.

The response has been very encouraging. A tweet from Sneed’s Nursery that read “So excited to support this initiative! We’ve got complementary guides to give to customers. Just ask an associate for one!” resulted in replies such as “What a perfect partnership! Yay! Loving this guide too! It’s invaluable for designing my little pollinating backyard and as a botanical artist too!” and “Oh wow this is great!!! I saw them at the Maymont plant sale the other weekend and was able to get one of their guides. Everyone needs one of these. It’s priceless.”