Native Plants
for Lowcountry Gardens
By Amy Dabbs and Kim Counts Morganello,
Clemson University Extension Service
L
andscapes give us a sense of place. Travelers know they have arrived in
the Lowcountry when the rich humid scent of pluff mud reaches their
nostrils. Spartina, sweetgrass, and palmettos undulate, while Spanish
moss drips from arching live oaks, and a cacophony of frogs and cicadas
announces your arrival.
Anyone who lives in the coastal plain of South Carolina recognizes these
symbols of the Lowcountry, but how many of us actually nurture this sense of place
in our own backyards? As Extension professionals representing the horticulture
and water resources programs with Clemson University Cooperative Extension, we
are passionate about helping our community understand and preserve this fragile,
beautiful place we call home.
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Photo by Chris Counts