WEEKS BAY, Ala. – Exotic might be okay if you’re buying something to impress your friends, but when adding to your home landscape, plants native to the Alabama coast are the way to go, according to Fred Nation.

The field botanist and Daphne resident is just one of many volunteers preparing for the 15th annual Weeks Bay Native Plant Sale, which will be held Friday through Sunday, Oct. 10-12, from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day.

The event will again take place at Safe Harbor at Weeks Bay, the former recreational vehicle park across U.S. Highway 98 from the Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Interpretive Center, near Fish River.

Shrubs, perennials, butterfly plants, trees, hummingbird plants, wetland plants and dune plants are among those available this year.

The plant sale benefits projects at the Weeks Bay Reserve, and is an excellent opportunity to purchase native plants, as well as learn the benefits of using natives in homes and gardens.

“Native plants require common sense care,” Nation said. But, they don’t need the additional nutrients and pesticides, artificially produced conditions and special care of their exotic counterparts, he added.

Many native plants are rare in the wild these days, and planting nursery stock encourages their survival.

Nation said, “They’ve been here many years, and they’ve adapted. When we plant natives, we also provide habitat for various creatures.”

Anyone who has walked in a southwest Alabama forest or a coastal wetland knows non-exotics have aesthetic value as well.

“Native plants are beautiful,” he said. “Some of the best landscaping plants are native to south Alabama. Native plants are every bit as beautiful in the landscape as exotics.”

Nation pointed out that native species are as much in demand around the world these days as exotic plants, in part because of environmental awareness.

For those not in the know, experts such as the Baldwin County Master Gardeners will be on hand at the plant sale to answer questions, and to suggest the best selections for various growing conditions.

Plants will be available there for all landscaping needs, including species for shade or sun, salt tolerance, dunes, wet areas and other specialized areas.

Maureen Nation, volunteer coordinator at the Weeks Bay Reserve and Fred’s better half, said the plant sale is organized by the Weeks Bay volunteers.

“With the money from the proceeds (of the sale), we do our many projects,” she said.

Among them is an arboretum being developed at Safe Harbor where concrete RV pads were once located.

The volunteers also buy supplies for the herbarium cabinet at the reserve, where pressed specimens of many native plant species are cataloged and housed.

“If a plant disappears from Baldwin County, then there will be a record of it in the herbarium,” she noted.

Maureen Nation said the plant sale also helps fund research projects and workshops, and the money raised can help out in a pinch when there’s an urgent need and the reserve’s budget is already stretched too thin.

The first project tackled by volunteers, she said, was landscaping and the installation of a pond in front of the Interpretive Center soon after the reserve opened. They continue to use the pond as an educational resource, showing visitors how best to use native plants in a decorative pond.

For more information about the upcoming plant sale, call the Week Bay Reserve at (251) 928-9792.