Garden recommendations can vary by region. For those looking for titles specific to their part of the United States, check out these recommendations.

**Books organized by region and publication date**

East

The Green Garden: A New England Guide to Planting and Maintaining the Eco-Friendly Habitat Garden

Author(s): Ellen Sousa
Publication Date: November, 2011
Description: If you live in New England, this practical text will help you create native, wildlife-friendly gardens with lists of recommended plants for different microclimates. Sousa’s advice is both inspirational and simple in its approach to creating vibrant green spaces.

Designing Gardens with Flora of the American East

Author(s): Ms. Carolyn Summers
Publication Date: April, 2010
Description: This is a book for the professional landscape designer or home gardener who insists on elegance and function. If “letting your lawn go wild” sounds lacking in style, consider reading this volume on native alternatives to exotic formal plantings (yes, a native Japanese-style garden is possible). Summers includes a handy list of specific native alternatives to typical landscape plants. This book will also clarify confusing vocabulary words such as cultivar, hybrid, native, indigenous, and open-pollinated. If a beautiful wildlife garden full of indigenous plants and in harmony with the surrounding landscape is your challenge, this book should be your partner in that challenge.

South

Gardening with Native Plants of the South

Author(s): Sally Wasowski and Andy Wasowski
Publication Date: July, 2012
Description: This region specific resource will help gardeners embrace the changing world of “traditional gardens” where native plants are now beginning to be prized for their growing ease, ecosystem benefits to wildlife, and matching beauty to imported species.

Mid-west

Native Plants of the Midwest: A Comprehensive Guide to the Best 500 Species for the Garden

Author(s): Alan Branhagen
Publication Date: November, 2016
Description: Residents in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, North and South Dakota, northern Arkansas, and eastern Kansas, will enjoy this reference guide of more than 500 species of native plants to consider including in your gardens. From bulbs to canopy trees, and everything in between, this guide will help you figure out your planting options.

West

The California Wildlife Habitat Garden: How to Attract Bees, Butterflies, Birds and other Animals

Author(s): Nancy Bauer
Publication Date: August, 2012
Description: This book is perfect for California gardeners focused on creating habitat that provides food, water, and cover. The author encourages creating beautiful, biodiverse landscape patches to invite and sustain neighborhood wildlife.

Native Plants for High Elevation Western Gardens

Author(s): Janice Busco and Nancy R. Morin
Publication Date: July, 2010
Description: If you live at high-altitude (5,000 feet or better), you probably know that it’s not without challenges (e.g., weather extremes, drought). That’s true for the birds who share your alpine habitat as well. This book provides low-maintenance advice, color photos, and cultivation instructions that will help native alpine plants, and the birds that rely on them, thrive.

Landscaping with Native Plants of the Southwest

Author(s): George Oxford Miller
Publication Date: March, 2007
Description: This is a great resource for gardening with the southwestern landscape rather than against it. Miller offers planting suggestions for drought-tolerance, deer- and rabbit-resistance, and for attracting those famed southwestern hummingbirds (the envy of the nation). Special segments on challenges that southwestern gardeners face (like local soil types, landscaping with cacti, and bringing in color) are great supplements to the included “native plant profiles”.