Root Down Wisconsin

05/29/2026

📢✨🌱🐝🦋 Exciting new item!!!🦋🐝🌱✨📢

Do you want to grow a native pollinator garden but get a bit overwhelmed when it comes time to select which flowers to grow? We have the solution for you!

We carefully curated the Sunny Pollinator and Shady Pollinator Grab and Go Garden packs which make it simple to get your native landscape started.

Each kit is packed in a convenient 6 pack plant carrier and includes planting instructions and a sample garden layout.

Purchase now for porch pickup at the nursery or for pickup at Joy Ice Cream Social (along with your favorite ice cream!) during our June 13th pop-up. We’ll have a few available for same day purchase, but highly recommend pre-ordering to make sure you don’t miss out.

https://www.rootdownwi.com/shop/Sunny-Pollinator-Garden-Kit-p838193642

The Sunny Garden

1x Joe Pye
1x Foxglove Beardtongue
1x Swamp Milkweed
1x New England Aster
1x Bee Balm
1x Showy Goldenrod

The Shady Garden (Coming soon!)

1x Sweet Joe Pye
1x Wild Columbine
1x Poke Milkweed
1x Zig Zag Goldenrod
1x Short's Aster
1x Hairy Beardtongue

05/28/2026

Don't forget to join us in the backyard nursery for our annual plant sale!

Mark your calendar! Our opening plant sale for 2026 will be held on Saturday, June 6 from 8 AM - 3 PM in the backyard nursery.

Now in our second year of operation, we have increased our inventory to over 100 species of native plants. As a small independent nursery we will have variable quantities of all species. Be here on June 6th for the best selection!

Follow our page for additional details as the sale approaches. This is where we will share the available plant listing and all future sale dates, both at the backyard nursery and at pop up sites.

05/27/2026

Recycle your nursery pots with us! Details follow....

There is a LOT of plastic waste in the horticulture industry, and that's a BIG concern for us. We've tried biodegradable pots, but they just don't hold up over the course of a growing season. They fall apart, mold, and don't hold moisture evenly.

In past years we have collected and re-used nursery pots. It's a great way to reduce our plastics footprint and keep some materials out of the landfill. It also helps to keep our growing cost down which means we can continue to produce high quality native plants at reasonable cost.

This year we will continue that tradition, but with a little refinement.

We will collect and reuse:
- Any nursery pot you get from Root Down Wisconsin - If you got it from us, we will always take it back for reuse
- 3.5" - 4" square black nursery pots
- 1/2 - 3 gallon round black nursery pots

We are unable to collect and reuse any other style of container at this time.

Look for the sign near the backyard nursery gate to deposit returnable containers at any time. Thanks for your consideration and for helping us to reduce our reliance on plastic products.

Root Down Wisconsin

05/26/2026

11 days until our backyard nursery sale to open the season!

Today, 3 more species have become available via the online store for pickup, and today they are all milkweeds!

Asclepias exaltata (the shade tolerant Poke Milkweed)
Asclepias incarnata (the stunning Swamp Milkweed)
and
Asclepia syriaca (the highly adaptable Common Milkweed)

All 3 are larval host plants for Monarch Butterfly caterpillars.

Pop into the store and schedule your pickup today!

https://www.rootdownwi.com/shop

05/24/2026

It's almost June 6th and we can't wait to see you at our annual backyard plant sale. See our pinned post for details.

If you simply cannot wait until June 6th, check our website to order available stock for pick up today!

05/20/2026

Our June 6th plant sale is approaching fast and today we have 4 new offerings that are available NOW through the online store for local pickup.

Newly available today:
Bottlebrush Grass
Virginia Wild Rye
Evening Primrose
Zig Zag Goldenrod

We'll keep adding plants as they are ready to go as we ramp up to the big sale.

rootdownwi.com/shop

05/19/2026

Excited to announce our first pop up sale of the year at Joy Ice Cream Social.

Andy will be available to answer questions and chat about native plants as you shop and enjoy your favorite scoop(s) of ice cream.

We will have a limited quantity of grab-and-go 6 pack pollinator garden starter kits available for pre-order. These kits are a simple and beautiful way to introduce native plant gardening to your yard. Full details coming soon!

05/12/2026

Updated plant list for the June 6th sale!

Species in the main list should be available in good quantity. Some are available to purchase on the website NOW if you want to get started early!

Species in the limited list toward the bottom will have limited availability or may not be available until later in the season.

Mark yourself as interested on the pinned post to get it on your calendar and make sure to follow the page to receive further updates. Now, back to potting, can't wait to see you all on 6/6!

AVAILABLE:
Anise Hyssop - Agastache foeniculum
Bee Balm - Monarda fistulosa
Big Bluestem - Andropogon gerardii
Big-Leaved Aster - Eurybia macrophylla
Black-Eyed Susan - Rudbeckia Hirta
Blue Grama - Bouteloua gracilis
Blue Vervain - Verbena hastata
Blue-Stemmed Goldenrod - Solidago caesia
Bottlebrush Grass - Elymus hystrix
Brown Eyed Susan - Rudbeckia triloba
Butterfly W**d - Asclepias tuberosa
Button Bush - Cephalanthus occidentalis
Calico Aster - Symphyotrichum lateriflorum
Cardinal Flower - Lobelia cardinalis
Common Ironweed - Vernonia fasciculata
Common Milkweed - Asclepias syriaca
Compass Plant - Silphium laciniatum
Cutleaf Coneflower - Rudbeckia laciniata
Drummond's Aster - Symphyotrichum drummondii
Early Figwort - Scrophularia lanceolata
Elderberry - Sambucus canadensis
Elm-Leaved Goldenrod - Solidago ulmifolia
Evening Primrose - Oenothera biennis
Foxglove Beardtongue - Penstemon digitalis
Frost Aster - Symphyotrichum pilosum
Great Blue Lobelia - Lobelia siphilitica
Hairy Beardtongue - Penstemon hirsutus
Hoary Vervain - Verbena stricta
Indian Grass - Sorghastrum nutans
Joe Pye W**d - Eutrochium maculatum
Lance-leaf Coreopsis - Coreopsis lanceolata
Late Boneset - Eupatorium serotinum
Late Figwort - Scrophularia marilandica
Lead Plant - Amorpha canescens
Leafy Prairie Clover - Dalea foliosa
Little Bluestem - Schizachyrium scoparium
Meadow Blazing Star - Liatris ligulistylis
New England Aster - Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
Obedient Plant - Physostegia virginiana
Orange Coneflower - Rudbeckia fulgida
Panicled Aster - Symphyotrichum lanceolatum
Poke Milkweed - Asclepias exaltata
Prairie Ninebark - Physocarpus opulifolius
Purple Coneflower - Echinacea purpurea
Purple Love Grass - Eragrostis spectabilis
Purple Prairie Clover - Dalea purpurea
Rattlesnake Master - Eryngium yuccifolium
Riddell's Goldenrod - Oligoneuron riddellii
Rosinweed - Silphium integrifolium
Short's Aster - Symphyotrichum shortii
Showy Goldenrod - Solidago speciosa
Shrubby St. John's Wort - Hypericum prolificum
Side-Oats Grama - Bouteloua curtipendula
Smooth Blue Aster - Symphyotrichum laeve
Spotted Bee Balm - Monarda punctata
Stiff Goldenrod - Oligoneuron rigidum
Swamp Milkweed - Asclepias incarnata
Sweet Black-eyed Susan - Rudbeckia subtomentosa
Sweet Joe Pye W**d - Eutrochium purpureum
Virginia Wild Rye - Elymus virginicus
White Prairie Clover - Dalea candida
Whorled Milkweed - Asclepias verticillata
Wild Columbine - Aquilegia canadensis
Willow Aster - Symphyotrichum praealtum
Yellow Coneflower - Ratibida pinnata
Zig Zag Goldenrod - Solidago flexicaulis

LIMITED (May be in short supply or not available until after June 6):
Aromatic Aster - Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
Arrow-Leaved Aster - Symphyotrichum urophyllum
Blue Wild Indigo - Baptisia australis
Canada Goldenrod - Solidago canadensis
Canada Milk Vetch - Astragalus canadensis
Common Serviceberry - Amelanchier arborea
Culver's Root - Veronicastrum virginicum
Cup Plant - Silphium perfoliatum
Elderberry - Sambucus canadensis
Golden Alexanders - Zizia aurea
Jack in the Pulpit - Arisaema triphyllum
Ohio Spiderwort - Tradescantia ohiensis
Pale Purple Coneflower - Echinacea pallida
Prairie Blazing Star - Liatris pycnostachya
Prairie Dock - Silphium terebinthinaceum
Spider Milkweed - Asclepias viridis
White Wild Indigo - Baptisia alba
Wild Blue Phlox - Phlox divaricata
Wild Sweet William - Phlox maculata

05/09/2026

Need a Mother's Day gift with quick local pickup? We have been balm, purple coneflower, black eyed susan, bottlebrush grass and wild strawberry available in the shop for pickup today.

Lots more coming but it's not rooted and ready for sale just yet. Watch for an updated inventory for the June 6 sale later this weekend!

Rootdownwi.com/shop

05/06/2026

SKIP NO MOW MAY - DO THIS INSTEAD

Are you considering participating in “No Mow May” to support pollinator habitat in your yard? It’s a well intentioned, but largely ineffective practice. Keep reading to find out why you should skip "No Mow May" and what beneficial steps to take instead.

Non-native turf grass doesn’t support any native pollinators. None. Zero. Zilch. Bees, moths and butterflies don’t use turf grass as their host plant or as a pollen source. By not mowing turf grass you are providing very little of the support you intend.

Typical lawn weeds like dandelions and creeping charlie are introduced species as well. They may provide some nectar that generalist bees might use, but the nectar is protein deficient compared to the nectar of many native flowers that bloom at the same time. Simply put, early season native bloomers provide better nectar. Dandelions provide inferior nectar that support introduced European bees at the expense of native bees.

Furthermore, consider what happens to any insects who take refuge in your unmown lawn when the month is up. It’s not a sustainable solution.

You understand the importance of supporting native pollinators, but “No Mow May” isn’t an effective method. So now what? Doing any of the following will truly support pollinators, begin the healing of your land, and restoration of a healthy local ecosystem.

Stop all herbicide and pesticide use. Pesticides indiscriminately kill all insects, including the beneficial ones. Herbicides directly and indirectly damage pollinator health. Stop using “weed and feed” fertilizers and “mosquito foggers”.

Eliminate a patch of turf grass lawn and replace it with native plants. A small native pollinator garden will provide far more benefit to early season (and all season) pollinators than a month of not mowing.

Leave the Leaves. Insects of all types rely on a layer of leaf litter to shelter, feed and reproduce. When we rake all of the fallen leaves into the street each fall we are raking away the pollinators and their habitat. Instead, gently rake the leaves into your flower beds and leave them to break down naturally. They will provide habitat and food for pollinators and other insects. Fireflies especially rely on this leaf layer to complete their life cycle.

01/06/2026

Pictured are the 10 species of aster that will be available at our spring plant sale. Check the captions for a highlighted feature of each and let me know... Which asters will you add to your yard?