Hi Lantana,

Personally, if there is a for sale sign up, I'd call the # on the sign and ask permission. On the Indian Grass, I'd ask permission at the site.

I guess I'm a get permission kind of gal! April

PS...I finally located the pictures of the driveway garden..I'll e-mail them to you today!

Lantana,

Wild Ones is a native plant group that conducts plant rescues on a regular basis. I've included a link to their guidelines below. Basically, the stance is the same as April's (Hi April!) recommendation to get permission.

Personally, I was the "victim" of a misguided plant rescue when someone made an assumption that I was going to destroy the wildflowers on my property, so I would strongly urge anyone to make a phone call before you make an assumption.

V.

Here is a link that might be useful: Plant Rescue

Hey if you want some opinions saying Go for It! well here is one. I only say this because it is rather anonymous! If I were in your shoes I wouldn't hesitate to tiptoe over there and get some of the plants.

The chances are quite high that the property will not be purchased by anyone who will value them. As a planning commissioner in a very rapidly growing area I can assure you that almost all developers I have dealt with (and the overwhelming majority of new residents moving in these developments) don't give a "good g---amn" about any vegetation currently on their sites. They love grass. They love planting sod and mowing it and believe that this is better than all those "weeds." To many developers -- if it doesn't come straight from the nursery it is a weed. I won't burden you with examples but let me say there are many times I just hang my head at how developers bulldoze to the four corners totally ignoring whatever trees or shrubs or wildflowers were there. It really hurts to see them tearing down large native trees and shrub stands and trilliums and then throwing down spindly Bradford pears and sod but I've seen it a hundred times. In my humble opinion the benefit of the doubt should go to the plants -- not the developers.

It'd be a shame to lose ALL of those beautiful natives.... rescue some. You'll feel better -- you won't hurt anyone in my opinion -- the plants will have a happy new home.
The one caveat I'd add is I wouldn't try rescuing anything that is really valuable i.e. is endangered. That could get you more than a finger-wagging if you were caught.

Would seeds or cuttings work? If I dig something I like to leave most of it in place and take only enough for a start in my garden.

I would have absolutely no problem taking from large commercial lots or areas that are slated for subdivision. I don't think developers care about the small "weeds" etc. If it's a residential lot I would use a little more caution... Most people wouldn't care and WILL scrape and sod the area, but it's their lot and you better leave it alone!!
It's sad that you lose a few great plants here and there, but if it makes you feel better think of the years worth of seed that may have spread out from that possumhaw or Indian Grass... there may be a new clump starting as we speak!

LantanaTX,
I think you should go ahead and rescue the plants you want. There is almost no chance that they will be valued or saved by the owner of the lot. I appreciate the fact that some members of this forum have had plants stolen from their future building lots, but keep in mind that there are very very few people who would notice or care - one in a million might be too high an estimate of our numbers. If land will be developed by a land developer or will become commercial property then most likely the entire lot will be cleared, and you can feel safe rescuing any plant you find. If the lots will be developed individually or by a developer who is saving some of the woods (if there are woods there now) then you might think twice about taking ALL of the plants near the edges of the lot (I'd still take some). Most people build their home somewhere near the center of the lot, and if they save woodlands will save some near the edges, near the back, or on steep hills or near a creek, for example. With a little imagination you can probably guess where the house will go, and take any plants that will be under or within 50 feet of the house. It is a rare property owner indeed who will rescue wildflowers from beneath the building site. If you think the plants might be spared by the developer (on a steep hill, for example) then take only some and leave some behind, but don't be surprised to find that even steep hill will be cleared and sodded.

Keep in mind that for most species of plants you won't need to take all of the plant. Many wildflowers spread vegetatively to form clumps, or tend to appear from seed in clumps. Taking a few individuals or dividing a clump will allow you to take some and leave some behind. Other species can be started from seed. In many cases I find it is easier to transplant a small start from a large clump of wildflowers rather than try to move the whole clump. Other plants are best from seed. Indian Grass, for example could be divided, leaving most of the plants where they are, or you could collect seed.

My bottom line is that it is very unlikely that any of the plants will survive the development of the property unless you remove them. If I could find some time to rescue some plants, then I would go ahead and do it and, rather than feel guilty about trespassing, I'd feel good for having saved something that would have been destroyed. Unlike April, I guess I am not the "ask permission" type. I wouldn't worry too much about finding endangered plants, since they are by definition quite rare, but keep in mind they do carry special legal protection.

It is illegal to remove plants from property that is not yours. It's called stealing, plain and simple. Also, trespassing. Either of which a person could get arrested for.

And it's just plain wrong, period.

Getting permission is always the right thing to do, IMO. I have rescued many, many plants this way. All I had to do was ask. Sometimes I had to sign a waiver, but that was it.

"I appreciate the fact that some members of this forum have had plants stolen from their future building lots,"

Yet you go ahead and advocate the same behaviour. I don't mean to be harsh, but this is not the right way to do things, IMO. If I saw someone digging plants on my lot, for instance, I'd have them arrested and charged.

So ask, if you can find anyone to ask. But because of liability issues few developers will give permission.

Yes, you always need permission from the landowner, and yes, developers rarely want to give it to you. However, through hard work (lots of phone calls, emails) in our area we finally have about six developers who will allow us to send small groups (15 or less) to sites to rescue if we can catch them BEFORE they begin. They usually forget, and my job is to read the newspaper and find out about proposed projects. It helps to work with your local land conservancy, native plant group, and perhaps the Master Gardeners. We have used all three groups. All participants sign liability waivers.

Department of Transportation, in charge of road building, always tells us yes on the phone but mostly "forgets" to send the written permission which we require. I think they WANT to let us go but are afraid. I am still working on them! The airport expansion was the same. I do confess to digging a few things off the side of the road as the road construction guys were coming. I spoke to the bulldozer guy, and he said yes, but you know he did not have any authority. Anyway, always get permission!

I do have a question for this group: What are some statements that we can give to these developers to make them understand that plant rescue is important? Why do it? They think sod, big box plants, and lots of paving make their housing sites great. What are some philosophical/environmental ideas that might sway them? The ones who let us go think we are crazy, but they are nice guys. Only one developer has told us what a great thing we are doing. Poor percentage, no? And this after more than three years!

Someone help us out here with ideas. Thanks!

Do you think any of the developers are worried about someone finding an endangered plant species on their property? I'm sure something like that would be the death of any development plans.

Is there a park or someplace else where rescued or protected plants put on a good show? That might be a good place for developers and their families to go in order to see what the results of your work are..... It's a tough sell though, they're doing it to make a living, most come in for their hours and then just want to go home. They want to build someone's dream home, not feel guilty about homeless wildlife and crushed wildflowers.

Guess nobody is out rescuing in the winter, but I just went on a rescue for a plant called Dirca palustis. It was unknown to me prior to this rescue. Has anyone out there moved one? Checked Cullina's book, so I know what the site should be, but I am wondering how it will transplant.

ncrescue:

Regarding moving Dirca palustris in the winter - haven't done it nor have I ever tried to grow this plant. However, I have moved a lot of shrubs in the winter and it usually works pretty well. Many plants seem a lot less prone to drying of the roots and transplant shock when moved in the winter, perhaps because they are dormant. I have moved a lot of shrubs more or less bare-root in the late fall and winter with success - many of these same species would usually not transplant well in the summer without a ball of soil around the roots.

Good Luck.