By Danielle Ridgeway
Senior Manager of Grants at Keep Indianapolis Beautiful
Title, Goals, and Objectives of Project: Native Plant Nursery
KIB set out to grow roughly 4,000 perennials in 23 species with multiple bloom and seeding times to support birds and other wildlife. Ten of these plant species were new to KIB, adding more variety to our native plantings as well as allowing us to plan for site-specific plantings, such as shade gardens. These plants were to go into KIB GreenSpaces, transforming underused and vacant lots into vibrant pocket parks with high-value native landscapes.
Goals included cost-savings as well as improving our access to a robust variety of perennials species that fill a variety of needs for Central Indiana birds—grasses for cover and nesting materials; seeds, grains, nectar, and berries, along with an abundance of caterpillars and other insects, for food; and varied seed production times for winter foraging.
KIB also planned to use the nursery during its growing season as a teaching site for volunteers and our seasonal youth employees, increasing the acceptance and knowledge of native plants over ornamentals. Moreover, experience with newly germinated plants would improve our ability to help the community partners who care for more than 60 KIB GreenSpaces distinguish between weeds and native plants in their own perennial plant beds.
Project Completion: The planting goals for 2025 have been completed, but the ambitions of the KIB Nursery are ongoing!
Measuring Effectiveness: KIB noted the number and types of plants grown, as well as the number of volunteers and cost savings at our GreenSpaces. In 2025, we also opted to open up nursery implementation and maintenance to our specialized volunteers, which was a huge success. This created opportunities for education and strengthened relationships with community members.
Degree of Attained Goals: We planted the 23 planned species, installing the nursery with seven specialized volunteers on March 29. We aimed to grow at least 80% of our own plant material for KIB native plantings to offset the cost of plant material for KIB GreenSpaces, and we achieved it. At the Hanna Commons GreenSpace alone, we planted about 900 perennial plugs and saved $1,550 by growing them in-house.
Thirteen species identification signs were designed for the native planting areas. “Some of the residents were brought to tears when all the trees and plants went in,” wrote Suzy Beguhn. “They were overwhelmed by how great it was.” Hanna Commons is an apartment complex that aims to address homelessness through permanent multifamily housing and expert onsite supportive services, and residents had expressed an interest in birds, so KIB also led a birdhouse building workshop with 16 residents. Bird identification was done over the month leading up to the workshop to establish which species were on site and subsequently what types of birdhouses they would need.
Problems Encountered: A few species didn’t do well, as the germinating plants required weather and soil conditions we couldn’t adequately control in our small, outdoor nursery, but we learned a lot about their growth. This will inform our species selection as we refine which native plants to grow in-house and which ones to purchase as plugs.
KIB selected a GreenSpace project for 2025 that ended up encountering some property ownership issues, which led to KIB ultimately backing out of the GreenSpace build. KIB did not learn about this complication until May 2025, and roughly 1,200 perennials planted in the KIB nursery had been intended for this site.
Despite this setback, we still used nearly all the nursery’s perennials. Many of them went to revamping past KIB GreenSpaces, including large prairie plantings. Our college-age Urban Naturalists were also able to use our nursery-grown plants in a high-value native landscape in Christian Park and in stormwater planters in the Fairfax neighborhood, where community members had requested more flowering species.
Some plants went as gifts to treasured specialized volunteers who are the backbone of KIB’s volunteer workdays. The gifts of these plants supplemented educational opportunities we offered these volunteers, who are invited to bimonthly workshops. This year’s topics included Native Habitat Creation and Management, Birding, Seed Collection, and the Importance of Indiana Native Plants.
Opportunities for Enhancement: One issue we have faced each year is nursery maintenance. In 2026, we are expanding our GreenSpace team to include an additional full-time employee. This new staff member will have a distinct role specific to the nursery’s care. In the past, this maintenance had been up to one KIB employee and whatever other staff had the capacity to assist.
Additional Funding/Partnerships Since Initiation of Project: There have been no additional funds or partnerships formed specifically related to the nursery, as ABAS fully funded the project.
