Our journey into native gardening began when our dog unexpectedly and suddenly passed away. We decided to lay him to rest in our small garden. As we worked through the grief of losing our best friend, we realized how powerful gardens can be, not just as beautiful, therapeutic spaces, but as a place where stories are forever unfolding, chapters closing and new beginnings budding.

We began to notice so much more than we ever had and felt an intense connection to the wildlife that called that garden home alongside him. It became a sanctuary for us and it didn’t take long for us to see that his resting place was becoming a sanctuary for wildlife too.

The more we learned, the more we found that habitats are shrinking at an alarming pace. We need to start intentionally make space amongst the land we’ve claimed and maintain what makes us human: kindness and empathy. After a lot of research, we expanded our ‘rewilding’ efforts. We knew that even small changes could make a major difference.

Gardening with native plants has completely changed our perspective. Every little action adds up. We may not be able to solve all of nature’s challenges, but we can contribute in our own way, one garden at a time.