Event Programs and Photo Albums Legacy Gala Program 2018 | Page 46

Naturally Kiawah Demonstration Garden
AT NIGHT HERON PARK
The Naturally Kiawah Demonstration Garden at Night Heron Park serves as a demonstration area
for the Kiawah Conservancy’s Naturally Kiawah Habitat Program, displaying a variety of plants
that together create a structure that builds habitat for wildlife. The garden serves as an important
resource for property owners, visitors and landscapers alike. It is located at Night Heron Park,
adjacent to the bicycle path, near the soccer field.
Understory
• The garden showcases a variety of understory plants: medium to small shrubs and
groundcovers. These plants provide necessary cover for many of Kiawah’s wildlife, from
songbirds to bobcats.
• Property owners are encouraged to create understory habitat within their landscapes. The
garden shows several groupings of plants that provide cover all the way to the ground; this
layering is an important characteristic for providing habitat for as many species as possible.
• Instead of having open areas of turf, understory plants can be used to create natural areas
and boost the quality of vegetated buffers in property owners’ yards.

Plants
• The garden displays a variety of material that grows well in the conditions found on Kiawah.
Native plants, indigenous species that grow naturally on Kiawah and/or throughout the
southeast coastal plain, are labeled throughout the garden. These plants play an invaluable
role in Kiawah’s ecology.
Wildlife
• Not only does the structure of the garden provide opportunities for cover and nesting, but
many of the plants provide important functions for wildlife.
• Passionflower is used as the larval host plant by several butterflies
• Sweetgrass provides a seed source for small birds
• Yaupon holly berries are a food source for a host of migratory and resident songbirds
• Coral honeysuckle provides nectar for hummingbirds
Make your mark on Kiawah today! Leave your Legacy in the Naturally Kiawah Demonstration
Garden. Contact the Kiawah Conservancy office at 843-768-2029 or beverly@kiawahconservancy.
org to learn more about Legacy naming opportunities in the garden.
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