KMS Native Plants, LLC

06/07/2026

Invasive Species Week: June 8-14!

New York’s Invasive Species Awareness Week 2026 New York’s Invasive Species Awareness Week ( ) is June 8th- 14th! The mission of the New York Invasive Species Awareness Week (NYISAW) is to promote knowledge and understanding of invasive species and the harm they can cause. We want to empow...

06/07/2026

Revisited Native Plant of the Week: Rosy Sedge

Family: CyperaceaeName: Carex rosea'Bloom' Time: May'Flower': Spikelet Soil Condition: Wet, moist, adaptableLight: Partial shade, shadeHeight: 12" tall by 12"-18" wideNative Range: Eastern North America including LIZone: 4-8Photo Credit: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz (CC BY-SA 4.0) https://commons.wiki...

06/06/2026

Also listed as invasive in 13 states. There are so many better choices.

06/06/2026

Native Plant of the Week: Hairy Beardtongue

Family: PlantaginaceaeName: Penstemon hirsutusBloom Time: May -JuneFlower: lavender/white Soil Condition: well-drained, dry, poorLight: Sun, partial sun, shadeHeight: 16-36"Native Range: Long IslandZone: 3-9This is a KMS Native Plants favorite! The tubular white and lavender flowers bloom in the gar...

06/06/2026

Stop spraying pesticides! If everyone did this in their yard, we could stop the mosquitoes. I have 4 in my yard and it works! Spraying for ticks and mosquitoes kills all insects including our beloved butterflies and their caterpillars, our beautiful moths and their caterpillars, our bees and beneficial insects that keep the 'pests' under control. Don't believe the lies from the pesticide companies, natural and organic kills all good insects too!

Natural mosquito control: The Mosquito Bucket Challenge is a safe, affordable way to control mosquitoes without harming kids, pets, or pollinators.

06/05/2026

Thank you for this!

It's not the deer that's driving Lyme disease on Long Island. It's the mouse. 🐭

The white-footed mouse is the primary reservoir for Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria behind Lyme. When a juvenile tick feeds on an infected mouse, it carries that pathogen into its next life stage. Mice (along with chipmunks and shrews) are responsible for infecting up to 90% of the ticks that eventually bite humans.

So, what controls the mice? Foxes do.
A red fox can crater a local mouse population in ways no other predator can, and a landmark 2012 study found that the rise of Lyme disease correlates not with deer numbers, but with the decline of red foxes.

Healthy ecosystems are public health. That's why we fight for them.

🔗 Read the full post on our blog: https://longislandconservancy.org/2026/05/27/if-you-want-to-combat-lyme-disease-bring-on-the-foxes/

06/04/2026

Horace’s duskywing (Erynnis horatius) is a small butterfly whose caterpillar feeds on several oak species. This is a female. Look at how well she is camaflouged on the ground.

06/04/2026

A new moth for me at KMSNP, this is Amphion floridensis, the Nessus sphinx moth. A day-flying moth that is often co fused with the hummingbird moth.

06/04/2026

A native stinkbug, eastern red-rimmed dendrocoris, feeds primarily on oak, hickory and hazelnut trees. I have all three here on the property. It overwinters in leaf mulch and rotting logs - also abundant here.