HOUSEHOLDS ACROSS the West are increasingly ditching the smooth green lawns of the stereotypical American dream and attempting to grow native plants instead — a practice Indigenous communities mastered centuries ago to sustain themselves.
The new approach to landscaping is championed by activists, government agencies and universities as a simple solution to water and climate woes. But the Indigenous farmers who originally cultivated and cared for some of these plants are often left out of the narrative sold to consumers. And the native plant movement could impact Indigenous communities unexpectedly by taking away resources like crops, seeds and income.
“What’s growing out there is not considered a commodity for us,” said Michael Kotutwa Johnson, a member of the Hopi Tribe and assistant specialist at the University of Arizona’s School of Natural Resources and the Environment. “It’s considered a way of life and our key to survival.”
Take the chiltepin
