Hi everyone!
I am very new to this forum.
My questions are: Is it bad to plant non-native plants? and Are gardens actually good for the environment, because they steal pollinators away from other plants?

Wow tough questions

This of course an opinion of ''one ''
I have some non natives in my garden They may have some benefits to wildlife but I believe the native plants have more and thus the Better Choice .
The main problem I see with non native is they escape the garden and go wild taking over and displacing the native plants.

I have also read a very convincing article on berries and birds that said non native give the wrong nutrients at the wrong season ...like sugar for winter instead of fat... not something I had even considered.

Second question
where I live we have a lot of farm fields much of the normal''weeds/wildflowers'' have been destroyed. I think that could also be said where ever people live , with roads, parking lots and weed free lawns...so I feel I am just giving back

Just one woman's thoughts on the matter
Hope you have a great gardening year

Hello! This reply may be a little late as although I am not a new gardener, I am new to this forum. Non-native plants are not necessarily 'bad' but when native plants are an option they are almost always better for every purpose you may have as a gardener except for simple aesthetics. Non-native plants are not recognized by the birds/beneficials/pollinators so they perform little if any role besides being pretty. Native plants however have evolved with the surrounding wildlife and offer food beyond simple pollen and nectar(seeds, caterpillars etc.) I could go on and on on this subject but put simply- native plants serve a function and fit into place in our gardens as a part of the food-web while ornamentals look pretty and maybe smell nice.

Native at what point in time? If a plant expands its territory by 1 foot, is it still in its native habitat? If it moves 1 mile? 100 miles? Does the qualification of the movement change if it moved with or without human manipulation? What if it was moved by animals? By a seed floating across an ocean? Isn't all of this evolution, or are things supposed to never change?

Some go by what is native in their state. As for bad, I don't like aggressive non-natives Overall, I prefer natives. But as far as edibles, it's really hard to stick to natives.