Thought this was an interesting article.

Cutting Through the Jungle - Native Plants Myths and Realities
By Tony Avent Published March 11, 1995 Updated September 13, 2022

https://www.plantdelights.com/...

excellent article
"Everyone has an agenda"
now my dream is to become a black market distributor of endangered plants.

Interesting read

Oh, we just cant go trying to propagate wndangered plants. Well, except chestnut trees, they won the privilege

Everyone has an agenda, including Tony Avent. He makes a lot of points, many of them weak.
Here is another one by Allen Armitage: https://gardenrant.com/2023/08...

I don't exactly understand the reference to chestnuts, Sally. Penn State has crossed the native Chestnut tree with the Asian counterpart for resistance to blight. That hybrid is proving successful after many, many years of trying. Now the same process is being applied to Elms. Is that what you are referring to?

I don't recall all the original points being made, and don't have time to think now.
I 'think' I was pointing out that while the article said something about not flooding natural sites with our handpicked chosen species, there are some species out there, such as chestnut? getting the red carpet treatment and maybe leading to more planting of things that are only vaguely native to a particular region. Maybe?

Not ignoring you but don't have time to really think about this topic right now.

I think the Chestnut issue is the effort to develop a blight resistant variety hit a snag when they found out they were growing a different variety than they thought. There's also all the effort and money put into getting a tree with resistance.

I found a great definition of 'native plants'.
University of Maryland Extension:
Native to the ecoregion where it has evolved naturally in concert with soils, climate, fauna and other members of the plant community. This process of adaptation and evolution is ongoing and helps to perpetuate species even as conditions change. Even within its home eco-region, a species is native to a specific set of conditions.
Pretty much covers all the parameters that cause confusion. It's those 'specific set of conditions' that are key to identifying and growing natives. Some are more adaptable than others and have a wide native range, while others are more specific in their requirements and only grow in small areas. Then there are those whose 'specific set of conditions' (habitat) have been obliterated by human development or exploitation. California Coastal Sage Scrub is a big eco-region that stretches from San Diego to Marin County, but most of it is occupied by homes and businesses. That's what makes the species native to that eco-region so threatened.