At first glance, Clark Delong might resemble a young Indiana Jones. But unlike the swashbuckling movie hero, Delong doesn’t have to go far to find his holy grail.

His mission is to put native Delaware species in local gardens. That’s why he has opened Heritage: A Native Plant Nursery.

“Heritage is a place that brings native plant gardening to the average person, both in a financially accessible way and, hopefully, long term as an educational place, where people can learn to garden for ecology,” Delong said.

The 30,000-square-foot nursery is located on Route 9, just west of Route 5 near Georgetown.

Delong co-owns a wholesale nursery in Maryland that just does native plants. He is bringing the plants directly from there to Heritage.

The nursery has rows and rows of plants, trees and shrubs, all with informative signs that explain exactly what they are.

Delong said perennials, like Black-Eyed Susans, Mountain Mint and Beard Tongues, are the key to having a thriving native garden.

“They are plants that are usually very showy and flower. They attract a lot of pollinators and a lot of birds and insects,” he said. “That’s where native plants really shine.”

Delong said starting a native garden is easy, if you start small.

“Try a couple of things, see what works for you. Try a few perennials, some of the flashy, easy-to-grow ones,” Delong said. “Native plants can be a lot more sustainable and lower maintenance than exotic ones.”

Long term, Delong said he is adding a permanent building. He said he would like to offer vegetable plants, a library with books on native plants and goods on consignment from local artists.

Delong said with new people moving into the area and land that has changed use in the last 10 years, there is a lot of potential to integrate native species, both at the personal and municipal levels.

“If you take out the native plants, you’re not going to have the resources for everything else up the food chain. The birds have nothing to eat and you end up with just a desert,” Delong said.