Let's say you are still pretty much looking at a ground cover -- maybe with some shrubs and flowers bordering the house -- but you want them to be plants native to your area; what then?
Obviously, it will depend on your area. I will focus on mine, but "area" can also be kind of a loose term.
One potential starting place is PNW Native Plant Exchange:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1723453557818882
Nurseries in your area will almost certainly have some native plants, but they will also be selling them.
With the exchange you will literally see people saying that something they have is splitting off and they may be giving away or trading. You can also ask questions and get tips, so it can be helpful with knowledge and with a sense of community.
Extension services remain a good source of information. For Washington County in Oregon, that's https://extension.oregonstate.edu/washington.
Many years ago I became a Master Food Preserver through an extension program. I would team up with a Master Gardener at the Hillsboro Farmer's Market and we would answer questions and distribute information.
I can tell you that the most common question for the Master Gardener was about blossom end rot on tomatoes, which was related to not enough calcium in the soil. The favored solution was egg shells, which I believe gets recommended for roses too, but it was always the tomatoes.
On a possibly related note, the most popular food preservation publication was the one on making salsa.
At the time, I thought I wanted to later go through the Master Gardener Program, as well as two other programs; I would be master of it all!
I did not end up doing that. Programs have changed over the years, mostly for the better.
That being said, it is possible that there is a program out there that will teach you a lot and that you will love. However, you do not need to become a master to be able to do things.
(And even mastering something... I have never canned fish, and it is not going to happen.)
The point is that there is information out there and people that are interested. If you need a slow learning curve or are ready to plunge right in, there should be options.
There was also a book I enjoyed:
Real Gardens Grow Natives: Design, Plant, & Enjoy A Healthy Northwest Garden by Eileen Stark.
In fact, that book goes a little beyond the ground level, as does the author, who is based in Portland and does landscaping consultations:
https://realgardensgrownatives.com/?page_id=6376
Regardless, the book describes local plants that would makes sense as part of local ecosystems.