spotted joe-pye weed
Eupatorium maculatum
An excellent back of the border native plant growing 6′ tall or more with deep … Continued
browsing: native perennials
Native plants have evolved over thousands of years alongside native wildlife and therefore offer the most useful habitat. Native plants feed bugs at every stage of life, and bugs are the very foundation for our entire food web.
Our prairie natives require less water, and are adapted to grow in our soil types and temperature extremes, so they do well without requiring extensive resources and chemicals. Native plants help in management of rainwater runoff and maintain healthy soil with their deep root systems.
Native vs Native Cultivar
wild strawberry
Fragaria virginiana
Ground-hugging foliage produces loose clusters of small, five-petaled flowers followed by tasty, wild strawberries. Found … Continued
Fringed loosestrife
Lysimachia ciliata
Yellow flowers on long stalks open in spring. Native to much of the lower 48 … Continued
blanketflower
Gaillardia aristata
Blanketflowers are one of the longest-blooming native perennials, well suited to hot sunny sites. Soft-yellow … Continued
bottle gentian
Gentiana andrewsii
These slow-growing natives are long-lived and require little care once established. Bumblebees are the main … Continued
wild geranium
Geranium maculatum
Native to much of eastern North America, this perennial has attractive dissected foliage, beautiful pink … Continued
prairie smoke geum
Geum triflorum
An excellent rock garden perennial, this native produces smoky pink blooms can last for a … Continued
giant ironweed
Vernonia gigantea
One of the tallest of the ironweeds, growing to as much as 10’ tall in … Continued
Bowman’s root, Indian physic, fawn’s breath
Gillenia trifoliata
18-24″ tall globe-shaped mounds are covered in small white flowers with pretty contrasting reddish buds. … Continued
rose verbena
Glandularia {Verbena} canadensis
Brilliant pink flower clusters cover this low-growing wildflower all summer. Plants spread out to 15-18″ … Continued
Helen’s flowers, common sneezeweed
Helenium autumnale
Clusters of daisy-like flowers 2″ in diameter have distinctive wedge-shaped, bright yellow rays dome-like yellow … Continued
downy sunflower, ashy sunflower
Helianthus mollis
Fine hairs cover the stems and leaves, giving this native perennial a gray-green color. A … Continued