Native Wildflower Gardens

Garden type	Season	Common Name	Latin Name	Height	Color	Comments
Rain Garden	Early	golden alexander	Zizia aurea	mid level	yellow
Rain Garden	Early	Louisiana iris	Iris sp.	mid level	many colors
Rain Garden	Early	wild hyacinth	Camassia scilloides	low	pale purple/white	edible bulb
Rain Garden	Early	common camas	Camassia quamash	low	deep blue	edible bulb
Rain Garden	Early	wild indigo	Baptisia alba	mid level	white
Rain Garden	Early	marsh marigold	Caltha palustris	low	yellow
Rain Garden	Early	blue-eyed grass	Sisyrinchium angustifolium	low	blue	an iris, not a grass
Rain Garden	Mid summer	blue flag iris	Iris versicolor	mid level	blue
Rain Garden	Mid summer	Allegheny monkeyflower	Mimulus ringens	mid level	white to blue
Rain Garden	Mid summer	spiderword, bluejacket	Tradescantia ohiensis	mid level	blue
Rain Garden	Mid summer	cardinal flower	Lobelia cardinalis	mid level	red	likes moist soil
Rain Garden	Mid summer	Culver's root	Veronicastrum virginicum	mid to tall	small white flowers on long spikes
Rain Garden	Mid summer	royal catchfly	Silene regia	mid level	red	long blooming, humming bird
Rain Garden	Mid summer	whorled mountain mint	Pycnanthemum verticillatum	mid level	small white	pollinator favorite
Rain Garden	Mid summer	cup plant	Silphium perfoliatum	tall	yellow
Rain Garden	Mid summer	prairie coneflower	Ratibia pinnata	mid level	yellow rays, brown center
Rain Garden	Mid summer	woolgrass	Scirpus cyperinus	small	tiny, dense, brown	a sedge; grass-like habit
Rain Garden	Mid summer	blue vervain	Verbena hastata	mid level	small pink/purple, on spikes
Rain Garden	Mid summer	rattlesnake master	Eryngium yuccifolium	midlevel	white, in spherical heads
Rain Garden	Mid summer	obedient plant	Physostegia virginiana	mid level	pink/purple on spikes
Rain Garden	Mid summer	swamp milkweed	Asclepias incarnata	mid level	dark pink, dense heads	monarch butterflies
Rain Garden	Late summer	boneset	Eupatorium perfoliatum	tall	white, in flat dense heads
Rain Garden	Late summer	blue mistflower	Conoclinium coelestinum	mid level	blue/purple
Rain Garden	Late summer	giant sunflower	Helianthus giganteus	very tall	yellow
Rain Garden	Late summer	pink turtlehead	Chelone lyonii	short	pink
Rain Garden	Late summer	Canada goldenron	Solidago canadensis	mid level	yellow	can be aggressive
Rain Garden	Late summer	sawtooth sunflower	Helianthus grosseserratus	tall	yellow
Rain Garden	Late summer	false aster	Boltonia asteroides	mid level	white rays, yellow center; profuse
Rain Garden	Late summer	purplestem aster	Symphyotrichum puniceum	mid level	lavender, profuse
Rain Garden	Late summer	sneezeweed	Helenium autumnale	mid level	yellow, profuse	does not cause allergies
Rain Garden	Late summer	New England aster	Symphyotrichum novae-angliae	mid level	pink/lavender/purple, profuse
Rain Garden	Late summer	prairie dock	Silphium terebinthinaceumtall	tall	yellow	very large leaves
Rain Garden	Late summer	white turtlehead	Chelone glabra	mid level	white
Rain Garden	Late summer	sweet coneflower	Rudbeckia subtomentosa	mid level	yellow	long blooming
Rain Garden	Late summer	crooked stem aster	Symphiotrichium prenanthiodium	mid level	blue
Rain Garden	Late summer	Ohio goldenrod	Oligoneuron ohioensis	tall	yellow
Rain Garden	Late summer	Helen's flower	Helenium autumnale	tall	yellow
Rain Garden	Late summer	bottle gentian	Gentiana andrewsii	mid level	blue	Flowers do not open, bees force their entry
Sandy soil		oregano	Origanum vulgare	low		Not native, culinary
Sandy soil		thyme	thymus vulgaris	low		Not native, culinary
Sandy soil		lavender	Lavandula angustifolia	low		fragrance
Sandy soil		sage	Salvia officinalils	low		Not native, culinary
Sandy soil		chives	Allium schoenoprasum	low		Not native, culinary
Sandy soil		winter savory	Satureja montana	low		Not native, culinary
Sandy soil		sweet woodruff	Galium odoratum	low		fragrance
Sandy soil	Early	blue wild indigo	Baptisia australis	mid level	blue, large spikes
Sandy soil	Early	bayberry	Morella pensylvanica	mid level woody	small	waxy berries good for birds
Sandy soil	Early	cream violet	Viola striata	low	white
Sandy soil	Early	shale barren phlox	Phlox subulata brittonii	low	pink	ground cover
Sandy soil	Early	wild pink	Silene carolina	low	pink to lavender
Sandy soil	Early	bearberry	Arctostaphyllus uva-ursi	low	white/pink
Sandy soil	Early/mid summer	Mexican evening primrose	Oenothera speciosa	low	white, pink highlights
Sandy soil	Early/mid summer	common blue violet	Viola sororia	low	blue
Sandy soil	Mid summer	eastern prickly pear	Opuntia humifusa	low	yellow	cactus
Sandy soil	Mid summer	nodding onion	Allium cernuum	low	white/pink	edibe bulb
Sandy soil	Mid summer	downy alumroot	Heuchera pubescens	low	white, small on spikes
Sandy soil	Mid summer	hen and chicks	Sempervivum calcareum	low		succulent
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	lady's mantle	Alchemilla mollis	mid level	yellow, small, dense
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	shrubby cinquefoil	Daisphora fructosa	low	white
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	whorled tickseed	Coreopsis verticillata	low	yellow
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	butterfly weed	Asclepias tuberosa	mid level	yellow/orange/red
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	anise hyssop	Agastache foeniculum	low	purple, small, dense on spikes	strong fragrance
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	shale barren buckwheat	Eriogonum allenii	mid level	yellow	long blooming
Sandy soil	Mid/late summer	wild petunia	Ruellia humilis	low	lavender
Sandy soil	Late summer	aromatic aster	Symphyotrichum oblongifolium	mid level	blue/purple
Sandy soil	Late summer	pearly everlasting	Anaphalis margaritacea	mid level	white
Sandy soil	Late summer	blanketflower	Gaillardia aristata	low	petals yellow at margin, red in center	long blooming
Sandy soil	Late summer	wild tobacco	Nicotiana alata	mid level	white	introduced, blooms at night, fragrant
Sandy soil	Late summer	barrens stonecrop	Hylotelphium telephioides	low	pink
Sandy soil	Late summer/fall	eastern showy aster	Eurybia spectabilis	low	purple rays, yellow center
Shady		northern sea oats	Chasmanthium latifolium	tall grass	attractive seed heads	variable soils
Shady		Christmas fern	Polystichum acrostichoides	low fern	no bloom	ground cover
Shady		New York fern	Thelypteris noveboracensis	low fern	no bloom	ground cover
Shady	Early, ephemeral	bloodroot	Sanguinaria canadensis	low	white petals, yellow center	one of earliest blooms
Shady	Early, ephemeral	hepatica	Hepatica americana	low	blue/purple
Shady	Early, ephemeral	Carolina spring beauty	Claytonia caroliniana	low	pale pink
Shady	Early, ephemeral	trout lily	Erythronium americanum	low	yellow
Shady	Early, ephemeral	white trillium	Trillium grandiflorum	low	white
Shady	Early, ephemeral	toad trillium	Trillium sessile	low	deep red
Shady	Early, ephemeral	snow trillium	Trillium nivale	low	white
Shady	Early, ephemeral	little sweet betsy	Trillium cuneatum	low	rusty red
Shady	Early, ephemeral	rue anemone	Anemonella thalictroides	low	white
Shady	Early, ephemeral	snow trillium	Trillium nivale	low	white
Shady	Early, ephemeral	little sweet betsy	Trillium cuneatum	low	rusty red
Shady	Early, ephemeral	rue anemone	Anemonella thalictroides	low	white
Shady	Early, ephemeral	wild lily of the valley	Maianthemum canadense	low	tiny white	ground cover
Shady	Early	spring beauty	Claytonia virginica	low	pink
Shady	Early	jack in the pulpit	Arisema tryphyllum	low	distinctive blossom, purple/brown
Shady	Early	wild geranium	Geranium maculatum	low/mid level	pink to purple
Shady	Early	Allegheny spurge	Pachysandra procumbens	low	white, bottlebrush	ground cover
Shady	Early	woodland stonecrop	Sedum ternatum	low	white	succulent
Shady	Early	mayapple	Podophyllum peltatum	low	white,	ground cover, umbrella leaves
Shady	Early	wood poppy	Stylophorum diphyllum	low	yellow
Shady	Early	false Solomon's seal	Maianthemum racemosum	mid level	small white cluster	ground cover
Shady	Early	toothworts	Cardamine sp.	low	white/pink
Shady	Early	Jacob's ladder	Polemonium reptans	low	pale blue, clusters
Shady	Early	wild ginger	Asarum canadense	low	red to purple, at ground level	ground cover
Shady	Early	Virginia bluebells	Mertensia virginica	mid level	blue, in clusters
Shady	Early	foam flower	Tiarella cordifolia	low	tiny white, on spikes
Shady	Early	partridge berry	Mitchella repens	low	white, small	variable soils, attractive red berries, ground cover
Shady	Early	spice bush	Lindera benzoin	woody shrub	yellow puffs along branches
Shady	Early	red baneberry	Actea rubra	mid level	small white on spike
Shady	Early	halberd-leafed violet	Viola hastata	low	yellow
Shady	Early	dwarf ginseng	Panax trifolium	low	small white, in puffs
Shady	Early	yellow trillium	Trillium lutea	low	yellow
Shady	Early	sweet white violet	Viola blanda	low	white
Shady	Early	jack in the pulpit	Arisema pusillum	low	yellow	wetter sites than tryphyllum
Shady	Early	sweet white trillium	Trillium simile	low	white
Shady	Early	southern red trillium	Trillium sulcatum	low	red
Shady	Early	Dutchman's britches	Dicentra cucullaria	low	white
Shady	Early	toad trillium	Trillium sessile	low	red
Shady	Early	wake robin	Trillium erectum	low	red
Shady	Early	nodding wake robin	Trillium flexipes	low	white
Shady	Early	long-spurred violet	Viola rostrata	low	blue
Shady	Early	sweet wake robin	Trillium vaseyi	low	red
Shady	Early	bishop's cap, miterwort	Mitella diphylla	low	tiny white, on long spike
Shady	Early	jack in the pulpit	Arisema stewardsonii	low	distinctive, yellow-green	smaller than other two
Shady	Early	large flowered bellwort	Uvularia grandiflora	low	yellow	pendant below leaves
Shady	Early	fernleaf phacelia	Phacelia bipinnatafida	low to mid level	blue	Biennial
Shady	Early	dwarf crested iris	Iris cristata	low	blue
Shady	Early	painted trillium	Trillium undulatum	low	white, red highlights
Shady	Early	creeping phlox	Phlox stolonifera	mid level	pink
Shady	Early	bleeding heart	Dicentra eximia	mid level	red and white
Shady	Early/mid summer	fire pink	Silene virginica	mid level	red
Shady	Early/mid summer	coral bells	Heuchera americana	low to mid level	white, red tinge
Shady	Early/mid summer	false Solomon's seal	Maianthemum racemosa	mid level	white, on plume-like spike
Shady	Early/mid summer	pink lady's slipper	Cypripedium acaule	low	pink	orchid
Shady	Early/mid summer	golden ragwort	Packera aurea	mid level	yellow
Shady	Early/mid summer	wild blue phlox	Phlox divaricata	mid level	pale blue
Shady	Early/mid/late	green and gold	Chrysogonum virginianum	low/mid	yellow
Shady	Mid summer	Indian pink	Spigelia marylandica	mid level	red, yellow interior
shady	Mid summer	great Solomon's seal	Polygonatum canaliculatum	mid level	white, under long leaf stems
Shady	Mid summer	merrybells	Uvularia sessilifolia	low	yellow, pendant
Shady	Mid summer	great twayblade	Liparis lilifolia	low	lavender, discrete	orchid
shady	Mid summer	black cohosh	Actea racemosa	tall	white, small on large spikes
Shady	Mid/late summer	downy rattlesnake plantain	Goodyera pubescens	low	white, on stalk	orchid, levergreen leaves are attractive
Shady	Late summer	Short's aster	Symphiotrichium shortii	mid level	white to pale blue, dense blooms
Shady	Late summer	wreath goldenrod	Solidago caesia	low/mid level	yellow, along stem	rather diferent from more familiar goldenrods
Shady	Late summer	blue wood aster	Symphyotrichum cordifolium	mid level	white, light blue; profuse
Shady	Late summer	bigleaf aster	Eurybia macrophylla	mid level	white, sparse clusters
Sunny/shady	Early	columbine	Aquilegia canadensis	mid level	red with yellow center
Sunny/Shady	Early	bluets	Houstonia caerulea	low	blue	ground cover
Sunny	Early	sundrops	Oenothera fructosa	mid level	yellow
Sunny	Early	trumpet honeysuckle	Lonicera sempervirens	climbing vine	red	humming birds
Sunny	Early	foxglove beardtongue	Penstemon digitalis	mid level	white
Sunny	Early	eastern redbud	Cercis canadensis	small tree	red/pink
Sunny	Early	pussy toes	Antennaria virginica	low	white
Sunny	Early	moss phlox	Phlox subulata	low	variable	ground cover
Sunny	Early	sweet woodruff	Gallium odoratum	low	white
Sunny	Early/mid summer	ninebark	Physocarpus opulifolius	mid level woody shrub	white in showy balls
Sunny	Early/mid summer	santolina	Santolina chamaecyparissus	low	yellow
Sunny	Early/mid summer	threadleaf coreopsis	Coreopsis verticillata	low	yellow
Sunny	Early/mid summer	leatherflower	Clematis viorna	climbing vine	pink, bell-shaped
Sunny	Early/mid summer	catmint	Napeeta x faasseni	low	blue	European hybrid, ground cover
Sunny	Early/mid summer	sundrops	Oenothera tetragona	low	yellow
sunny	Mid summer	gray-headed coneflower	Ratabida pinnata	mid level	yellow
Sunny	Mid summer	Ozark sundrops	Oenothera missouriensis	low	yellow
Sunny	Mid summer	stiff coreopsis	Coreopsis palmata	mid level	yellow
Sunny	Mid summer	hairy beardtongue	Penstemon hirsutis pygmaeus	mid level	white
Sunny	Mid summer	ox-eye sunflower	Heliopsis scabra	tall	yellow
Sunny	Mid summer	self-heal, all-heal	Prunella vulgaris	low	blue	European, medicinal, edible
Sunny	Mid summer	nasturtium	Tropaeolum majus	low	yellow, orange, red	South American, edible
Sunny	Mid summer	goldenrod	Solidago canadensis	tall	yellow	does not cause alergies
Sunny	Mid summer	scarlet beebalm	Monarda didyma	mid level	red	humming birds
Sunny	Mid summer	common milkweed	Asclepias syriaca	mid level	pink, large spherical heads	monarch butterflies
Sunny	Mid summer	Joe-Pye weed	Eutrochium sp.	tall	pink	likes moist soil
Sunny	Mid summer	fall phlox	Phlox paniculata	mid level	pink
Sunny	Mid summer	purple coneflower	Echinacea purpurea	mid level	pink/purple
Sunny	Mid summer	orange coneflower	Rudbeckia fulgida	mid level	yellow rays, brown center
Sunny	Mid summer	wild bergamot	Monarda fistulosa	mid level	pink/lavender
Sunny	Mid summer	prairie coneflower	Ratibia pinnata	mid level	yellow rays, brown center
Sunny	Mid summer	great blue lobelia	Lobelia syphilitica	mid level	blue, on spikes	likes moist soil
Sunny	Mid summer	smooth phlox	Phlox glaberrima	mid level	pink
Sunny	Mid summer	wild senna	Senna hebecarpa	woody, mid level	yellow
Sunny	Mid summer	dogbane	Apocynum cannabinum	midlevel	white
Sunny	Mid summer	pearly everlasting	Anaphalis margaritacea	mid level	yellow
Sunny	Mid summer	prairie blazing star	Liatris pycnostachya	mid level	pink, small on tall spike
Sunny	Mid/late summer	blazing star	Liatris spicata	tall	purple to white, large spikes
sunny	Late summer	heath aster	Aster ericoides	mid level	white with gold center	ground cover
Sunny	Late summer	calico aster	Symphyotrichum lateriflorum	mid level	pink/white/yellow
Sunny	Late summer	showy stonecrop	Hylotelephium spectabile	short	pale pink	Asian, succulent
Sunny	Late summer	Ohio goldenrod	Oligoneuron ohioense	tall	yellow
Sunny	Late summer	New England aster	Symphyotrichum novae-angliae	mid level	pink/lavender/purple, profuse
Sunny	Late summer	clustered mountain mint	Pycnanthemum muticum	mid level	small white	pollinator favorite, also good as tea
Sunny	Late summer	false sunflower	Heliopsis helianthoides	tall	yellow
Sunny	Late summer	blue mistflower	Conoclinium coelestinum	mid level	blue/purple
Sunny	Late summer	brown-eyed susan	Rudbeckia triloba	mid level	yellow rays, brown center
Sunny	Late summer	ironweed	Vernonia noveboracensis	tall	purple
Sunny	Late summer	Canada goldenron	Solidago canadensis	mid level	yellow	can be aggressive
Pond	Early	golden club	Orontium aquaticum	short stature	yellow wands	true aquatic, grows in water
Pond	mid summer	pickerel weed	Pontederia cordata	mid level	blue	true aquatic, grows in water

Native Wildflower Gardens

John Wenzel, Ph.D.

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