When selecting plants for your yard and garden, why not go native?
Consider using plants that naturally grow in your region and are best suited for the soil and light conditions of your property. There are advantages to using native plants over ornamental and potentially invasive species. Native plants can require less maintenance and have the best chance of survival. Native plants often have an aesthetic fit to the site which is difficult to achieve with a collection of exotic plants. Using native species avoids spreading nuisance exotic plants such as purple loosestrife. There are many beautiful native plants from dogwoods to spiderwort. The following listing includes some of the more common native plants and their basic soil preferences. We encourage you to take this list with you to your local nursery as a guide. We have also included a few sources for these plants.
Native Trees
Wet Conditions
Green ash – Fraxinus pennsylvanica
Basswood – Tilia americana
Black willow – Salix nigra
Yellow birch – Betula alleghaniensis
Northern white cedar – Thuja occidentalis
Eastern hemlock – Tsuga canadensis
Red maple – Acer rubrum
Musclewood – Carpinus caroliniana
Tamarack – Larix laricina
Eastern cottonwood – Populus deltoides
Common elder – Sambucus canadensis
Upland Conditions
Trembling Aspen – Populus temuloides
White ash – Fraxinus americana
Beech – Fagus grandifolia
Black cherry – Prunus serotina
Ironwood Sugar maple – Acer saccharum
Bur oak – Quercus macrocarpa
Red oak – Quercus rubra
White oak – Quercus alba
Red pine – Pinus resinosa
Eastern Hemlock – Tsuga canadensis
Sugar maple – Acer saccharum
White birch – Betula papyrifera
White spruce – Picea glauca
American beech – Fagus grandifolia
Eastern white pine – Pinus strobus
Wildflowers
Short – Wet Conditions
(Three Feet and Under)
Canada anemone – Anemone canadensis
Great blue lobelia – Lobelia siphilitica
Marsh marigold – Caltha palustris
Blue flag iris – Iris versicolor
Jack-in-the-pulpit – Arisaema triphyllum
Turtlehead – Chelone glabra
Blue-eyed grass – Sisyrinchium angustifolium
Short – Upland Conditions
(Three Feet and Under)
Smooth aster – Aster laevis
Butterflyweed – Asclepias tuberosa
Black-eyed Susan – Rudbeckia hirta
Columbine – Aquilegia canadensis
Spiderwort – Tradescantia ohioensis
Lupine – Lupinus perennis
Bee balm – Monarda fistulosa
Foxglove beard-tongue – Penstemon digitalis
Tall – Wet Conditions
(Over Three Feet)
Swamp milkweed – Asclepias incarnata
Boneset – Eupatorium perfoliatum
Joe-Pye weed – Eupatorium maculatum
Cardinal flower – Lobelia cardinalis
Blue vervain – Verbena hastata
New England aster – Aster novae-angliae
Tall – Upland Conditions
(Over Three Feet)
Sunflowers (Perennial) – Helianthus spp.
False sunflower – Heliopsis helianthoides
Goldenrod – Solidago spp.
Grasses and Sedges
Short – Wet Conditions
(Four Feet and Under)
Fox sedge – Carex vulpinoidea
Cotton grass – Eriophorum angustifolium
Sweet Grass – Hierochloe odorata
Tussock sedge – Carex stricta
Short – Upland Conditions
(Four Feet and Under)
Little bluestem – Schizachyrium scoparius
Pennsylvania sedge – Carex pensylvanica
June grass – Koeleria macrantha
Bottlebrush grass – Elymus hystrix
Canada wild rye – Elymus Canadensis
Tall – Wet Conditions
(Over Four Feet)
Hardstem bulrush – Schoenoplectus acutus
Prairie cordgrass – Spartina pectinata
Wool grass – Scirpus cyperinus
Threesquare bulrush – Schoenoplectus americanus
Tall – Upland Conditions
(Over Four Feet)
Big bluestem – Andropogon gerardii
Switchgrass – Panicum virgatum
Indian grass – Sorghastrum nutans
Native Shrubs
Wet Conditions
Speckled alder – Alnus rugosa
Buttonbush – Cephalanthus occidentalis
Red-osier dogwood – Cornus stolonifera
Silky dogwood – Cornus amomum
Meadowsweet – Spiraea alba
Ninebark – Physocarpus opulifolius
Swamp rose – Rosa palustris
Highbush-cranberry – Viburnum trilobum
Michigan holly – Ilex verticillata
Nannyberry – Viburnum lentago
Upland Conditions
Maple leaf viburnum – Viburnum acerifolium
Chokecherry – Prunus virginiana
Gray dogwood – Cornus foemina
New Jersey tea – Ceanothus americanus
Serviceberry – Amelanchier arborea
Fragrant sumac – Rhus aromatica
Yew – Taxus canadensis
Ground juniper – Juniperus communis
Round-leaved dogwood – Cornus rugosa
Arrow-wood viburnum – Virburnum dentatum
Carolina rose – Rosa Carolina
Ground Covers
Bearberry – Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Canada mayflower – Maianthemum canadense
Bracken fern – Pteridium aquilinium
Bunchberry – Cornus canadensis
Large-leafed aster – Aster macrophyllus
Creeping wintergreen – Gaultheria procumbens
Wild ginger – Asarum canadense
Trout lily – Erythronium americanum
Canada anemone – Anemone canadensis
Foamflower – Tiarella cordifolia
Common Blue Violet – Viola sororia
Invasive Non-Native Species to Avoid
Autumn olive – Eleagnus umbellata
Barberry – Berberis spp.
Buckthorn – Rhamnus cathartica, Rhamnus frangula
Crown vetch – Coronilla varia
Honeysuckle – Lonicera tatarica, L. morrowi, L. x-bella, other cultivars
Maiden grass – Miscanthus sinensis
Multiflora rose – Rosa multiflora
Periwinkle (myrtle) – Vinca minor
Privet – Ligustrum vulgare
Purple loosestrife – ythrum salicaria
Reed canary grass – Phalaris arundinacea
Russian olive – Eleagnus angustifolia
Siberian Elm – Ulmus pumila
Spotted knapweed – Centaurea maculosa
Yellow water iris – Iris pseudacorus
Additional Resources
Native Plants of Michigan
A list of native plants to use for the following types of gardens:
- Native Plants for Shade Gardens
- Native Plants to Attract Butterflies
- Native Plants for Rock Gardens
- Native Plants for Water Gardens
- Native Plants for Front Yard Landscaping
Produced by: Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council
This colorful brochure lists several alternatives for each of the invasive species listed in this brochure, both native species and non-native species that currently show no sign of becoming invasive. A great companion for your next visit to the nursery.
Produced by: Midwest Invasive Plant Network
Native Plants – Video
This is video #3 in the “Protecting What You Love” video series produced by Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council. This video focuses on the benefits of using native plants in your waterfront landscaping.
Funding for this project provided by:
Charlevoix County Community Foundation
Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation
Crouse Entertainment Group
- Michigan State University – Native Plants and Ecosystem Services website
Antrim Conservation District (231) 533-8363 www.antrimcd.com Charlevoix Conservation District (231) 582-6193 https://www.charlevoixcounty.org/conservation_district/ Cheboygan Conservation District (231) 627-8815 http://msue.anr.msu.edu/county/info/cheboygan Emmet Conservation District (231) 439-8997 www.emmetcd.org The Native Plant Nursery (734) 677-3260 | Northern Michigan Native Plant Nursery (989) 732-4021 http://msue.anr.msu.edu/county/info/otsego The Michigan Wildflower Farm (517) 647-6010 www.michiganwildflowerfarm.com Wetland Nursery (989) 752-3492 Wildtype Nursery (517) 244-1140 www.wildtypeplants.com Black Cap Farm 231-398-5972 www.blackcapplants.com |
