Natives are becoming more and more popular. And with the uncertainty of fluctuating weather patterns, using natives has become more important for all gardeners. Nonnative plants can be great in the landscape, as long as they are not proven to become invasive, which a lot of them are. But using regionally selected native plants for the landscape can improve pollinator and insect diversity, landscape lasting power, and improve landscape health.
Finding hardworking natives for your garden may sound like a daunting task, but that is why I am here. I have been working with and using native plants in my gardens since I was 8 years old. Besides using them, I also have been on the Board of Directors for the Kansas Native Plant Society (KNPS), and am a current member of KNPS and the Grassland Heritage Foundation. I love my natives!
Looking For Regionally Specific Natives
One of the most important things when searching for hardworking native plants is to look for regionally specific plants. What do I mean be regionally specific? This is an area roughly 150 miles in diameter from your location, or the location where you are planting. For example, it would be unwise for me to get plants from western Kansas, and plant in my partially wooded property, expecting them to thrive.
One way to help you select plants from your region, it to first make a list of the plants you are interested in. There are many resources online, and many extension offices have lists. Once you have a list, go to the map. Find a county map of your area and see what counties are listed in your 150 diameter. Then, you can go to bonap.org which is a list of America’s botany, native and nonnative, listed by Genus and species. I like to search for a specific Genus and see what species are in my counties. And then you can find which natives in your list are in your region.
Choosing Natives for Pollinators
I like to choose my natives for several attributes. But my favorite if for what insects eat both the plant (leaves) and utilize the flowers (pollen and nectar). These plants can be trees, shrubs, perennials, grasses, sedges, or annuals. A good all-around mixture of natives will help improve the pollinator and insect diversity of your landscape. The more native plants you can add the better it will be.
And what do I mean by hardworking natives? These are the native plants which are best suited for your region, bloom for a long period, are hosts for a variety of insects, and look great in the garden too. Many of our natives fit all the categories except for looking good in the garden. Then, I recommend using them in a Meadow Garden or wild area. But there are many native plants which do quite well mixed into the landscape and garden, either by themselves, massed, or mixed with other plantings.
The Best Hardworking Natives for the Central Great Plains Region
It would take days for me to find a list of the best natives for each region. But I can show you the list I use for the Central Great Plains Region. This is where I live and work, and it is not exactly 150 miles in diameter, but more of a strange looking square. It includes counties in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Nebraska, and has Zones 5 to 6a in it. Over the years, I have developed a list of the best natives for gardening in this area. It includes trees, shrubs, perennials, grasses, sedges, and annuals. And a few of the plants are not originally from this region, but have adapted well (annuals mainly).
This list includes the common name, Genus and species, some of the more well known insect it hosts, and common pollinators (if any).
Native Trees for My Region
- Bur Oak, Quercus macrocarpa – banded hairstreak, American dagger moth, Polyphemus moth, Waved sphinx moth, unicorn caterpillar, two-lined chestnut borer
- Dwarf Chinkapin oak, Quercus prinoides – white-headed prominent moth, variable oakleaf caterpillar, cecropia moth, white oak borer
- Shumard Oak, Quercus shumardii – Afflicted dagger moth, Acorn moth, spined oak borer, twig pruner
- Sugar maple, Acer saccharum – Retarded dagger moth, hard maple bud-miner moth, lesser maple spanworm moth
- River birch, Betula nigra – white-marked tussock moth, birch dagger moth, saddled prominent moth
- Hackberry, Celtis occidentalis – Hackberry tussock moth, American snout, hackberry emperor, mourning cloak, Question mark
- Black cherry, Prunus serotina – interrupted dagger moth, copper underwing, splendid dagger moth, ultronia underwing, eastern tiger swallowtail
- Black walnut, Juglans nigra – imperial moth, walnut caterpillar, walnut sphinx, small baileya moth
- Eastern cottonwood, Populus deltoides – Red spotted admiral, viceroy, willow leaftier moth
Shrubs for My Region
- Swamp dogwood, Cornus ammomum – Laurel sphinx moth, pale banded dart, spring and summer azure
- Eastern ninebark, Physocarpus opulifolius – copper underwing, blinded sphinx moth, yellow-shouldered slug moth
- False indigo, Amorpha fruticosa – silver spotted skipper, black-spotted prominent moth, amorpha borer – cuckoo bees, carpenter bees, masked bees
- Buttonbush, Cephalanthus occidentalis – buttonbush sphinx moth, Virginian tiger moth – various butterflies, bumblebees, hummingbirds
- American hazelnut, Corylus americana – luna moth, polyphemus moth, hazelnut dagger moth
- Bladdernut, Staphylea trifolia – honeybees, bumblebees, syrphid flies, giant bee fly
Perennial Natives for the Central Great Plains
- Aromatic aster, Symphyotrichum oblongifolium – silvery checkerspot, asteroid moth – various butterflies, bees, wasps, flower flies
- Rattlesnake master, Eryngium yuccafolium – rattlesnake borer moth – various butterflies, bees, wasps, bumblebees, flower flies
- Butterfly milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa – Monarch, unexpected cycnia, milkweed bugs – butterflies, honeybees, bumblebees, wasps, flower flies, beetles
- Purple milkweed, Asclepias purpurascens – Monarch – butterflies, bees, wasps, flower flies
- Swamp milkweed, Asclepias incarnata – Monarch – butterflies, bees, wasps, flower flies, beetles
- Prairie coreopsis, Coreopsis palmata – wavy-lined emerald moth, dimorphic gray moth – butterflies, bees, flower flies
- Purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea – pearl crescent, common pug moth – butterflies, bees, bumblebees, wasps, flower flies, beetles
- Common boneset, Eupatorium perfoliatum – Clymene moth, three-lined flower moth, blackberry looper – wasps, butterflies, bees, beetles, flower flies
- Prairie blazingstar, Liatris pyncnostachya – various butterflies, bees, bumblebees, wasps, flower flies
- Wild quinine, Parthenium integrifolium – wasps, flies, bees, bumblebees, beetles, butterflies
- Goldenrods, Solidago species – goldenrod gall moth, asteroid moth, goldenrod hooded owlet moth – butterflies, wasps, flower flies, bees
- Great blue lobelia, Lobelia silphilitica – pink washed looper moth – butterflies, bumblebees, long-tongued bees
- Blue false indigo, Baptisia australis – Genista broom moth, indigo stem borer, silver spotted skipper, wild indigo duskywing – bumblebees
- Slender mountain mint, Pycnanthemum tenufolium – bees, butterflies, wasps, beetles, flower flies, plant bugs
- Culver’s root, Veronicastrum virginicum – butterflies, bees, bumblebees, wasps
- Blue wood phlox, Phlox divaricata – Olive arches moth, spotted straw moth – bees, bee flies, butterflies
- Fremont’s clematis, Clematis fremontii – bumblebees
- Rose verbena, Glandularia canadensis – long-tongued bees, butterflies
This is a rather short list, I could go on for pages. But these are my favorites among the extensive lists of perennial natives for the garden.
Grasses and Sedges for My Region
- Switchgrass, Panicum virgatum – grass skippers, leafhoppers, leaf beetles, grasshoppers
- Little bluestem, Schizachyrium scoparium – grass skippers, leaf beetles, leafhoppers, grasshoppers
- Prairie dropseed, Sporobolus heterolepis – leafhoppers, grasshoppers
- Sideoats grama – Bouteloua curtipendula – grass skippers, leafhoppers, grasshoppers, stink bugs
- Blue grama, Bouteloua gracilis – grass skippers, grasshoppers, leafhoppers
- Bottlebrush, Elymus hystrix – leaf-mining moths, golden borer moth, leaf beetles, leafhoppers, aphids
- White-tinged sedge, Carex albicans – dun skipper, tufted sedge moth, grasshopper, leaf beetles
- Bottlebrush sedge, Carex hystericina – dun skipper, tufted sedge moth, grasshopper, leaf beetles
- Fox Sedge, Carex vulpinoidea – dun skipper, tufted sedge moth, grasshopper, leaf beetles
- Torrey’s Rush, Juncus torreyi – sedge borer moth, sawflies, leaf beetles
Annual Flowers for the Central Great Plains Region
- Leavenworth Eryngo, Eryngo leavenworthii – bees, butterflies, wasps, flower flies
- Bitter sneezeweed, Helenium amarum – butterflies, bees, flower flies, wasps, beetles
- Indian blanketflower, Gaillardia pulchella – bumblebees, bees, butterflies
- Jewelweed, Impatiens capensis – hummingbirds, long-tongued bees, honeybees
- White Prickly-poppy, Argemone polyanthemos – bees, beetles, butterflies, flower flies
- Bitterweed, Hymenoxys odorata – bees, butterflies, flower flies, beetles
- Clasping coneflower, Dracopis amplexicaulis – butterflies, bees
- Fetid marigold, Dyssodia papposa – bees, butterflies, beetles
- Plains coreopsis, Coreopsis tinctoria – bees, butterflies, flower flies
Gardening with Natives
Once you have found and selected the best natives for your region, what should you do next? Buy a bunch or plan the garden first? I would definitely plant first. While I and many other gardeners are impulse buyers, when planting natives you better be ready for them. The best way to plan is to look at your landscape and decide what the plan is. What style of landscape are you going to use? Most natives fit best into Meadows, Butterfly gardens, and wilder areas, though quite a few can be used in more formal plans. My natives are mixed between my Meadow Garden, Sunny Cottage Garden, Woodland Garden, and Medicinal Garden. If planted in the right spots, they will thrive.
If you have lots of open space (formerly or currently lawn) with at least 6 hours of full sun, then I recommend planting a large meadow garden or prairie. For those of you with large trees and dappled shade, plant a woodland garden. If you have a wet spot or live on the edge of a pond or wetland, plan to plant a bog or wetland garden. The options when using regional natives are almost endless. If you just want to have annuals, there are plenty of those to choose from too.
Conclusion
Natives are fast becoming some of the more popular plants in the landscape industry, especially as concerns over changing weather patterns becomes an issue. I love my natives and I am always looking to add more to my extensive garden spaces.
Happy planting!
I really enjoyed this article. there is so much information that I needed as I am planning my gardens. My hope is to have lovely gardens. 💖