NATIVES
“I have spent quite a bit of time trying to understand and glean good, solid information on the current HOT subject of Native plants. I must admit to being more than a little terrified about getting even some part of the quite lively (putting it mildly) discussion wrong.
Here are brief definitions of the plants scientific nomenclature:
Aronia-melanocarpa-Viking• A “Native” plant was here when the Pilgrims arrived and is indigenous to a specific region. The plants I list may come from a different part of the country but grow well in Maine also. I will try to include their origin.
• A “Cultivar” is a cultivated (either natural or man-made) variety which exhibits clearly distinct and stable characteristics. A “Sport” is a mutation which occurs on part of a plant. (Ex. A branch with Blue leaves on a Greenleaved shrub)
• A “Selection” Is a plant that is selected for it’s unique, and or improved, characteristics from the species.
• A “Variety” is a confusing category and used instead of Cultivar in many listings. You try to figure this one out.
I am including quotes from two very learned writers and knowledgeable plantsmen to finish this up and try to end with some common sense opinions.
From Entomologist Douglas Tallamy, “Bringing Nature Home” How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife In Our Gardens”
“For the past century we have created our gardens with one thing in mind: aesthetics. We have selected plants for landscaping based only on their beauty and fit within our artistic designs. Yet if we designed our buildings the way we design our gardens, with only aesthetics in mind, they would fall down. Just as buildings need support structures— girders, I-beams, and headers—to hold the graceful arches and beautiful lines of fine architecture in place, our gardens need native plants to support a diverse and balanced food web essential to all sustainable ecosystems.
To me the choice is clear. The costs of increasing the percentage and biomass of natives in our suburbanland- scapes are small, and the benefits are immense. Increasing the percentage of natives in suburbia is a grassroots solu- tion to the extinction crisis. To succeed, we do not need to invoke governmental action; we do not need to purchase large tracts of pristine habitat that no lo
nger exist; we do not need to limit ourselves to sending money to national and international conservation organizations and hoping it will be used productively. Our success is up to each one of us individually. We can each make a measurable difference almost immediately by planting a native nearby. As gardeners and stewards of our land, we have never been so empowered—and the ecological stakes have never been so high.”
And from Allen Armitage, ” Armitage’s Native Plants For North American Gardens”
“This book is not written for extreme native plant enthusiasts but for those who enjoy utilizing natives and native cultivars in their gardens, perhaps along with exotics. Like many gardeners, I am simply not capable of limiting myself to one or the other exclusively. Our gardens are richer for the assimilation and diversity. Let’s share a cup of tea or a glass of wine and enjoy our national treasures, not argue over them.”
~ Carol Yee
Arctostaphylos uva ursi ‘Kinnikinnick‘
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi “Kinnikinnick’ (US Native Bearberry) 8” x 48” Zone 2 Quickly spreading evergreen groundcover • Pinkish June bell flowers for bees • tiny red fruit drupes • Saw on “Nature” Grizzlies eating these in Alaska!
Aronia arbutifolia
Aronia arbutifolia ‘Brilliantissima’ ( EUS Native Red Chokeberry) 7’ x 4’ Zone 4 Light pink flow- ers • abundant red fruit • vivid red Fall foliage is better than Burning Bush! bees/butterflies/birds
Azalea viscosum (Swamp Azalea)
Azalea viscosum (EUS Native Deciduous Azalea Cultivars) Lemon Drop’ • ‘Pink and Sweet’ • ‘Ribbon Candy’ • R. viscousum • 5’ x 6’ Zone 4 All fragrant • All red Fall • All pollinators • Bees/ Butterflies/
Ilex verticillata ‘Red Sprite’
Ilex verticilata ‘Red Sprite’ (EA Native Dwarf Winterberry) 40” x 40” Zone 3 Profuse red berries through Winter until the Robbins come back with big gullets! Male pollinators usually abound. bees/birds
Itea virginica ‘Little Henry’
Itea virginica ‘Little Henry’ (NA Native Sweetspire) 30″ x 30” Zone 5 Dwarf version with same fra- grant white fragrant drooping racemes • sun/shade • dry/moist • red/orange Fall • bees/butterflies
Oxydendrum arboreum (Sourwood)
Oxydendrum arboreum (SEA Native Sourwood) 25’ x 15’ Zone 5 Fragrant Summer white drooping ra- cemes • red Fall color • Needs moist soil • bees make Sourwood honey
Pachysandra procumbens
Pachysandra procumbens (EUS Native Allegheny Spurge) 8” x 18” Zone 4 Fragrant pinkish small bottle- brush upright flowers hidden by beautiful leaves with subtle tan variegation • NOTHING to do with the inva-sive pachysandra you’re trying to dig out • early pollinators
Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Coppertina’
Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Coppertina’ (Selection of Native US Ninebark) 7’ x 7’ • ’Summer Wine’ 5’ x 5’ • ’Little Devil’ 3’ x 3’ • ‘Tiny Wine’ 3’ x 3’ All are intraspecies natural Ninebark cultivars • soft pink June flow- ers and a variety of leaf colors, swarms of bees and butterflies
Pinus strobus ‘Torulosa’
Pinus strobus ‘Torulosa’ (Eastern White Pine Native Sport) 40’ x 40’ Zone 3 Curled, twisted blue needles form a fuller, fast growing tree.
Amelanchier Alnifolia – Juneberry
Amelanchier x grandiflorum ‘Autumn Brilliance’ (NA Intraspecies Cultivar of Native Shadbush, Juneberry) 15’ x 15’ Zone 4 Showy, fragrant early Spring flowers turn to edible berries • brilliant Fall color • early pollinators/birds
Aronia Melanocarpa ‘Viking’
Aronia melanocarpa ‘Viking’ (EUS Native Selection of Chokeberry) 5’ x 4’ Zone 3 Large glossy berries are highest fruit in antioxidants • self pollinating • bright red Fall • bees /butterflies/birds/ humans
Rhus typhina ‘Tiger Eyes‘
Rhus typhina ‘Tiger Eyes’ (Natural Cultivar of NA Staghorn Sumac) 6’ x 6’ Zone 4 Delicate, deeply dis- sected yellow foliage • pink stems • dwarf Sumac • limited suckering • Pure gold in Fall • Unique Asian Winter profile
Aesclepias Incarnata
Aesclepias incarnata (NUS Species Native Swamp Milkweed) 4’ x 2’ Zone 3 Fragrant, showy pink to mauve flower panicles • average to wet soils • butterflies/bees • food source for larval Monarchs
Asclepias Tuberosa `Gay Butterflies‘
24″ x 20″ – Zone 3 – Aromatic Aug. flowers attract bees/butterflies. No deer.
Rubus x stellarticus (Native Arctic Raspberry)
Rubus x stellarticus (Native Arctic Raspberry) 5” x spreading Zone 1 • Tiny early Spring pink flowers provide first nectar for pollinators/bees • tiny red fruit for tiny animals of all kinds • A great indestructible ground cover
Azalea periclymenoides
(Pinxterbloom, nudifloum) 5 x 6′ – Zone 4 – Native Showy pink to white to lav, fragrant funnel June flowers attract Hummers, butterflies.
Cephalanthus Occidentalis `Sugar Shack`
Cephalanthus occidentalis ‘Sugar Shack’ (EUS Native Buttonbush) 7’ x 6’ Zone 5 Likes damp/ wet feet • sun/part shade • fragrant sputnik-like June flowers. • bees/butterflies
Sisyrinchium angustifolium ‘Lucerne’
Sisyrinchium ‘Lucerne’ (US Native “Blue Eyed Grass) 8” x 12” Zone 5 Sweet little blue flowers/yellow eye June/Summer bloom • actually in Iris family • moist • bees/butterflies
Comptonia Peregrina Sweetfern
Comtonia peregrina (EUS Native Sweet Fern) 3’ x 6’ Zone 2 Aromatic fernlike leaves • fast spreading ground cover for poor soils, steep slopes and dry or wet areas • indestructible habit.
Fothergilla major ‘Blue Shadow’
Fothergilla major ‘Blue Shadow’ (Native Bottlebrush Sport) 6’ x 5’ Zone 4 Leaves emerge green and slowly turn blue • All Fothergilla have white bottlebrush flowers and bright red/orange Fall col- or • all pollinators
See Also: Fothergilla x intermedia ‘Mt. Airy’ (Natural US Cultivar of Bottlebrush) 4’ x 4’ Zone 5 Fragrant white brushlike panicles cover plant • orange/red/yellow Fall • pollinators love it!
Gaylussacia baccata
Gaylussacia baccata (EUS Native Black Huckleberry) 2’ x 3’ Zone 3 Bell shaped June flowers are great nectar source for native bees and butterflies • August berries for birds • Thickets great for nesting.
Viburnum Native Cultivars
Viburnum (EUS Native Natural Cultivars) • V. nudum ‘Brandywine’ (Witherrod) 7’ x 7’ • V. dentatum ‘Blue Muffin’ (Arrowwood ) 6’ x 5’ • V. diliatatum ‘Cardinal Candy’ 6’ x 4’ • All are Zone 5 or less • profuse white blooms • blue/red/pink berries • all pollinators/birds
Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’
Zone 3
Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’ (EA)
3’ x 4’ July-Sept. Huge white flower panicles all Summer.• Drought intolerant • bees/butterflies
Wisteria frutescens ‘Amethyst Falls’
Wisteria frutescens ‘Amethyst Falls’ (SEUS Native Selection) Vine Zone 5 Blooms at very young age and KEY WORD is BLOOMS! • All summer! • No need to wait 20 years! • fragrant grape like clusters • All pol- linators
Pinus strobus Witches’ Brooms
Dr. Sidney Waxman Pinus Strobus Witches’ Brooms. Grown from seed from mutated clusters found on White Pines. The story goes that Sid would shoot a 22 at the “brooms” until cones would fall to the ground. This saved him from climbing the tree but the rest of the story is that he sent his wife crawling around under the boughs to collect the tiny prizes! Sid spent his life teaching at UCONN and developing many different plants such as Rhododendron ‘Cornell Pink’. He developed a Maple Broom (mine is over 45 years old and is 30″ tall!) and many dwarf forms of conifers and Sciadopytis selections.
Kalmia latifolia ‘Tinkerbell’ (Jaynes) Mountain Laurel
Kalmia latifolia (NEUS Native Mountain Laurel varieties) ‘Tinkerbelle’ 3’ x 3’ Zone 5• June/July • unique pink/banded cup flow- ers from red buds • evergreen • bees/butterflies
Kalmia latifolia ‘Keepsake’
8 x 8′ – Zone 4 – This laurel has flowers of rose to white with purple marks Likes part shade, rich, moist soil. DR. sd
Kalmia latifolia ‘Little Linda’
Kalmia latifolia (NEUS Native Mountain Laurel varieties) ‘Little Linda’ (Cary Award) 5’ x 5’ Zone 5 •
Kalmia latifolia ‘Carousel’
4 x 4′ – Zone 5 – Lavender buds open to white flower edged with cinnamon band/June. Shade, moist, humus soil. DR.
Myrica pensylvanica ‘Bobee’
6 x 6′ – Zone 3 – Bayberry grows in any soil, tolerates heat/drought/salt/deer. Fragrant leaves/berries. Songbirds love the fruit. Click image for enlargement.
Paxistima Canbyi
8-12″ – Zone 3 – Dense/spreading/sun/shade. Grows in rocky but moist soil. Texture. Click image for enlargement.
Vaccinium angustifolium ‘Brunswick’
Vaccinium angustifolium ‘Brunswick’ shown (EUS Native Lowbush Blueberry) 10” x 30” Zone 2 Pink clusters of fragrant bell flowers in June make Summer berries • nesting sites • all pollinators • larval food for butter- flies • red stems/leaves Fall
Vaccinium angustifolium ‘Burgundy’ (EUS Native Lowbush Blueberry)
10” x spreading Zone 2 Same as above except Fall foliage is orange/burgundy
Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Patriot’
Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Patriot’ (EUS Native Highbush Blueberry) 5’ x 5’ Zone 5 Moist areas • White May flowers • Berries mid Summer • Brilliant red Fall color beats Burn. Bush and you get berries too! • pol- linators/bird/humans
Vaccinium macrocarpon ‘Pilgrim’
Vaccinium macrocarpum ‘Pilgrim’ (EUS Native Cranberry) 8”x 20” Zone 4 Tiny pink May flowers attract bees, butterflies and nectar seeking insects.• Likes moist but not wet • great ground cover • self pollinating
Rhododendron maximum (Native Rosebay)
Rhododendron maximum (EUS Native Rosebay Rhododendron) 10’ x 8’ Zone 3 Rose/pink/white July bloom • Can grow 12”/year • Shade/sun in Maine • Moist soil • Bees/ButterfliesPrunus maritima
Prunus marítima (EUS Native Beach Plum) 6’ x 6’ Zone 3 Abundant white flowers turn into edible fruit. Brilliant red Fall show. Pull up that Burning Bush! Birds, BF, bees and humans
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Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Tiny Wine’
Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Tiny Wine’ (Selection of Native US Ninebark) 3’ x 3’ Zone 3 Burgundy leaves • late Spring small rosy flowers • colorful dark purple leaves • dwarf shrub • all kinds of pollinators
Monarda didyma ‘Pardon My Cerise’
Monarda didyma ‘Pardon My Cerise’ • ‘Grape Gumball’ (EUS Native cultivars of Bee Balm) 10” x 10” Zone 4 Midsummer/Fall red and purple fragrant flowers • moist to wet soil • butterflies/Hummers/bees adore!
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Kalmia angustifolia (Native Sheep/Bog Laurel)
Kalmia angustifolia (NEUS Native Sheep/Bog/Lambkill Laurel) 24” x 30” Zone 3 Bluegreen narrow leaves • deep rose/red small cup flowers late June • poisonous plant • but you don’t have to eat it • bees
Juniperus horizontalis ‘Bar Harbor’
Juniperus horizontalis ‘Bar Harbor’ (Native Creeping Juniper) 1’ x 5’ Z 3 Tough groundcover Conifer grows quickly in dry, shallow, rocky, windy and steep sites. Green/blue/purple • Habitat
Itea virginica ‘Henrys Garnet’
Itea virginica ‘Henry’s Garnet’ (SEA Native Sweetspire) 3’ x 5’ Zone 5 Fragrant late Spring flowers and scarlet Fall foliage • dry/boggy • replace Burn. Bush • bees/butterflies
Hamamelis virginiana Harvest Moon
Hamamelis virginiana ‘Harvest Moon’ (EA) 14’ x 14’ Zone 4 Oct.yellow flowers actually visible on this selection as leaves have fallen. Late source of food for bees etc.
Hamamelis vernalis (Ozark Native Witchhazel)
Hamamelis vernalis (Ozark Native Witchhazel) 6’ x 8’ Zone 4 Yellow spiderlike flowers early March/Spring • moist soil • Gold Fall foliage • early bees
Gautheria procumbens ‘Berries Cascade’
Gautheria procumbens ‘Berries Cascade’ (EUS Native Wintergreen) 6’ x 10” Zone 4 White bells make red berries by Fall • butterflies/birds
Epilobium (Zauschneria)
Epilobium (Zauschneria) (WUS Native “California Fuchia”) 5” x 36” Zone 5 Perennial ground cover IDed for me as “California Hummingbird Plant” • July—Oct. orange tubular flowers cover plant as do Hummingbirds!
Calycanthus floridus ‘Athens’
Calycanthus floridus ‘Athens’ (SE Native interspecies Hybrid) 6’ x 6’ Zone 4 Long glossy leaves on this Carolina Allspice/Sweetshrub • fragrant yellow long lasting flowers through Summer • bees/ butterflies
Betula nigra ‘City Slicker’
Betula nigra ‘City Slicker’ (US Natural Sport of River Birch) 30’ x 20’ Zone 5 Creamy white exfoliating bark • drought/heat tolerant • prefers moist soil • bees/pollinators
Comptonia peregrina
Comtonia peregrina (EUS Native Sweet Fern) 3’ x 6’ Zone 2 Aromatic fernlike leaves • fast spreading ground cover for poor soils, steep slopes and dry or wet areas • indestructible habitat
Clethra alnifolia ‘Sugartina’
Clethra alnifolia ‘Sugartina’ (EUS Native Summersweet Selection) 2’ x 3’ Z 4 Showy white, fragrant panicles all Summer on small version that loves wet feet. • Butterflies/ bees
viburnum Native Cultivars
Viburnum (EUS Native Natural Cultivars) • V. nudum ‘Brandywine’ (Witherrod) 7’ x 7’ • V. dentatum ‘Blue Muffin’ (Arrowwood ) 6’ x 5’ • V. diliatatum ‘Cardinal Candy’ 6’ x 4’ • All are Zone 5 or less • profuse white blooms • blue/red/pink berries • all pollinators/
Some native pests to keeep an eye out for!
Odocoileus virginianus (White Tail Deer)
While this majestic animal may look lovely in the winter landscape, it can devastate your plantings. For tips on how to deter deer from your garden, or plants that deer most often dislike, check with your local Extension Service.
Microtus pennsylvanicus (Meadow Vole)
The meadow vole is a favorite of our local Maine predators and house cats. In some winters it can do horrendous damage to trees and shrubs, particularly in years of deep snow, such as 2014-15. Some people use hot pepper dusting or spray and castor oil to deter them.