Native plants for the Northeast: a regional guide to trees, shrubs, perennials, and grasses

At a glance

What counts as native in the Northeast

A native plant is a species that evolved in a region before European settlement and developed relationships with the local insects, birds, and soil life. Those relationships are the point: per Penn State Extension, research shows just 5% of a region's native plants host 70–75% of its butterfly and moth species, and those caterpillars feed birds, bats and other wildlife.

For this guide, the Northeast means New England plus New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. It spans roughly USDA zone 3 in northern Maine and Vermont to zone 7 along the southern coast. Within that range, nativity varies by state, so for state-specific lists see the site's guides to native plants for New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and New York.

Native to North America is not the same as native here. Check the USDA PLANTS Database, which lists whether a species is native or introduced in each state. Common mix-ups:

• Tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) is native from Mexico to tropical America, per NC State Extension. Use swamp milkweed, butterflyweed, or common milkweed instead.
• Butterfly bush (Buddleja davidii) is from Tibet and China, and NC State Extension flags it as weedy.
• Wildflower seed mixes often include non-native species; read the species list before buying.
• Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is native to the central and eastern U.S., per NC State Extension, but whether it is native in your particular Northeast state varies; check USDA PLANTS.
• Bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora, native to Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Florida) and American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana, central and southeastern U.S.) are southern natives often sold in northeastern nurseries.

Cultivars ("nativars"). Selections of native species vary in how closely they match the straight species. When in doubt, choose the straight species. The site's native species vs. nativars article covers the research.

Keystone trees: the highest-value layer

Per Penn State Extension, keystone plants are the small share of native plants that provide the most habitat value; keystone designations are made by ecoregion, because these relationships shift across the continent. Penn State's list for Pennsylvania, which applies to much of the Northeast, is:

Even one native oak adds a great deal of wildlife value to a suburban yard. The site's oak tree care guide covers species selection and planting.

If a large tree will not fit, serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis) is a good small-scale choice. Per NC State Extension, this eastern North American native grows 15–25 feet, is hardy in zones 3–8, blooms with fragrant flowers before the leaves emerge, bears purple fruit that attracts wildlife, and turns red and orange in fall.

Native shrubs for the understory

Zones and sizes below are from NC State Extension's Plant Toolbox.

• Spicebush (Lindera benzoin), zones 5–9, usually 6–12 ft. Greenish-yellow flowers open in early spring before the leaves; female plants (a male is needed nearby) bear bright red fruit that birds eat, and butterfly larvae feed on the leaves. It prefers moist, well-drained soil in part shade.
• Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis), zones 5–9, usually up to 12 ft. Grows in standing water up to 3 feet deep, needs consistently moist to wet soil, and has exceptional wildlife value; fragrant white pincushion flowers appear June to September. Flowering is poor in shade or dry soil.
• Arrowwood viburnum (Viburnum dentatum), zones 2–8, 5–10 ft. Resists deer and tolerates black walnut. Doublefile viburnum (V. plicatum) is from China, Japan and Taiwan, so specify native species when ordering.
• Chokeberry (Aronia arbutifolia, zones 3–9; A. melanocarpa, zones 3–8). Eastern natives with spring flowers that tolerate wet soil; black chokeberry also tolerates drought.
• Inkberry (Ilex glabra), zones 4–11, 5–10 ft. An evergreen holly native to the eastern coastal plain that tolerates moist, even occasionally wet soil and salt; male and female plants are both needed for the black berries birds eat.
• Meadowsweet and steeplebush (Spiraea alba, S. tomentosa). Native spireas with white or pink summer flowers; NC State lists both as deer-resistant, and meadowsweet tolerates wet soil.

For a wildlife-focused shrub list across seasons, see best native shrubs for wildlife.

Native perennials for sun

Plan for bloom from spring to fall so pollinators always have food. In rough bloom order (zones and heights from NC State Extension):

• Golden alexanders (Zizia aurea), zones 3–8, 1–2 ft, spring to early summer. A carefree plant for wet to dry soils and a larval host for the black swallowtail.
• Wild blue lupine (Lupinus perennis), zones 3–8, spring to early summer. Fixes nitrogen and tolerates poor, sandy, acidic soil; it can be short-lived and may die down in summer heat.
• Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), zones 3–8, 2–4 ft, summer. An eastern native that resists deer and drought. Iowa State University Extension notes many short-lived perennials persist by reseeding.
• Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa), zones 3–9, 1–2 ft, summer. Orange-flowered milkweed for dry to average soil; resists deer and drought.
• Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), zones 3–9, up to 5 ft, summer. A monarch caterpillar food plant for wet sites that adapts to moist clay or loam; deer-resistant. More in the site's milkweed care guide.
• Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), zones 3–9, 2–4 ft, summer. Best in full sun and moderately moist soil; tolerates occasional drought, though water-stressed plants get more mildew. Native bees nest in its hollow stems.
• Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum), zones 4–9, 5–7 ft, summer to early fall. Vanilla-scented flower domes draw butterflies and bees; a back-of-border plant for sun to part shade that tolerates wet soil.
• Goldenrod (Solidago rugosa, S. caesia, and others), zones 4–8, late summer to fall. Per NC State Extension, rough-leaf goldenrod draws butterflies and native bees in September. Per University of Illinois Extension, goldenrod does not cause hay fever: it is insect-pollinated and its pollen is too heavy to travel on the wind, while wind-pollinated ragweed is the culprit.
• New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae), zones 4–8, 3–6 ft, late summer to fall. Per NC State Extension, the flowers attract late-summer bees and butterflies; grow it in full sun in moist, fertile soil, including clay loam, and pinch the stems in spring for a bushier plant.

Native perennials and groundcovers for shade

• Wild columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), zones 3–8, spring. Per NC State Extension, the red-and-yellow tubular flowers attract hummingbirds, butterflies and bumble bees; it prefers part shade, freely self-seeds, and resists deer.
• Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica), zones 3–9, March–May. A spring wildflower that goes dormant by midsummer; interplant with ferns to fill the gap. Moist, nutrient-rich soil.
• Wild geranium (Geranium maculatum), zones 3–10, mid to late spring. Per NC State Extension, it prefers light shade and moist to slightly dry, rich soil, naturalizes in good conditions, and resists deer and rabbits.
• Wild ginger (Asarum canadense), zones 4–6, 6–12 in. A groundcover for heavy shade in moist soil.
• Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides), zones 3–9. An evergreen fern for part to full shade; resists deer and rabbits.
• Pennsylvania sedge (Carex pensylvanica), zones 3–8, up to 8 in. Per NC State Extension, an ideal turf alternative in dry shade, needing mowing only once or twice a season, though it won't take heavy foot traffic.

Native grasses and sedges

• Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), zones 5–9, 3–7 ft. Per NC State Extension, a North American native for moist clay or sandy soils that resists drought, erosion and occasional flooding; leave the seed heads as winter food for birds.
• Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), zones 3–9, 2–4 ft. An eastern North American native bunchgrass that NC State rates as resistant to deer, drought, dry soil and heat.
• Pennsylvania sedge (Carex pensylvanica). The dry-shade groundcover above.

Northeast native plant chart by site

Zones, heights and sites are from NC State Extension's Plant Toolbox; caterpillar counts are Penn State Extension's figures for Pennsylvania.

Preparing the site

Go easy on amendments. Many northeastern natives grow naturally in average to lean soils; wild lupine, for example, fixes its own nitrogen and tolerates poor soil. Match plants to the soil you have and skip routine fertilizer.

Clay. Working in compost improves structure enough for establishment; plants such as New England aster, swamp milkweed and switchgrass handle moist clay.

Sand. Choose dry-adapted natives such as butterflyweed, wild lupine, and little bluestem rather than moisture lovers that would need irrigation.

Replacing lawn without tilling (sheet mulching):

1. Mow the grass short.
2. Lay plain cardboard directly on the lawn, overlapping edges generously so no grass shows.
3. Soak the cardboard thoroughly.
4. Cover with several inches of wood chip mulch.
5. Wait for the grass and weeds underneath to die back, then plant through the mulch.

Avoiding tillage keeps buried weed seeds from being brought to the surface.

Where to buy true northeastern natives

Ask nurseries where their stock came from, and favor plants grown from local or regional seed sources.

• Specialty native nurseries. Specialty and mail-order native nurseries are usually more reliable sources of straight species than general garden centers.
• Native plant societies and sales. Regional groups such as Native Plant Trust and the Pennsylvania Native Plant Society, and spring sales at botanic gardens and land trusts, are good sources of local stock.
• Directories. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center's national organizations directory lists native plant societies and other groups by state, and the Xerces Society publishes a Northeast pollinator plant list.

Avoid big-box "native" sections where provenance is unknown, generic wildflower mixes, and plants dug from roadsides or wild areas, which damages wild populations and is illegal in many places.

Leave the stems: fall and winter care

Tidy fall cleanup works against native habitat. Per the Xerces Society, about 70 percent of native bees nest in the ground, and others nest in plant stalks and canes, so it advises leaving stems standing, not burying ground nests under thick mulch, and not cutting stems too early in spring. NC State Extension suggests cutting dead stems of plants such as wild bergamot and coneflower back to 12–24 inches and leaving them standing for stem-nesting bees, and leaving seed heads of switchgrass and black-eyed Susan as winter food for birds. The site's fall vs. spring cleanup guide gives timing by plant.

Common mistakes

Frequently asked

What are native plants?

Native plants are species that grew in a region before European settlement and evolved alongside its insects, birds, and soil life. That shared history is why they support far more wildlife than most imported ornamentals. Nativity is regional: a plant native to Texas is not native to Massachusetts.

Why are native plants important to the ecosystem?

Native insects, especially caterpillars, are adapted to feed on native plants, and those insects feed birds and other wildlife. Per Penn State Extension, just 5% of a region's native plants host 70–75% of its butterfly and moth species, and oaks alone support 436 caterpillar species in Pennsylvania.

What is the single best native plant for a Northeast yard?

A native oak, if you have room: per Penn State Extension, oaks support more caterpillar species (436 in Pennsylvania) and more wildlife than any other North American tree. Where a large tree will not fit, serviceberry, native cherries and plums, and birches are strong choices.

Where can I buy native plants in the Northeast?

Specialty native nurseries, native plant society sales, and spring plant sales at botanic gardens and land trusts are the most reliable sources of local straight species. Ask about provenance, and avoid plants dug from the wild.

Do native plants need less maintenance?

Natives suited to your site generally need less water and fertilizer once established, because they are adapted to regional climate and soils. Establishment takes the same care as any new planting.

Which common garden plants are not native to the Northeast?

Butterfly bush (Tibet and China), tropical milkweed (Mexico to tropical America), and doublefile viburnum (China, Japan and Taiwan) are not native. Bottlebrush buckeye and American beautyberry are U.S. natives from the South, and purple coneflower's native status varies by Northeast state.

What native plants grow in shade in the Northeast?

Wild geranium, wild ginger, Christmas fern, Pennsylvania sedge, Virginia bluebells, wild columbine, and spicebush all handle part to full shade. Pennsylvania sedge is an ideal turf alternative in dry shade, per NC State Extension.

Sources

1. Keystone Tree Species for Caterpillars, Penn State Extension
2. Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Lindera benzoin, NC State Extension
3. Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Asclepias incarnata, NC State Extension
4. Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Symphyotrichum novae-angliae, NC State Extension
5. Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Carex pensylvanica, NC State Extension
6. Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Amelanchier canadensis, NC State Extension
7. Autumn allergies: don't blame goldenrod, University of Illinois Extension
8. Pollinator-Friendly Native Plant Lists, Xerces Society
9. Put Down Those Pruners: Pollinators Need Your 'Garden Garbage!', Xerces Society
10. PLANTS Database, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
11. National Organizations Directory, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
12. Longevity of Perennials, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach

Read next