Indiana Native Plant Finder

Fast-growing but short-lived tree in the maple family.

A medium-sized deciduous tree with red fall leaf color

Culturally-important species for several tribes of the Plains region.

A perennial with iris-like leaves that thrives in wet soil

A favorite for shady gardens, this spring-blooming species features white blooms and bright red berries.

A clumping deciduous fern with bright-green, fine-textured, foliage borne on airy, fan-shaped fronds with slender dark stems.

A small to medium-sized deciduous tree with large clusters of yellow flowers in early spring.

Late summer to fall bloomer with flower spikes that can be up to 16 inches long, supporting and attracting a wide variety of pollinators.

Tall, clump-forming species with beautiful pale purple flowers that bloom in late summer.

Fills the forest with delicate white blooms in late summer.

A small perennial with tiny bell-shaped pink flowers in nodding clusters

Prized for their onion-flavored edible bulbs.

A small deciduous shrub with spikes of purple flowers in early summer

A medium-sized deciduous shrub with spikes of purple flowers in early summer

Groups of delicate, star-like blue flowers provide a highlight in spring, while seedpods and foliage provide multi-season interest.

A tall perennial grass with lush summer foliage and attractive fall color that thrives in any soil.

A pioneer grass species and indicator of poor soil

Dainty white blossoms and showy serrated leaves almost make up for this plant’s domineering personality. Useful as a filler for large areas.

White late spring blooming flowers resemble cat’s feet.

This low-growing spring bloomer is the host of the American Painted Lady butterfly.

This low-growing spring bloomer is the host of the American Painted Lady butterfly.

A highlight in early spring, the striking, dangling red and yellow flowers are an important nectar source for returning hummingbirds

This sturdy, 4′ tall perennial has an arching leaf arrangement that elicits conversation. In partial shade it is known to self seed against ornamental limestone walls and produces fruits that attract cardinals and robins.

A spiny deciduous shrub with large clusters of white flowers in late summer

A woodland perennial featuring a single, deeply divided leaf and a unique greenish flower spike that tapers into a long, dragon-like tongue; related to Jack-in-the-Pulpit.

Produces red berries in summer, which are eaten by birds and mammals. The berries, foliage, and roots of this plant contain highly irritating substances and should not be touched or ingested.

A woody deciduous vine with heart-shaped leaves and pipe-shaped flowers

A small deciduous shrub with spring clusters of white flowers and red leaves in the fall.

A large perennial with dramatic plumes of white flowers in summer

A ground cover with heart-shaped leaves

This tall milkweed of open dry or rocky woodlands or savannas is only occasionally met with.

A tall perennial with showy pink fragrant flowers in clusters, it’s an important host plant for the monarch butterfly

A medium perennial with pink flowers in rounded clusters

A tall perennial with pink fragrant flowers in clusters

A medium perennial with orange flowers in clusters.

A medium perennial with small clusters of white flowers

Large shrub with purple flowers in spring and edible fruit (Indiana banana) in late summer

Dark blue-grey stems constrast with the white flowers on this ornamental perennial.

With blue-gray foliage, tall, white spike-like racemes and charcoal stems, wild white indigo stands out in the early summer landscape.

Deep blue spires of blooms make this long-lived legume a highlight in late spring

Blooming early in the spring, the cream colored blooms provide an important food source for queen bumblebees as they emerge from hibernation.

Big yellow daisies on erect stems lure bees to their abundant nectar and pollen.

Showstopper for Memorial Day on the patio

A beautifully compact, clump-forming mint that produces tightly stacked, tiered whorls of lavender-blue flowers.

This shade-loving perennial features tiered clusters of pale, purple-spotted white flowers that are attractive to native bees in woodland gardens.

Billowy clouds of dainty white daisy flowers decorate the late summer landscape.

Landscaping-friendly grass that is easily recognized by seedheads that hang to one side of the flowering stem.

A tall, lanky, shade-tolerant grass with drooping spikelets

A bluish, colonizing wetland grass resembling reed canary grass, but smaller and less coarse

Exceptionally drought tolerant, this sand-prairie perennial provides a mid-summer display of brilliant magenta blooms.

Golden blooms and shiny leaves hug swampy ground in spring.

Tall spires of blue-violet, star-shaped flowers in late summer and early autumn, excellent for woodland gardens.

Rapacious woody vine loved by hummingbirds and best suited to covering unsightly rock piles

One of the earliest spring ephemerals to bloom, with delicate white flowers and distinctive dissected leaves.

Good in sunny rain gardens, its mature inflorescences have a lovely golden color.

Likes open, sandy soils, as in railroad right-of-ways, old cemeteries, and stabilized dunes.

Tolerant of somewhat dry shade, this sedge has a curious bur-like inflorescence atop a one-foot stalk.

An ornamental wetland sedge that deserves a spot in a raingarden.

Clumps of this moisture-loving sedge spread slowly to form a groundcover.

Its fine leaves and distinctive seed heads can decorate a bioswale or pond margin.

Use as an accent plant or mass as a groundcover in a water garden or pond edge.

Puckered leaves wider than other sedges makes this a useful groundcover in the moist woodland.

Tufts of thin leaf blades make a lovely groundcover even in a in a formal garden setting.

A short-lived perennial of medium height, good for sunny rain gardens.

Attractive wetland’s edge plant.

Over time this species forms sizable clumps in the sunny rain garden, and the decay of old roots leaves channels that improve soil permeability.

Not as tall as but similar to C. annectens and easy to grow.

Distinctive foliage, unusual yellow flowers, and conspicuous seed pods make this wild senna an interesting feature for a landscape.

A compact drought tolerant shrub with oval clusters of small white flowers in summer.

A wetland shrub with fragrant spherical pin-cushion blossoms maturing into balls of reddish-brown nutlets

A small tree with rose pink to purple pea-like flowers in early spring followed by heart shaped leaves and bean pod fruits

Interesting seed heads and fall color give this ornamental, clump-forming grass four-season interest.

Dense spikes of white to light pink flowers attract worker bumblebees and hummingbirds; ideal for rain gardens and bioswales.

Beautiful pink summer bloomer that spreads slowly through rhizomes.

Fleshy lavender flowers adorn this climber or groundcover, but beware, it is highly toxic

The leaves are what distinguish this fall fluff of flowers from the invasive clematis

Glorious forest carpet from a self-seeding, colonizing bicolor annual

A haze of blue-violet blooms in the autumn landscape. Wonderful in shadier areas, but can be overly enthusiastic in full sun or smaller gardens.

A reliable repeat bloomer, providing a long season of bright yellow blossoms throughout the summer in sunny, drier conditions.

Tall, with bright yellow flowers in late summer and early autumn.

A medium tree/shrub with creamy fragrant spring flowers, followed by black berries. Colorful spring and fall

A good shrub for erosion control in wet areas. Creamy white flowers bloom in early summer, followed by blue drupes.

This dogwood species can form dense thickets, offering good cover for wildlife

Nothing says spring like this beautiful specimen tree popular in home landscapes and the understory of native forests.

A good shrub for a rain garden with white berries atop red twigs and attractive purplish red fall foliage

An understated, shade-loving woodland native with, three-parted foliage and loose, airy clusters of tiny white flowers.

A climbing milkweed whose fragrant flowers are a magnet for bees.

A haze of purple blooms above silver-green foliage in early summer; excellent for pollinators and ideal for drier sites.

A rapid spreader by rhizomes that naturalizes in woodlands and uncontrolled shade gardens to provide dense shelter for wildlife.

Tolerant of somewhat dry shade, in mesic, partially sunny sites it forms a fountain of shoots bearing elongated inflorescences.

A low-growing, suckering, non-invasive bush honeysuckle useful as a small hedge.

Male and female flowers yield bitter fruits that sweeten as they age

A true spring ephemeral with beautiful, distinctive nodding flowers, ideal for part shade and woodland gardens.

Delicate in appearance, this early summer blooming coneflower provides an important nectar source for hummingbirds and butterflies and is drought-tolerant when established.

The archetypal prairie plant, it brings mid-summer color and floral resources for an array of butterflies, beetles and native bees.

Short-lived perennial for sunny, mesic sites, bearing graceful inflorescences.

Delicate bottle brush inflorescences decorate woodland and informal garden settings well into fall.

Distinctive nodding inflorescences grace this denizen of riverbanks and woodland streams.

A three-footer that thrives in damp lightly-shaded sites.

Not a grass, not a sedge, but a fern ally that can fill damp spots where nothing else will grow.

Spiky, silver-blue leaves, an upright stem and small bristly green/white globes make this a stand-out architectural element in the landscape. Voted the 2024 Native Plant of the Year by INPS members.

An upright perennial with clusters of white flowers, providing nectar and pollen to numerous native bees and wasps and ideal for moist areas.

A tall butterfly magnet, perfect for partially shady locations in larger gardens.

Tall and covered with large pink flower heads in mid-late summer, spotted Joe Pye weed is an excellent plant for attracting pollinators.

A monarch and swallowtail butterfly magnet; perfect for part shade.

Cotton-candy blooms make this a striking tall perennial, excellent for moist-wet areas and larger landscapes.

Excellent under trees and in woodland edges, wild geranium brightens the late spring landscape with a profusion of pink blooms.

With numerous large, yellow composite flowers in late summer and autumn, this genus is thought to have been named after Helen of Troy, with legends that these flowers sprang from the ground where her tears fell.

Showy perennial sunflower species that spreads vigorously and reaches up to 7 feet in height.

This fast-growing keystone species features unique, thick leaves covered in fine hairs, and its seeds are favored by the American goldfinch.

Considered to be one of the less aggressive native sunflowers, this keystone species is easily identified by its “naked stems”.

An easy to grow species that tolerates a wide range of conditions and attracts a wide array of butterflies, bees and flies.

Open white-lavender flowers in spring provide an important pollen resource for native bees.

Tidy clumps of scalloped green leaves make a nice groundcover or edging.

A rugged, prairie-dwelling relative of popular garden coral bells, showcasing a handsome mound of curly-edged leaves.

This plant has large, showy flowers that bloom in mid-summer.

An aromatic herb that releases its scent when moistened or burned.

A small mound-shaped shrub with flat-topped clusters of delicate, greenish-white summer flowers

Denizen of the hardwood forest, this plant has traditional medicinal uses as a digestive aid.

A deciduous shrub whose slender branches are draped with bright red berries throughout the winter

Self-sowing annual that colonizes moist woodlands.

Low-growing, colony forming plant that grows best in part sun but tolerates a variety of conditions

An upright cluster of bright green stems lends structure to a garden.

Clump-forming bunch grass happy to seed itself over a grassland.

Our native dandelion, this plant sends up stems with multiple flower heads.

A stiff, upright prairie legume valued for its dense, rounded clusters of creamy-white flowers and unique, shimmering silver-green foliage.

Tall spires of vibrant pink-purple blooms in late summer, ideal for a moist location to attract butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds.

A monarch butterfly magnet with pink-purple blooms late in the summer and into the autumn.

Dense spires of pink-purple blooms in late summer and early autumn, also known as marsh blazingstar and ideal for moist areas.

A shorter Liatris with tufted blooms, well suited to the rock garden.

Statuesque perennial with lance-shaped leaves and nodding bell-shaped blooms

Highly recurved petals adorn this lily that deserves to be planted in groups in a rain garden.

Tallest of the native lilies, this one grows on wooded slopes in southern Indiana

Brilliant red flowers stand out against wet meadow foliage.

A twining woody vine that can take on a bushy shape without support.

A vigorous, showy vine that can twine upward with strong support or serve as a groundcover.

Happily forms large colonies in a damp, shady spot, so give it some room.

An ornamental native for the wetland garden.