Iowa Native Plants
Native plants are a great benefit to the natural habitat surrounding us, especially for birds and insects. Birds and insects feed off of native plants far more than they feed from alien plants. Unfortunately, the urban landscapes are becoming filled with more and more nonnative species which don’t provide as much food for the wildlife. By planting native plants in your landscape, you offer the wildlife what they need to survive.
Another benefit to using native plants is they are already well adapted to the climate. What this means is they are more resistant to diseases and are more drought tolerant than alien species. They are also great at establishing extensive root systems which help stabilize and build fertile soils.
Here is a list with some of the plants native to Iowa that we supply.
Wildflowers
Achillea millefolium (Yarrow)
Acorus calamus (Sweetflag)
Allium cernuum (Nodding Onion)
Allium stellatum (Prairie Onion)
Aquilegia canadensis (Columbine)
Asarum canadense (Wild Ginger)
Asclepias incarnata (Swamp Milkweed)
Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Milkweed)
Baptisia lactea (White False Indigo)
Baptisia australis (Blue False Indigo)
Campanula rotundifolia (Harebell)
Chelone glabra (Turtlehead)
Coreopsis palmata (Tickseed)
Coreopsis tripteris (Giant Tickseed)
Delphinium carolinianum (Prairie Larkspur)
Echinacea angustifolia (Narrow-Leaf Purple Coneflower)
Echinacea pallida (Coneflower) Pale Purple
Echinacea purpurea (Coneflower)
Eupatorium maculatum (Joe Pye Weed)
Eupatorium purpureum (Joe Pye Weed)
Euphorbia corollata (Flowering Spurge)
Geranium maculatum (Wild Geranium)
Iris versicolor (Blue Flag Iris)
Liatris pycnostachya (Prairie Blazingstar)
Lilium philadelphicum (Prairie Lily)
Lobelia siphilitica (Blue Cardinal Flower) Great Blue
Mentha arvensis (Wild Mint)
Mertensia virginica (Virginia Bluebells)
Mimulus ringens (Monkey Flower)
Monarda punctata (Spotted Bee Balm)
Nelumbo lutea (American Lotus)
Nymphaea (Water Lily)
Penstemon digitalis (Beardtongue)
Penstemon grandiflorus (Beardtongue)
Phlox divaricata (Woodland Phlox)
Phlox pilosa (Prairie Phlox)
Polemonium reptans (Jacob's Ladder)
Pontederia cordata (Pickerel)
Pulsatilla patens (Pasque Flower)
Pycnanthemum virginianum (Mountain Mint)
Rudbeckia hirta (Black-eyed Susan)
Rudbeckia subtomentosa (Sweet Black-eyed Susan)
Ruellia humilis (Wild Petunia)
Sagittaria latifolia (Arrowhead)
Solidago canadensis (Canada Goldenrod)
Typha latifolia (Cattail)
Verbena hastata (Blue Vervain)
Verbena stricta (Hoary Vervain)
Vernonia fasciculata (Common Ironweed)
Veronicastrum virginicum (Culvers root)
Zizia aurea (Golden Alexanders)
Grasses
Andropogon gerardii (Big Bluestem)
Bouteloua curtipendula (Sideoats Grama)
Bouteloua gracilis (Blue Grama)
Calamagrostis canadensis (Bluejoint Grass)
Carex pensylvanica (Pennsylvania Sedge)
Carex vulpinoidea (Fox Sedge)
Juncus effusus (Soft Rush)
Panicum virgatum (Switchgrass)
Schizachyrium scoparium (Little Bluestem)
Scirpus validus (Soft-stemmed Bulrush)
Scirpus atrovirens (Dark-green Bulrush)
Scirpus cyperinus (Wool Grass)
Sorghastrum nutans (Indian Grass)
Sporobolus heterolepsis (Prairie Dropseed)
Shrubs
Amorpha fruticosa (False Indigo)
Ceanothus pallidus (New Jersey Tea)
Celastrus scandens (Autumn Revolution American Bittersweet) Bailumn
Cornus racemosa (Gray Dogwood)
Cornus sericea (Redosier Dogwood)
Corylus americana (American Hazelnut)
Diervilla lonicera (Dwarf Northern Bush Honeysuckle)
Hypericum kalmianum (Sunny Boulevard St. John's Wort)
Ilex verticillata (Winterberry)
Lonicera dioica (Red Honeysuckle)
Physocarpus opulifolius (Common Ninebark)
Rhus aromatica (Fragrant Sumac)
Rhus glabra (Smooth Sumac)
Rhus typhina (Staghorn Sumac)
Rubus idaeus (Red Raspberry)
Sambucus canadensis (Elderberry)
Shepherdia argentea (Silver Buffaloberry)
Spiraea alba (Meadowsweet Spirea)
Symphoricarpos albus (Snowberry)
Symphoricarpos doorenbosii (Coralberry)
Viburnum lentago (Nannyberry Viburnum)
Trees
Acer saccharum (Sugar Maple)
Aesculus glabra (Ohio Buckeye)
Amelanchier arborea (Serviceberry)
Betula nigra (River Birch)
Carpinus caroliniana (American Hornbeam)
Celtis occidentalis (Hackberry)
Cercis canadensis (Eastern Redbud)
Cornus alternifolia (Pagoda Dogwood)
Gleditsia triacanthos (Honeylocust)
Gymnocladus dioicus (Kentucky Coffeetree)
Hamamelis virginiana (Common Witchhazel)
Malus ioensis (Flowering Crabapple)
Ostrya virginiana (American Hophornbeam)
Platanus occidentalis (Sycamore)
Populus deltoides (Cottonwood)
Populus grandidentata (Bigtooth Aspen)
Populus tremuloides (Quaking Aspen)
Prunus americana (American Plum)
Prunus serotina (Black Cherry)
Quercus alba (White Oak)
Quercus bicolor (Swamp White Oak)
Quercus rubra (Northern Red Oak) Borealis
Quercus imbricaria (Shingle Oak)
Quercus macrocarpa (Bur Oak)
Quercus marilandica (Blackjack Oak)
Quercus muehlenbergii (Chinkapin Oak)
Quercus palustris (Pin Oak)
Quercus velutina (Black Oak)
Salix nigra (Black Willow)
Tilia americana (Linden)
Ulmus americana (Elm)
Conifers
Juniperus communis (Common Juniper)
Juniperus horizontalis (Creeping Juniper)
Juniperus virginiana (Eastern Red Cedar)
Pinus strobus (Eastern White Pine)
Taxus canadensis (Yew)
To find more plants native to Iowa and to search other states you can look at the USDA plant database.