(Canadian Wild Ginger)

By far one of the best native herbaceous groundcovers for shade, Canadian wild ginger creates a lush, thick mat of heart-shaped leaves that shine from spring to fall. This very hardy woodland wildflower exists in fertile hardwood forests across the whole of eastern North America. As its common name suggests, its long, somewhat fleshy roots have a pungent, ginger-like taste and were valued for food and medicine by both Native Americans and early colonists. In some parts of eastern Canada they still...

(Chinese Wild Ginger)

Spreading to form lush colonies of large silver-splotched evergreen leaves, this low-growing hardy perennial from China is an excellent choice for the woodland garden. The shiny dark green arrowhead-shaped leaves arise from short rhizomes which travel underground, creating an ever-expanding mass of foliage. The leaves typically have two longitudinal bands of silvery splotches. Foliage remains evergreen in zones 7 and up. Chubby cup-shaped purple flowers with pale spotting cluster at the base of the...

(Swamp Milkweed)

Swamp milkweed is native to pond edges and stream banks of the eastern and Midwestern United States. Though this perennial is a wetland plant, it is very adaptable and at home in sunny gardens.

Delightful, lightly fragrant, purplish-pink flowers are produce summer through fall. They are born atop upright stems that hold narrow, lance-shaped leaves opposite of each other. The flowers are borne in flat clusters; each flower is complex and topped with a “crown.” The blooms are very attractive...

(Ice Ballet Milkweed, Swamp Milkweed)

Swamp milkweed is native to pond edges and stream banks of the eastern and Midwestern United States. The cultivar ‘Ice Ballet’ bears clear white flowers. Though this perennial is a wetland plant, it is very adaptable and at home in sunny gardens.

Delightful, lightly fragrant flowers are produce summer through fall. They are born atop upright stems that hold narrow, lance-shaped leaves opposite of each other. The flowers are borne in flat clusters; each flower is complex and topped with a “crown.”...

(Common Milkweed)

A host plant for monarch butterfly caterpillars, common milkweed is a tall, upright, vigorously spreading herbaceous perennial from eastern and central North America. In late spring its wandering underground rhizomes send up tough fibrous thigh-high stems with large leathery oval leaves. Cut stems bleed milky sap. Domed heads of sweet-scented, dull purplish-pink flowers appear at the stem tips and leaf axils in early summer. Butterflies flock to the blooms. Large green flask-shaped seedpods follow...

(Butterfly Milkweed, Butterfly Weed)

The colorful perennial wildflower butterfly weed is native to much of the United States and southern Canada. It is adapted to open meadows and old fields and offers bright color to sunny summer gardens.

From early to midsummer butterfly weed produces very showy clusters of bright orange, orange-red or yellow flowers that appear atop stems lined with green strap-like leaves. The individual flowers are complex and crown-shaped, and the stems emit a white milky latex if broken. Plants will rebloom...

(Butterfly Milkweed, Butterfly Weed, Hello Yellow Butterfly Weed)

The golden-flowered ‘Hello Yellow’ has a compact and spreading habit and bears large flower clusters atop vigorous sturdy plants.

The colorful perennial wildflower butterfly weed is native to much of the United States and southern Canada. It is adapted to open meadows and old fields and offers bright color to sunny summer gardens.

From summer to fall ‘Hello Yellow’ produces very large clusters of golden yellow flowers that appear atop stems lined with green strap-like leaves. The individual...

(Butterfly Milkweed, Butterfly Weed, Gay Butterflies Butterfly Weed)

Members of the Gay Butterflies group are distinguished by their very large flower clusters, vigorous sturdy plants and extended bloom time. They come in an array of colors such as tangerine orange, golden yellow and deep orange-red.

The colorful perennial wildflower butterfly weed is native to much of the United States and southern Canada. It is adapted to open meadows and old fields and offers bright color to sunny summer gardens. From summer to fall butterfly weed in the Gay Butterflies...

(Redring Milkweed)

The snowy flowers of this hardy perennial brighten woodlands of eastern and central North America in late spring and early summer.

A favorite food of Monarch butterfly caterpillars, the oval leaves of this clump-forming perennial are paired along upright, knee- to waist-high stems. In late spring, dome-shaped, many-flowered clusters of small white waxy blooms appear near the stem tips. The flowers have five petals, a red-purple center, and a five-lobed “crown" comprising five spreading "hoods."...

(Asphodil)

King's spear is a unique herbaceous perennial in the lily family native around the Mediterranean basin. The fragrant star-shaped blooms of golden-yellow appear on tall, cylindrical spikes in late spring to summer. These flowerspikes are contrasted by blue-green, grass-like spirals of foliage. After blooming, the fragrant flowers transform into interesting, green, fruitball-pods later in summer to fall.

King's spear prefers full or partial sun and any average, well-drained soil. These plants...