Indiana native wildflowers

This delicate-looking milkweed has needle-like leaves and fragrant white flowers in the summer. It will spread moderately quickly by underground rhizomes, but is not invasive (it can also self-seed, so if seedlings are not desirable,...

Swamp Milkweed is a true pollinator magnet; the pink to pink-purple flowers offer nectar to many types of insects. Hummingbirds are occasional visitors too. It's an important plant for monarch larvae - monarch butterfly caterpillars have the highest...

Very long spires of flowers with fairly long blooming period. Blooms in the middle/later summer = after early Liatris spicata and before late bloomers Liatris (L. scariosa, L. ligulistylis, L. aspera). Showy native perennial with a long flowering period...

Long blooming perennial for dry soil. Regular clumps, hairy stems and daisy-like flowers with many petals and a sage-like scent. The flowers are ¾ to 1½ inches across and are bright yellow. Offers very good pollinator support and provides...

Strictly upright woodland beardtongue. Never flopping, it boasts thick rosettes of basal leaves and long stems with tubular pink-purple flowers (sometimes white-pink). There aren't many woodland Penstemons, so this one brings a nice extension of the...

Easy, modest and very showy-looking native perennial and wildflower with elegant drooping petals and big (2-3”) flowers. It has a beautiful, airy structure, and the stems with big yellow flowers often dart in the wind. It usually doesn't grow...

This highly desirable native perennial is rare due to the loss of its natural prairie habitats; it's considered an endangered plant in some states. It forms rosettes of low growing leaves and up to 4' tall clumps of strictly upright stems that bear loose...

Unique perennial of true tall grass prairies! Surprisingly, it belongs to the Carrot Family (Apiaceae), but it has an unusual look due to the thicker, strap-like leaves, mostly concentrated in rosettes or at the base of the tall stems (leaves are...

Upright narrower perennial with smaller compound leaves, purple-red stems and clusters of cream white flowers. This meadow rue grows in female and male individuals (with female or male flowers). Male flowers are usually bigger and more showy, making a...

Easy to grow prairie plant. The lobed compound leaves mostly stay at the base; the stems branch at the top and bear crème white flowers with yellow centers. The whole plant is covered with white hair, so the leaves look a bit gray-green. Each...

This modest native perennial prefers some shade, but will do fine even in full sun. It is also very drought tolerant. The 5-petaled white flowers with greenish centers are followed by oval thimbles that mature to fluffy seeds and are dispersed...

Quite common perennial plant in the wild, but not so common in our yards. Forms nice bushy clumps of green leaves with thin flowering stalks above the leaves. Flowers are small, green-white, and generally insignificant. The reason why this native...

Also known as Great Merrybells. Excellent early-blooming native perennial for half-shade or shade garden. The Bellwort flowers and leaves have an overall droopy appearance when in bloom, but after the seeds are set, the leaves look somewhat like a needle...

Highly attractive and architectural perennial with decorative green leaves and long spikes of fragrant white flowers. Effective in woodland gardens, shaded flower beds, cottage gardens and naturalized areas. Best if planted in groups and in front of a...

Also called “showy beardtongue” due to its succulent, leathery looking, gray-blue leaves and big tubular flowers up to 2 inches long! It makes this perennial one of the showiest North American beardtongues ever. Flowers are usually light pink...

Lovely mounding grass with narrow green or blue-green foliage. Late summer flowers are unremarkable; the fluffy seed clusters are more ornamental. Valuable coppery/amber foliage in the fall. Native Americans used to dry the leaves for winter insulation...

Charming perennial with yellow-red lanterns hanging down on thin stems and delightful foliage. This native wildflower seems to be underused recently although it has been used ornamentally and medicinally in Western cultures since medieval times. This is...

Favorite perennial with orange flowers that attract many butterflies. Forms more regular clumps up to 3’ in diameter (less in poorer soils); the leaves are narrow, the stems hairy. The big seed pods release silky-tailed seeds into the wind and can...