Native range

Native plants of Iowa

147 wild species and 17 plant groups in the BloomsEye library grow wild somewhere in Iowa, read from Kew's World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS. The 124 garden forms of them are listed apart on the first page, each naming its wild parent.

Showing 121 to 164 of 164 plants

How this list is made

Derived from each plant's native-range record, checked against Kew's World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS with every decision on a ledger; Iowa is read off the record's own range, and the order is how many of the state's counties record each plant, as stored in the BloomsEye library, which was written with AI assistance. Of these 164 plants, 152 have been checked against outside sources (1 fully verified); the rest have not been checked yet, and each plant's own page says which. The cards are AI-generated illustrations.

Range data from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 4.0, adapted) and USDA PLANTS. How the native range is credited.

Goatsbeard
Aruncus dioicus
Part shadeZones 3–74 ftModerate
Golden Ragwort
Packera aurea
Part shadeZones 3–81.5 ftModerate
Kinnikinnick
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Full sunZones 3–78 inModerate
Nodding Onion
Allium cernuum
Full sunZones 4–81.5 ftModerate
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats
Northern Bush Honeysuckle
Diervilla lonicera
Part shadeZones 3–73 ftModerate
Northern Sea Oats
Chasmanthium latifolium
Part shadeZones 3–83.5 ftModerate
Pagoda Dogwood
Cornus alternifolia
Part shadeZones 3–720 ftModerate
Palm Sedge
Carex muskingumensis
Part sunZones 4–92.5 ftModerate
Paper Birch
Betula papyrifera
Part shadeZones 2–732 ftModerate
Potentilla
Potentilla fruticosa
Full sunZones 2–73 ftLow
Prairie Smoke
Geum triflorum
Full sunZones 3–71.5 ftLow
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Full sunZones 3–83 ftLow
Queen of the Prairie
Filipendula rubra
Full sunZones 3–95 ftHigh
Foliage
Red Maple
Acer rubrum
Full sunZones 3–949 ftModerate
Foliage
Royal Fern
Osmunda regalis
Part shadeZones 3–94 ftHigh
Seersucker Sedge
Carex plantaginea
Part shadeZones 4–812 inModerate
Shrubby St. John's Wort
Hypericum prolificum
Full sunZones 4–83 ftModerate
Silky Dogwood
Cornus amomum
Part shadeZones 4–88.5 ftModerate
Soft Rush
Juncus effusus
Full sunZones 4–93 ftHigh
Staghorn Sumac
Rhus typhina
Full sunZones 4–820 ftLow
Swamp Sunflower
Helianthus angustifolius
Full sunZones 5–96 ftModerate
Swamp White Oak
Quercus bicolor
Full sunZones 4–855 ftModerate
Listed as toxic to dogs
Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
Part shadeZones 3–81.5 ftModerate
Western Serviceberry
Amelanchier alnifolia
Full sunZones 2–918 ftModerate
White Turtlehead
Chelone glabra
Part shadeZones 3–83 ftHigh
Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
Full sunZones 3–96.5 ftHigh
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats
Woodland Stonecrop
Sedum ternatum
Part shadeZones 4–88 inModerate
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats
Aster
Symphyotrichum
Full sunZones 3–83 ftModerate
Goldenrod
Solidago
Full sunZones 3–93 ftLow
Perennial Sunflower
Helianthus
Full sunZones 4–95 ftModerate
Blazing Star
Liatris
Full sunZones 3–93 ftLow
Penstemon
Penstemon
Full sunZones 3–82.5 ftLow
Serviceberry
Amelanchier
Part sunZones 4–820 ftModerate
Black-Eyed Susan
Rudbeckia
Full sunZones 3–92.5 ftLow
Spiderwort
Tradescantia
Part sunZones 3–91.5 ftModerate
Listed as toxic to dogs and cats
Trillium
Trillium
Full shadeZones 4–812 inModerate
Ironweed
Vernonia
Full sunZones 4–95 ftModerate
Bee Balm
Monarda
Full sunZones 3–93 ftModerate
Coreopsis
Coreopsis
Full sunZones 4–92 ftLow
False Indigo
Baptisia
Full sunZones 3–93.5 ftLow
Listed as toxic to cats
Joe Pye Weed
Eutrochium
Full sunZones 4–96 ftHigh
Turtlehead
Chelone
Part sunZones 3–83 ftHigh
Obedient Plant
Physostegia
Full sunZones 3–93.5 ftModerate
Sneezeweed
Helenium
Full sunZones 3–83.5 ftModerate

Keep exploring

Design your garden

Drop plants onto a 3D plan, see how they fill in, and watch the whole garden bloom across the year.

Open BloomsEye Studio →