Meet the Plants

Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia) blooms in early summer and often continues to bloom through August. Blue-violet bell-shaped flowers nod on slender, wispy stems up to 12 inches high. While delicate in appearance, Harebell is a tough little plant. Extremely drought tolerant, it loves dry sandy and gravelly soils.  The common name of harebell comes from folk tales that it either grew in places frequented by hares or that witches used juices from the flowers to transform themselves into hares. The Haida Indians of the Pacific Northwest called them "blue rain flowers" and it was thought that picking them would cause it to rain.   It prefers full sun but can tolerate some shade.  A native to Iosco County, Harebell is both pest/disease resistant and deer resistant.  The plants are easily out-competed by more aggressive plants so you may have to thin out more competitive plants.

Baptisia alba Is a long lived, hardy perennial native to Michigan.  It is a bushy plant with Charcoal gray stems, gray/green leaves and pea like white flowers that bloom from June through July.  In the fall flowers turn into inflated green seed pods that turn black and rattle in the wind.  A tough, reliable plant with no serious insect or disease problems, all Baptisia species are nitrogen-fixing legumes, meaning they help return nitrogen to depleted soil areas.  White Wild Indigo is drought and deer tolerant. The creamy white blooms appear in spring and attract butterflies and native bees.  They are larval hosts to many butterflies including Black-Spotted Prominent, Wild Indigo Duskywing, Frosted Elfin, Hoary Edge butterflies, Orange Sulphur, and Clouded Sulphur.  Although they prefer sun, they are drought and shade tolerant.

Chelone is Greek for tortoise referring to the white or pinkish white flowers that resemble the head of a turtle.  Glabra  means smooth or hairless like the stems and leaves of this plant.  They grow from 2-4’ tall and bloom from August to September.  Turtlehead is native to Iosco and surrounding counties in Michigan.

This plant prefers wet to moist soils in full to mostly sun. The blooms are pollinated by bumblebees, which have the size and strength to pry open the bloom and reach the nectar inside. White Turtlehead is an important nectar and host plant for the beautiful Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly.  It is also an important late season nectar source for hummingbirds.

Baltimore Checkerspots lay their eggs (in groups of 100-700) on the leaves in early summer. When the eggs hatch in three weeks later, the larvae feed communally in a silken nest until early August, then remain dormant until October, when they descend to the ground and construct hibernating webs of leaves and other debris. After overwintering, they begin feeding again in the spring and pupate in May.  Turtlehead is a low maintenance, easy to grow native perennial.

Wild Geranium is a stunning shade loving plant with bright lavender flowers and attractive dark green foliage.  It prefers shade but will grow in full sun.  It is a long lived plant that spreads forming stunning clumps that work well as a groundcover.  It is low maintenance and not invasive.  Bees and butterflies find it irresistible.  After blooming, distinctive fruit capsules resembling a cranes head form.  As the bill dries, it catapults the seeds away from the parent plant driving the seed into the soil where it can germinate.  The plants were used by Native Americans to treat diarrhea and open sores or wounds.  Wild Geranium is native to Michigan including Iosco and surrounding counties.

If you are looking for a fast growing, hardy, bright colored perennial to fill in a shady spot or a ground cover around trees Wood Poppy is a good choice.  Plant them where they will receive sun in early spring before trees leaf out, but dappled shade later. It does best in rich, moist soil but is drought tolerant once established.  Celandine Poppy blooms from early spring to summer but may continue to bloom if deadheaded.  An added bonus, deer will not eat this plant.

The seed capsules split apart in mid to late summer releasing the seeds.  The seeds are naturally dispersed by ants.  Although it self-seeds, it is not overly aggressive and you can easily pull out any unwanted plants.   Do not confuse this plant with Greater Celandine a Eurasian invasive biennial.  Wood Poppy’s fuzzy seed pods are unique and recognizable.

Pale Purple Coneflower and Purple Coneflower are easily grown, plants with showy daisy like flowers with spiny center cones.  They grow best in average, dry to medium soil in full sun to part shade.  They rebloom without deadheading and reseed if seed-heads are left in place.  Echinacea are a favorite nectar source of pollinators including bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.   The large seed heads, if left, attract Goldfinches.  They have a deep taproot and once established they are long lived, highly adaptable, and low maintenance.

Native Americans valued Echinacea for its medicinal value.  Echinacea are still recognized for numerous health benefits and widely used in supplements and herbal teas.

Pale Purple Coneflower blooms up to a month earlier.  The leaves and rays are longer, narrower, and paler in color.  The leaves are more hairy, light green and tend to be at the base of the plant.  Both are deer resistant and a wonderful addition to the summer garden.

Purple Joe-Pye weed, also known as Sweet Scented Joe-Pye Weed, is an iconic native perennial known for its beautiful and fragrant flowers.  Tiny, tubular shaped purple to pink blooms in a dome shape stand on 4’ – 6’ stems.  They bloom from summer to early fall attracting a variety of bees and butterflies with their vanilla scent.  If you prefer a shorter, stockier plant, cut back before July 4th.

If you wonder where the name Joe-Pye comes from, two possible origin stories are:  The name came from a Native American medicine man in colonial New England known as “Joe Pye.” He had fame in using this plant to cure typhoid and several other diseases; or, since a Native word for typhoid is “jopi,” the plant used to cure typhoid became the jopi weed which eventually became “Joe Pye.”  

Helenium autumnal is a beautiful native perennial loved by pollinators.  It is adaptable and easy to grow in sunny sites with medium to wet soil.  The botanical name helenium is in honor of Helen of Troy.  Legend has it that the flowers sprung up from the ground where her tears fell.  Autumnale refers to the season of bloom, late summer to early fall.

The common name Sneezeweed has given this plant an undeserved reputation as a cause for hay-fever and fall allergies.  The flowers of this species are pollinated by insects not wind. They have heavy, sticky, pollen that is not easily inhaled.  It is known as Sneezeweed because dried leaves were used to make snuff that induced sneezing.  It was believed to clear the head, relieve headaches, and rid the body of evil spirits.

Deer avoid this plant because of its bitter foliage.  Spring pruning will encourage shorter plants with stronger branching and denser growth.

Southern Blue Flag is a lovely, delicate, native iris.  The name iris comes from the Greek Goddess of rainbows and virginica from the state of Virginia where it was found.  The common name, “flag” is from an old English word, flagge, for reeds referring to its preference for wetlands.

It does prefer very wet, humusy or sandy soil in boggy areas in full sun but does surprisingly well in average garden soils that are kept consistently moist.  It spreads slowly by rhizomes which can be divided as clumps form.  This plant is deer resistant.

Northern Blazing Star is a native perennial with rosy purple spikey flowers on 3’ – 4’ unbranched stems with narrow, long leaves.  These plants are drought, heat, and humidity tolerant growing best in sunny sites with average, dry and sandy or rocky soils.  They will flop if the soil is too rich or moist.   Blooming from late summer through fall makes them a great late season nectar source for bees and butterflies.  It is not unusual to see them covered with Monarch butterflies.  Liatris scariosa has widely spaced and larger flowerheads than most Blazing Stars.

Marsh Blazing Star is a must have in any pollinator garden or perennial border.  It is especially stunning in masses.  The rose/purple, closely set flower heads are arranged in long, dense spikes blooming from the top down with grass-like foliage.  A summer blooming plant that is 3’ – 4’ tall it prefers moist fertile soil.  A nectar source for bees and butterflies this plant is also deer resistant with seeds that attract Goldfinches.

Cardinal Flower blooms from July through August with brilliant red flowers that draw Hummingbirds to your garden.  They grow naturally in wetlands so they do best in consistently moist soils, in full sun to part shade.  Although cardinal flower is a short lived perennial (about 3 years) it is a prolific self-seeder with the right conditions.  The common name comes from the bright red robes worn by cardinals in the Catholic religion.  All parts of this plant contain “lobeline” which can be toxic if eaten in large quantities.  Legend has it that if you touch the roots you will find true love.

Blue Lobelia is easy to grow in rich, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade.  It forms 1’-3’ flower spikes covered in deep blue flowers from late summer to early fall providing a beautiful counterpoint to the yellows of late summer.  It can reseed forming colonies when sited in medium to wet soils in light shade without being overly aggressive.  The nectar & pollen attract hummingbirds, bumblebees and long-tongued bees.  Bees use the lower three petals as a landing pad.  A bee of the correct weight will depress these petals lowering the stigma wiping it against the bee’s back pad which spreads the pollen.  Deer and rabbits avoid  this plant.

Monkey Flower is an upright perennial known for its purplish-blue flowers that resemble a monkey’s face.  Occurring naturally in wetlands this plant is perfect for water gardens, bog gardens, rain gardens, wet prairies and meadows.  It is an excellent edging plant for streams & ponds.  This plant needs consistently moist soils and will slowly spread into an attractive bushy plant in your landscape.  It blooms for June – August in part sun to full sun reaching a height of 1’ – 2’.

Prairie Phlox is an incredibly fragrant perennial with bright to pale pink flowers blooming from May through July.  It prefers full to part sun growing to a height of 1’ – 2’  It is easy care, drought and pest tolerant.  Deer and rabbits usually avoid Prairie Phlox but butterflies and hummingbirds love it.  If it is happy it will spread nicely and fill in around other plants.

Jacob’s Ladder is an early blooming woodland plant with both beautiful foliage and lovely delicate blue flowers.  It prefers light shade or dappled sun blooming from late April through May to a height of 1-1 ½’.  The common name refers to lacey oval leaflets arranged on upright stems like the rungs of a ladder.  The flowers are an important early source of pollen and nectar for native bees and butterflies. New flowers open every day providing a new supply daily,   Deer & rabbits find Jacob’s Ladder unpalatable.  It is tolerant of the black walnut toxin juglone.

Gray-head Coneflower is a great choice for sunny landscapes and gardens.  From July through September Strong slender stems 3’ – 5’ tall are topped with drooping yellow rays surrounding a dense brown cone.  Butterflies love it. The seed heads are an excellent source of food for songbirds in the fall.  It is both deer resistant and drought resistant.  They are a nectar source for bees and butterflies.