Natives in the May Garden

Among the spring and summer blooming plants in my garden, many are North American natives. Last spring I added Poke Milkweed (Aslepias exaltata), also called Tall Milkweed.

Since Monarch butterflies will only lay their eggs on Milkweed, and their developing larva depend on Milkweed as the only staple in their diet, I planted it with the hopes of having them visit later this summer.

I've also got lots of Swamp Milkweed (Aslepias incarnata)--and although that is growing tall right now, it isn't yet in bloom.  It will form lovely pink blooms later in the summer.

When I planted the milkweed I also included Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)--another milkweed variety.  When that didn't come back this year, I added two plants a couple of weeks ago and they are beginning to bud out now. They will be orange/yellow in color.

The native Windflower (Anemone multifida) 'Annabella Deep Rose' is in full bloom now.

As is native Coral Red Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) "Major Wheeler".

Native Primrose (Oenothora fruiticosa) "Cold Crick", also known as Sundrops, has just started to bloom.  I planted a couple of plants last year but over the winter the markers were moved by squirrels and I wasn't really sure where the plants were, until recently!

Earlier this spring, I added two native Sweetspire (Itea virginica) "Little Henry" bushes to the garden. They are blooming now.

While Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana) has just recently begun to bloom, many of the plants still don't have buds.  This plant has been very 'tame' in my garden, although it has a reputation for being a runner.

Along with the basic Spiderwort, Tradescantia 'Sweet Kate' was given to me last year by garden blogging friend Janet, The Queen of Seaford. I liked it so much that I added more of this variety just a few weeks ago. 'Sweet Kate' tends to stay in manageable clumps--at least that's what I'm hoping.

Blue Star (Amsonia) "Blue Ice" is finally in bloom.  I planted this earlier in the spring, just this year.  This plant may actually be a hybrid cultivar taken from the native A. montana.

A completely new-to-me native plant is this Woodland Pinkroot (Spigelia marilandica), also known as Indian Pink.

Planted earlier this spring, it's put out just two blooms so far...but aren't they interesting and different?!

While I featured Phlox divaricata, Woodland Phlox, in my last post on native plants, Phlox stolonifera, Creeping Phlox "Sherwood Purple" blooms much later.  Unlike Phlox divaricata's spiky, pointed leaves, the leaves on this shade-tolerant phlox are more oval. (Another form of Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata) is planted in my sunny front garden, and that is also still putting out blooms).

Native Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia) is still going strong in the garden.

This year I added a new variety of Foamflower to the garden: Tiarella cordifolia "Elizabeth Oliver". She didn't develop more than a few flowerheads--and they weren't as full as my originals, so I'm hoping she will produce more next year.

Sweet Woodruff (Galium oderata) is planted in clumps throughout my back gardens. It was full of little white blooms earlier, but is now holding on to just a few and may be coming to the end of it's bloom period.

I added quite a few Hepatica to the shade garden this spring. Some H. nobilis varieties are finished, but H. americana (Round Lobed Hepatica) "Alba" still has some blooms.

While the Arisaema triphyllum, native Jack-in-the-Pulpit, has already finished blooming, I haven't yet shown it in a post as I just added it to the garden in April.

Below is a photo of Jack unfolding, with native Pasque Flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) in the background (also new in April, and now finished blooming, as well). *Thanks for catching that, Carolyn:-) Pulsatilla is a European native...but a great woodland garden plant, none-the-less, enjoying sun to part-shade.

At a local native plant sale last spring, I acquired Podophyllum peltatum (May Apple). So far this year, two very small leaves have emerged. There have been no flowers but I'm hoping by next year it will start to fill out, enlarge, and produce blooms.

Lastly, another native, new to my garden this year, is Scarlett Globemallow (Sphaeralcea coccinea).  She had a few small blooms but I think she is getting too much shade in the current woodland garden setting, so I'll be moving her out front to my sunnier perennial garden areas.

As you can see, I've been trying to add a variety of native plants to the garden over the last couple of years. Most of them are well-suited for my climate so I'm hoping they will continue to get larger over the next few years. They are all great wildlife and pollinator attractors and that is the primary reason I've added them...along with the fact that I really like the looks of each of them.  To read about more native plants around the world, Gail of Clay and Limestone holds 'Wildflower Wednesday' on the 4th Wednesday of each month. You can learn a lot by visiting this interesting meme.  If you have a garden blog, why not share the natives in your own garden?!

I'm thankful for Wildflower Wednesday, as it encourages me to learn more about native plants--which I've found to be extremely interesting.

Words and photos ©Thanks for today.™, by Jan Huston Doble @ http://www.thanksfor2day.blogspot.com/

Not to be reproduced or re-blogged without express permission of the author.