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Coreopsis tinctoria

Golden Tickseed is a brightly colored, long-blooming annual. The daisy-like flowers, which are yellow-orange with dark-red centers, bloom June-September. The flowers are good fresh-cut. The nectar is attractive to butterflies, native bees, and other beneficial pollinators, and the seeds attract birds. This plant aggressively self-seeds, but that can be minimized by removing spent flowers, which also encourages more blooms. The common name originated from the resemblance of the seeds to ticks. Plant Golden Tickseed in masses in borders, wildflower gardens, or naturalized areas.

Consolida ajacis

Rocket Larkspur’s spikes of blue, pink, or white flowers bloom June-August. The flowers are excellent fresh-cut or dried. Remove the spent flowers to encourage more blooms. This plant prefers well-drained soils, so avoid planting in wet locations. Use Rocket Larkspur in beds, borders, or cutting gardens.

Comptonia peregrina

Sweet Fern is not a fern, but a multi-branched, mounded shrub with dark green, aromatic, fern-like leaves. Its inconspicuous, yellow-green catkins (elongated, drooping clusters of tiny flowers without petals) appear April-May, followed by small, burr-like nutlets. It is a host plant for butterfly and moth larvae (caterpillars), including Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus). This plant fixes its own nitrogen, and can tolerate sandy, nutrient-poor soil. It also tolerates wet conditions, as well as drought. Sweet Fern will form dense colonies once established. Use in naturalized areas, rain gardens, and on slopes for erosion control.

Cleome hassleriana

Cleome is an annual plant with palm-shaped, aromatic leaves and showy, fragrant flowers blooming on tall, rigid stems from summer to first frost. Flower colors are combinations of white, pink, and purple. The nectar attracts hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies, and the seeds are a food source for birds. If left on the plants, the seed pods dry and split open, dispersing seeds for next year’s growth. The seed pods can be removed to prevent aggressive self-seeding. Use Cleome in beds, back of borders, foundation plantings, wildlife gardens, and mixed in with shrubs.

Claytonia virginica

Spring Beauty is one of the first wildflowers to bloom in the spring. Its small, star-shaped, white to light pink flowers, striped with pink, bloom in April. The nectar provides an important early spring food source for native bees. The small, underground, bulb-like corms are edible; they were consumed by early Americans, and their chestnut-like flavor is still enjoyed by edible wild plant enthusiasts. The entire plant goes dormant by late spring, similar to spring crocuses. It prefers moist, organic soils. Use Spring Beauty massed in woodland gardens, rock gardens, or for naturalizing.

Chrysopsis mariana

Maryland Goldenaster’s clusters of daisy-like, bright yellow flowers bloom August-October, adding color to the fall garden. This drought-tolerant plant grows well in dry, sandy soils. Use it in borders or wildflower gardens, along woodland edges, or as a groundcover in partly shady areas.

Chrysogonum virginianum

Green and Gold is a low-growing, mat-forming perennial, which spreads by rhizomes (underground stems). The bright yellow, star-shaped flowers on erect, “hairy” stems bloom in spring and sometimes again in fall. This plant’s tolerance for shade makes it a good groundcover for moist, shady areas. Use in rain gardens, woodland gardens, shady border-fronts, and rock gardens.

Chasmanthium latifolium

Indian Woodoats is one of the most shade-tolerant ornamental grasses. Its green flowers emerge on long, arching stems above the foliage, August-September. The distinctive, large, drooping seed heads turn reddish-brown and resemble oats as they mature. The leaves resemble bamboo and turn golden-bronze in the fall. This plant retains its color and seed heads through the colder months, adding interest to the winter landscape. Cuttings are excellent in dried flower arrangements. Indian Woodoats is a host to butterfly and moth larvae (caterpillars), including Pepper and Salt Skipper (Amblyscirtes hegon), Bell’s Roadside-Skipper (Amblyscirtes belli), and Bronze Roadside-Skipper (Amblyscirtes aenus). It tolerates full sun if the soil is moist, but prefers indirect sun. This plant will self-seed. Use Indian Woodoats as an ornamental grass in shade gardens, borders, naturalized areas, meadows, and along water features.

Cercidiphyllum japonicum

Katsura Tree is a deciduous understory tree with beautiful, heart-shaped leaves. It is dioecious (male and female flowers appear on separate trees); a male must be in the area to pollinate females for fruit production. Tiny, red male and green female flowers bloom March-April. If pollinated, female flowers are followed by greenish seed pods. The leaves emerge reddish-purple in spring and change to a blueish-green in summer. Fall foliage turns vivid shades of yellow, apricot, and red, and the fallen leaves have a pleasant, spicy fragrance. Katsura Tree tolerates full sun, but prefers some shade protection in the late afternoon. It grows best in moist, well-drained soils, and is not drought-tolerant. Use as specimen tree, shade tree, or street tree.

Cephalanthus occidentalis

Common Buttonbush’s fragrant, white, spherical-shaped flowers resemble pin cushions. The flowers bloom in June, followed by round, button-like fruits enclosing small nutlets, which persist into winter. The flowers provide a nectar source for native bees and butterflies. Buttonbush is a host plant for butterfly and moth larvae (caterpillars), including Titan sphinx (Aellopos titan) and Hydrangea sphinx (Darapsa versicolor). It prefers moist to wet conditions, and can tolerate flooding. The plants can be pruned or cut to the ground in early spring. Use Buttonbush in shrub borders, woodland gardens, rain gardens, and other moist areas of the yard, or plant along edges of ponds and other water features.