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Panicum virgatum

Switchgrass is a clumping ornamental grass, which may naturalize by rhizomes and through self-seeding. Pink-tinged flowers display from July through February, turning beige in mid- to late summer. The seeds are a good food source for birds. Switchgrass is a host plant for butterfly and moth larvae (caterpillars), including Delaware Skipper (Anatrytone logan) and Dotted Skipper (Hesperia attalus), as well as most banded skippers and satyrs. Cut it back to the ground in late winter-early spring. Plant Switchgrass in masses to use as a screen or in naturalized areas of your yard. Use cut stems and seed heads as an accent in fresh or dried flower arrangements.

Osmunda regalis

Royal Fern is a clumping deciduous fern. Its broad, green fronds turn yellow in fall. Fertile brown clusters atop the fronds hold the spores. Royal Fern is an important host plant for moth larvae (caterpillars), including Osmunda Borer Moth (Papaipema speciosissima). Plant it along a water’s edge or in your shade garden, woodland garden, rain garden, and moist, shady areas of your yard.

Osmunda cinnamomea

Cinnamon Fern is a clumping deciduous fern. The fronds emerge as fiddleheads. Birds use the “fuzz” covering the fiddleheads as nesting material. Green, sterile fronds bend outward, encircling fertile, erect, spore-bearing fronds, which quickly turn chestnut-brown, giving this plant its common name. Cinnamon Fern makes an attractive accent in landscapes. Use it along the water’s edge and in woodland gardens, rain gardens, swales, or any moist, shady areas of the yard.

Nyssa sylvatica

Blackgum is a medium-sized, flowering, deciduous tree, which offers many benefits for wildlife. White, inconspicuous flowers bloom May-June. It is primarily dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate trees, although trees typically host a few “perfect” flowers. Blackgum offers an excellent nectar source for bees. Fertilized female flowers are followed by edible sour fruits, which provide an important food source for birds and wildlife. It is a host plant for many inconspicuous insects, which provide food for migrating and resident birds. It offers showy, red color in fall. Its medium-high wind resistance and tolerance to flooded and salty conditions makes it a valuable Jersey-Friendly tree for your yard!

Muhlenbergia capillaris

Hairawn Muhly is a clump-forming, warm-season grass. Pink to purple to red flowers bloom above the foliage September-November, offering attractive fall color. It tolerates heat, humidity, drought, and poor, dry, sandy soils, as well as flooding — perfect for Jersey-Friendly Yards! Plant Hairawn Muhly in groups along your borders and foundations and in naturalized areas of your yard.

Lyonia ligustrina

Maleberry can be a single- or multi-stemmed deciduous shrub. Small, globular, bell-shaped white flowers bloom in June, followed by small, hard, berry-like capsules. Shiny green leaves turn orange-red in fall. Plant Maleberry in a mass as a shrub border in wet areas, woodlands, or naturalized areas around your yard.

Lobelia cardinalis

Cardinal Flower is one of the most attractive native wildflowers in New Jersey. The showy, scarlet-red flowers are a hummingbird magnet, blooming July through September and offering a late summer nectar source. Cardinal Flower requires moist-wet, humus-rich soil to ensure optimum growth. It prefers partly shady areas, but it can tolerate full shade. Enhance your yard’s perennial border, butterfly garden, rain garden, or moist woodland edge with this gorgeous native!

Eubotrys racemosa

Sweetbells is a deciduous shrub, which suckers (grows shoots from the base) to form colonies. Its white, fragrant, bell-shaped flowers bloom May-June. The leaves turn red in the fall. This shrub prefers moist, acidic soil. Use Sweetbells in borders and foundations, or for stabilizing slopes.

Kalmia angustifolia

Sheep Laurel is a flowering evergreen shrub with leathery, blue-green leaves. Clusters of small, rose-pink, saucer-shaped flowers bloom in late June. This shrub prefers a moist, acidic, organic soil, but will also grow in dry, sandy soil. Use it in a shrub border or woodland garden. Plant parts are toxic if ingested.

Juncus effusus

Common Rush is a grass-like, clump-forming perennial. Small, yellowish-green to brown flowers bloom June-August. Plants should be cut back in early spring. Use Common Rush in rain gardens and at edges of ponds or water gardens; it will tolerate several inches of standing water.