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!
Tuliptree is a large, fast-growing, flowering, wildlife-friendly deciduous tree. Yellow-and-orange bicolor flowers blooming May-June are valued by bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Flowers lead to ornamental, cone-shaped fruits bearing numerous winged seeds. Large, tulip-shaped leaves give this tree its common name. It is favored by wildlife for nest sites, cover, and food. Tuliptree is a host plant for butterfly and moth larvae (caterpillars), including Tuliptree Silkmoth (Callosamia angulifera) and Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus). Use it as a specimen tree or shade tree for your large yard or landscape.
Spicebush is a deciduous shrub, which grows with a rounded form. The fragrant white-yellow-green flower clusters bloom in March. Use Spicebush as a shrub border, in naturalized areas, or along woodland edges around your yard.
Sea Lavender’s loose and airy, blue-violet flowers resemble Baby’s Breath and bloom July-August. The flowers appear in clumping masses on wiry, nearly leafless stems. Use Sea Lavender in your perennial border, rock garden, seaside garden, or as fresh-cut or dried flowers in bouquets.
The tiny, purple flowers of Lavender Thrift resemble Baby’s Breath, and bloom June-August, adding a delicate accent of color to your yard. This salt-tolerant plant grows in a variety of consistently moist, well-drained soils. For best appeal, plant in masses to add large swaths of wispy texture to your garden. Lavender Thrift also makes a lovely addition to dried flower arrangements.
Dense Blazing Star is a tall, native perennial. Spikes of fluffy, purple flowers on rigid stalks bloom from the top down July-August. While this plant prefers moist fertile soil, it will tolerate poor, dry soil. Dense Blazing Star is a valuable food plant for native bees and bumblebees. Plant in masses or as vertical accents in borders.
Eastern Blazing Star is a tall, upright perennial. Rose, lavender, or white feathery flowers open from top to bottom from August-October, and make excellent cut or dried flowers. Eastern Blazing Star is a valuable nectar plant for native bees and bumblebees. It does well in dry soils or rocky soils. Use it in borders, meadows, and naturalized areas, and as vertical accent plants.
Shaggy Blazing Star is a graceful perennial with narrow, grass-like foliage. Spikes of purple flowers bloom from August-October. Flowers open first at the top of the stem and continue blooming downward. This plant mixes well with native grasses. Shaggy Blazing Star is a nectar plant for Monarch butterflies, and its seeds are a food source for birds. Use it in borders, edges, and meadows.