USDA Zone 3 Plants

The Purple Echinacea is a coneflower that is a sturdy perennial that is native to the Midwest, Southeast and naturalized throughout the Northeast. One of the most popular wildflowers, the Purple Coneflower can withstand dry conditions, though it performs best in cooler seasons, without irrigation. This variety readily reseeds itself.

The Common Asclepias, also known as Butterfly Weed or Common Milkweed, is the only plant that Monarch butterflies lay their eggs on! This variety provides an abundant food source for Monarchs, but have been declining in the recent years due in part to suburban development and the increased efficiency of herbicides. The Common Asclepias spreads readily by seed and underground rhizomes and its taproot can withstand drought. This Butterfly Weed is one of the easiest and fastest to establish of the Milkweeds. Enjoy watching beautiful Monarchs visit on a daily basis!

The Stiff Goldenrod Solidago produces stunning, large and slightly flat golden flowers that are bee attracting powerhouses! These beautiful golden flowers bloom later in summer and into early fall. In fall, the leaves will turn a beautiful shade of red.

Aromatic Aster, also known as Aster oblongifolius or Symphyotrichum oblongifolium, is a hardy native perennial with a dense, bushy habit. Abundant lavender-purple flowers with yellow centers bloom in autumn, providing valuable late-season nectar for pollinators. The foliage releases a pleasant fragrance when brushed. Well suited to borders and native plantings, this compact aster thrives in full sun and well-drained soil and becomes drought tolerant once established.

The Sweet Joe Pye Weed Eutrochium, also know as Purple Joe Pye Weed, is easy to grow and its vanilla-scented flowers are irresistible for Monarchs, Swallowtails and many other butterflies. If you want to attract butterflies to your garden, this is the plant variety for you! The Sweet Joe Pye Weed can reach up to 7 feet high and does great in shady locations. This beautiful flower blooms pale pink to pale purple flowers from July to September.

Asclepias incarnata ‘Ice Ballet’, often called White Swamp Milkweed, is a selected form of the native Swamp Milkweed long found along wetlands, marsh edges, and moist prairies across North America, where it has served for generations as an essential host plant for monarch caterpillars. This cultivar stands out for its showy clusters of pure white, vanilla-scented flowers that bloom in midsummer, contrasting beautifully with its upright stems and narrow, deep-green leaves.

Looking like a plucked daisy, this Rudbeckia sports long, thin green sepals and a giant, pointy deep purple to black cone (the size and shape of a large strawberry)! Wonderfully attention-getting in the garden, 'Green Wizard' is also welcome as an Everlasting, where its ultra-strong stems support these stylish cones for months on end, adding interesting texture and tall vertical effect to bouquets, centerpieces, and decorations of all types.

The Blue False Indigo Baptisia is the most popular Baptisias around as it provides early deep blue blooms in a beautiful bushy shape. This flower variety produces very attractive deep blue blooms and great bushy foliage that can be enjoyed all summer long. The Blue Indigo can grow up to 4' in height and its branching habit make wide spacing advisable in home landscaping.

The Wild Bergamot Monarda is the best bee balm for dry locations and produces beautiful violet blooms that have a wonderful scent! This variety has great mid-summer blooms, later than any other Monardas. The Wild Bergamot will attract a large amount of butterflies, bees and hummingbirds!

Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya) is a classic North American prairie perennial long valued by Indigenous peoples and early settlers, and today it remains a signature species of tallgrass prairies and restoration plantings. It produces tall, upright spikes crowded with vivid purple, nectar-rich flowers that bloom from the top down, drawing in butterflies, bees, and especially monarchs in late summer.

Spotted Joe Pye Weed, is a distinctive perennial native to North America's moist meadows and woodlands. Named after Joe Pye, a Native American herbalist, this plant has a rich history in traditional medicine. It is recognized for its tall, elegant growth, typically reaching heights of 4 to 6 feet, and its unique spotted stems that give it its common name.

The Gayfeather Liatris is an excellent variety at attracting butterflies, bees and hummingbirds and matures to 4' in wet to mesic soil conditions. Like many Liatris species, when it begins to bloom it starts at the top and works its way down. This is an excellent Liatris species to plant in wet-medium prairies and perennial gardens and it makes to be a perfect cut flower.

The Black Eyed Susan Rudbeckia is a wonderful, stiff upright flower that is stunning and will definitely grab your attention. This variety is an annual or short lived perennial native to the eastern United States. The Black Eyed Susan is probably the most common of all American wildflowers. The characteristic brown, domed center is surrounded by bright yellow ray florets that thrives in most soils in full sun. The Black Eyed Susan is a true sunshine worshiper that forgives neglect.

The Showy Asclepias is just like its name, a beautiful showy plant that is an excellent nectar sources for butterflies and hummingbirds! This Butterfly Weed variety is similar to Common Milkweed, but its pinkish-purple flowers have longer petals that taper more and are covered with fine hairs. The Showy Asclepias will attract butterflies and hummingbirds, especially Queen and Monarch butterflies. This plant is aggressive and should be thinned every year.

Button Blazing Star (Liatris aspera) is a native wildflower of the central and eastern United States, historically found in dry prairies, savannas, and open woodlands where its tough, deep-rooted nature helped it thrive in harsh conditions. It is known for its thick, sturdy stems topped with rounded, button-like clusters of rosy-purple flowers that open irregularly along the spike, creating a charming, textural look that pollinators—especially bees and butterflies—love.

Gloriosa daisies, also known as Rudbeckia hirta 'Gloriosa,' are a vibrant and dynamic variety of the traditional Black-eyed Susan, renowned for their striking appearance and robust growth. Originating from North America, these daisies have been cultivated since the 18th century and have become a staple in gardens for their cheerful and resilient nature. Gloriosa daisies are characterized by their large, radiant blooms with a distinctive color gradient, featuring fiery, orange to red petals with a dark, central cone.

The Pale Purple Echinacea is a coneflower that blooms its pale purple to pink blooms in the early summer before most other flowers! This beautiful coneflower is loved for its nectar by hummingbirds and butterflies and will grow up to 3 feet tall. Try planting this variety with the Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), which has a deeper purple flower and will bloom just when Pale Purple Coneflower bloom cycle is ending. Planting these two together will give you many, many weeks of beautiful, bright Echinacea blooms.

The Whorled Asclepias is a beautiful brilliant white flower that will grow anywhere and bees, butterflies and hummingbirds love it! This Butterfly Weed variety is native to the Midwest but can grow almost anywhere is the USA and provides nectar to many pollinators. This easy to grow, attractive perennial blooms mid to late summer and will spread easily without thinning.

The Perennial Lupine produces beautiful spikes of purple colored flowers that will bloom from late spring throughout summer! This Lupine variety grows to be about 18-36” tall with vibrant spikes. This variety can be planted throughout a flower meadow or in the garden bed. The Perennial is easy to establish and grow, and Lupines are deer resistant and blooms year after year.

, historically thriving in dry prairies, foothills, and rangelands where its exceptionally deep root system—often reaching several feet down—helped it endure drought and grazing. This species is known for its compact stature and dense spikes of bright purple, “dotted” flower clusters spaced neatly along the stem, each rich in nectar and highly attractive to bees, butterflies, and especially migrating monarchs.

Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) is a native North American prairie grass with a rich history as a foundational species in tallgrass ecosystems, valued for its resilience and ecological benefits. It features fine-textured, upright blue-green blades that turn striking shades of red, orange, and bronze in the fall, reaching about 2–4 feet tall. Adapted to a wide range of soils, it thrives in full sun with minimal water or fertilizer once established, making it ideal for xeriscaping and low-maintenance landscapes.

Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum) is a native North American herb with a rich history and distinctive characteristics. Historically used by Indigenous peoples for its medicinal properties, Boneset earned its name from its traditional use in treating fevers and musculoskeletal ailments. Originating from the eastern United States, this perennial plant is recognized for its unique features and growing habits. Boneset typically grows to a height of 3 to 4 feet and has a bushy, upright growth habit.

At maturity, the Rattlesnake Master Eryngium produces uniquely shaped beautiful white blooms that reach up to 4 feet high! This variety prefers moist soils and sites with full sun to partial shade. The Rattlesnake Master has been used medicinally by American Indians as a diaphoretic.

The pretty blossoms of Yellow (Coneflower) consists of bright skirts of hard to find yellow daisy-like petals surrounding a brown bristly center. This variety's deep taproot allows the coneflower to survive in very dry conditions, but it is also happy in humus-rich garden soil and full sun. The Yellow Coneflower is visited by nectar seeking butterflies in June and small seed eating birds in the fall.

The Sneezeweed Helenium produces a numerous amount of beautiful, large, daisy-like yellow flowers that bloom in the late summer and early autumn! Despite its common name, this variety presents no problems for most allergy sufferers.

S. and Canadian prairies, historically thriving in moist meadows and open grasslands and long recognized for its exceptional value to monarch butterflies, which flock to its nectar-rich blooms during migration. It produces tall, airy stems topped with loose spikes of vibrant, feathery purple flowers, each with elongated styles that give the blossoms a delicate, wispy appearance. The plant’s narrow leaves form an attractive upright clump, and its blooms appear later in the season, providing important late-summer nectar.

The Canada Wildrye is a cool-season bunchgrass grain variety that can be found throughout Canada and the U.S. except in the southeastern states. It is typically found in prairies, open woods, fields and disturbed sites. This grain tends to be short-lived but provides quick stabilization for erosion control seedings, and it makes a good, early successional component of prairie mixtures. The Canada Wildrye provides quality forage for livestock and wildlife.

Dwarf Blazing Star (Liatris cylindracea) is a petite, drought-hardy species native to the dry prairies, glades, and rocky outcrops of the central and eastern United States, where its deep taproot allowed it to persist through challenging conditions. Unlike the taller prairie Liatris types, L. cylindracea stays low and compact, often producing short, sturdy flower spikes lined with cylindrical clusters of vivid purple blooms that open from the top down and draw in bees, butterflies, and other pollinators.

The Buffalo Grass is a warm-season grass that is the predominant component of the shortgrass prairies of the Great Plains. Once established, it is extremely drought tolerant and tough. It can be used as a xeriscape lawn grass for water conservation, and it is a common component in range mixtures. White Tailed Deer, Bison and Prairie Dogs utilize it for forage, and it is a larval host for the Green Skipper. Plants are stoloniferous and can invade flower beds if an edging or barrier is not used.

The Obedient Plant Physostegia is a sun-loving flowering plant that produces pink flowers that blooms late summer and into fall! This variety spreads very fast with a large underground root system.

The Sideoats Grama is a warm-season bunchgrass grain variety that is easy to grow and native throughout much of North America. The ornamental and distinctive seed spikes hang from only one side of the stalk, and these make good fresh or dried cuttings. This grain prefers full sun and moderate to dry soils. The Sideoats Grama is recommended for meadow and prairie plantings, beds & borders, and as a component of forage mixes for livestock and wildlife.