Scarlet Beebalm
Monarda didyma
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, happy in clay and loam soil, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2.5–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Louisiana · Zones 8–9
Native Rain Garden Plants in Louisiana
Moisture-loving natives for rain gardens, pond edges, downspout basins, and the low spots that stay soggy after a storm. For Louisiana, the right natives are shaped by Mississippi Delta & Gulf Coast Prairie and a hot, humid subtropical climate. Every species below, from Scarlet Beebalm and Spotted Joe-Pye Weed to the rest of the list, is genuinely native to Louisiana and the wider flora of the Southeast and hardy through zones 8–9. A rain garden catches roof and driveway runoff and lets it soak in instead of rushing to the storm drain, and these natives are built for that boom-and-bust of flood then dry. Put the most water-tolerant species in the wet center and the merely moisture-loving ones up on the sloped edges. Once established they handle both the standing water and the dry weeks between storms.
The plants
24 native species for Louisiana
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 8–9 · see this collection in other states.
Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, reaching 4–7 ft, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, 2–4 ft wide, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, happy in clay and loam soil, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, 15–25 ft tall, where it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, hardy in zones 3–8, where it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, spreading 2–3 ft, where it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, for clay and loam ground, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, spreading 1–2 ft, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, deep blue flowers, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, white, red berries flowers, where it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, rose pink flowers, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, happy in clay and loam soil, where it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Common Boneset
Eupatorium perfoliatum
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, for clay and loam ground, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, for clay and loam ground, where it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Inkberry Holly
Ilex glabra
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, spreading 4–8 ft, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–8 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Blue Vervain
Verbena hastata
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, good through zone 8, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
American Elderberry
Sambucus canadensis
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, happy in clay and loam soil, where it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Switchgrass
Panicum virgatum
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, for sand, clay, and loam ground.
- Full–part sun
- Dry to wet
- 3–6 ft
- Fall color
Cinnamon Fern
Osmundastrum cinnamomeum
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, 2–4 ft tall.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Foliage
Big Bluestem
Andropogon gerardii
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, 2–3 ft wide.
- Full sun
- Dry to wet
- 4–7 ft
- Fall color
Sourcing
Where to find these in Louisiana
Seeds & live plants on Amazon
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