Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
A beginner's native — 3–4 ft tall and rose pink flowers, content with whatever you give it; it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Michigan · Zones 4–6
Easy Native Plants in Michigan
Forgiving, hard-to-kill natives for first-time gardeners and anyone who wants a beautiful yard without the upkeep. Michigan sits in a landscape of Great Lakes forest & dune, and the natives that thrive here are the ones built for its humid continental, lake-moderated character. The list below — led by Swamp Milkweed and Arrowwood Viburnum — is filtered to species genuinely native to Michigan and the wider flora of the Midwest and hardy through zones 4–6. The easiest natives are the ones already adapted to your local soil and rainfall, so they need no fertilizer, no irrigation after year one, and no winter coddling. Start with these, plant them where their light and moisture needs are genuinely met, mulch the first year, and the maintenance shrinks to a single late-winter cleanup. Right plant, right place does ninety percent of the work.
The plants
31 native species for Michigan
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 4–6 · see this collection in other states.
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
Plant it and forget it: creamy white flowers and spreading 6–10 ft, no fuss, flowering as it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
About as hard to kill as a native gets — happy in clay and loam soil and cold-hardy to zone 3, and forgives neglect, and it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Wild Columbine
Aquilegia canadensis
Thrives on neglect once placed right: red & yellow flowers and spreading 12–18 in — it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Dry–average
- 1–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Common Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
A beginner's native — 1.5–2 ft wide and for sand, clay, rocky, and loam ground, content with whatever you give it — it blooms May through Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms May–Aug
Smooth Hydrangea
Hydrangea arborescens
About as hard to kill as a native gets — happy in clay and loam soil and 3–5 ft tall, and forgives neglect; it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Part shade
- Average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Aromatic Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
About as hard to kill as a native gets — spreading 2–3 ft and good through zone 8, and forgives neglect — it blooms Sep through Nov.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Nov
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
About as hard to kill as a native gets — rosy purple flowers and 1.5–2 ft wide, and forgives neglect; it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Trumpet Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
Plant it and forget it: coral-red flowers and good through zone 9, no fuss — it blooms Apr through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 8–15 ft
- Blooms Apr–Sep
Foxglove Beardtongue
Penstemon digitalis
Plant it and forget it: white flowers and spreading 1–2 ft, no fuss — it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Wild Geranium
Geranium maculatum
A beginner's native — happy in loam soil and 1.5–2 ft wide, content with whatever you give it — it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Plant it and forget it: good through zone 9 and 2–4 ft tall, no fuss, flowering as it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
Plant it and forget it: happy in clay and loam soil and royal purple flowers, no fuss — it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Black-Eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta
Thrives on neglect once placed right: cold-hardy to zone 3 and for sand, clay, and loam ground, flowering as it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Thrives on neglect once placed right: good through zone 8 and chartreuse-gold flowers, flowering as it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
Thrives on neglect once placed right: happy in clay, rocky, and loam soil and cold-hardy to zone 4; it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 20–30 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
Thrives on neglect once placed right: 1.5–2 ft tall and good through zone 9, and it blooms May through Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Red-Twig Dogwood
Cornus sericea
Thrives on neglect once placed right: 6–10 ft wide and for clay and loam ground; it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–9 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Common Boneset
Eupatorium perfoliatum
A beginner's native — cold-hardy to zone 3 and foamy white flowers, content with whatever you give it, flowering as it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Ninebark
Physocarpus opulifolius
About as hard to kill as a native gets — happy in clay, rocky, and loam soil and white to pink flowers, and forgives neglect, and it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry to wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Sideoats Grama
Bouteloua curtipendula
A beginner's native — oat-like, orange anthers flowers and hardy in zones 4–9, content with whatever you give it, and it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Wild Ginger
Asarum canadense
Plant it and forget it: happy in loam soil and good through zone 7, no fuss, and it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 4–8 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Stiff Goldenrod
Solidago rigida
Thrives on neglect once placed right: flat gold heads flowers and good through zone 9, flowering as it blooms Aug through Oct.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Aug–Oct
Fragrant Sumac
Rhus aromatica
Thrives on neglect once placed right: for sand, clay, rocky, and loam ground and cold-hardy to zone 3, flowering as it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Full–part sun
- Dry
- 2–6 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
7 more also qualify: Common Milkweed, American Elderberry, Blue Vervain, Virginia Creeper, Christmas Fern, Pennsylvania Sedge, Little Bluestem.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Michigan
Seeds & live plants on Amazon
Seed packets, plugs, and starter plants for many of these species ship to your door.
Browse on AmazonSome links here are affiliate links — we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. The surest source of locally-adapted stock is a native-plant nursery or a native plant society sale in your area.