Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
Scented enough to plant where you brush past it, mauve-pink flowers, flowering as it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
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North Dakota · Zones 3–4
Fragrant Native Plants in North Dakota
Native plants with scented flowers or foliage — the ones that make a garden smell as good as it looks. North Dakota sits in a landscape of Northern mixedgrass prairie & Drift Prairie, and the natives that thrive here are the ones built for its cold, semi-arid character. The list below — led by Spotted Joe-Pye Weed and Swamp Milkweed — is filtered to species genuinely native to North Dakota and the wider flora of the Great Plains and hardy through zones 3–4. Fragrance is easy to overlook on paper and unforgettable in person, so plant the scented natives where you will brush past them — along a path, by a door, beside a bench. Some carry it in the flowers and some in the crushed leaves, and many of the aromatic-leaved species double as deer-resistant. Site them in sun, where warmth lifts the scent into the air.
The plants
9 native species for North Dakota
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 3–4 · see this collection in other states.
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Scented enough to plant where you brush past it, rose pink flowers, and it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Wild Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa
Carries a fragrance you'll want within reach, reaching 2–4 ft; it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Anise Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum
Worth a spot by a path or door for the scent, 2–4 ft tall; it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Chocolate Flower
Berlandiera lyrata
Worth a spot by a path or door for the scent, hardy in zones 4–10, and it blooms May through Sep.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms May–Sep
Common Milkweed
Asclepias syriaca
Fragrant in flower or leaf — site it where you'll catch it, for sand, clay, and loam ground — it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
American Elderberry
Sambucus canadensis
Fragrant in flower or leaf — site it where you'll catch it, reaching 6–12 ft — it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Showy Milkweed
Asclepias speciosa
Carries a fragrance you'll want within reach, good through zone 9, flowering as it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Prairie Dropseed
Sporobolus heterolepis
Worth a spot by a path or door for the scent, 2–3 ft wide.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Fall color
Sourcing
Where to find these in North Dakota
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.