Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
About as hard to kill as a native gets — for clay and loam ground and white spring lace flowers, and forgives neglect, and it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Oklahoma · Zones 6–8
Easy Native Plants in Oklahoma
Forgiving, hard-to-kill natives for first-time gardeners and anyone who wants a beautiful yard without the upkeep. Oklahoma sits in a landscape of Cross Timbers & mixedgrass prairie, and the natives that thrive here are the ones built for its continental, hot summers character. The list below — led by Serviceberry and Wild Geranium — is filtered to species genuinely native to Oklahoma and the wider flora of the Great Plains and hardy through zones 6–8. 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
35 native species for Oklahoma
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 6–8 · see this collection in other states.
Wild Geranium
Geranium maculatum
A beginner's native — spreading 1.5–2 ft and happy in loam soil, content with whatever you give it; it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
About as hard to kill as a native gets — 15–25 ft wide and rose-magenta flowers, and forgives neglect, flowering as it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 20–30 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Plant it and forget it: 1.5–2.5 ft tall and happy in clay and loam soil, no fuss; it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Wild Columbine
Aquilegia canadensis
About as hard to kill as a native gets — happy in rocky and loam soil and red & yellow flowers, and forgives neglect; it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Dry–average
- 1–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
A beginner's native — spreading 1.5–2 ft and 2–4 ft tall, content with whatever you give it, flowering as it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Aromatic Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
Plant it and forget it: 1.5–2.5 ft tall and spreading 2–3 ft, no fuss, and it blooms Sep through Nov.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Nov
Trumpet Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
A beginner's native — 3–6 ft wide and coral-red flowers, content with whatever you give it — it blooms Apr through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 8–15 ft
- Blooms Apr–Sep
Common Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
About as hard to kill as a native gets — reaching 1.5–3 ft and good through zone 9, and forgives neglect, and it blooms May through Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms May–Aug
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Thrives on neglect once placed right: for clay and loam ground and pink flowers; it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
A beginner's native — for clay and loam ground and good through zone 8, content with whatever you give it, flowering as it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Black-Eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta
Plant it and forget it: for sand, clay, and loam ground and 12–18 in wide, no fuss — it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Plant it and forget it: rose pink flowers and 3–4 ft tall, no fuss; it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Smooth Hydrangea
Hydrangea arborescens
Thrives on neglect once placed right: for clay and loam ground and 3–5 ft tall; it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Part shade
- Average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Foxglove Beardtongue
Penstemon digitalis
Plant it and forget it: reaching 2–4 ft and hardy in zones 3–8, no fuss, flowering as it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
About as hard to kill as a native gets — cold-hardy to zone 3 and spreading 2–3 ft, and forgives neglect; it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
American Beautyberry
Callicarpa americana
Plant it and forget it: pink (then purple fruit) flowers and 4–7 ft wide, no fuss, and it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
About as hard to kill as a native gets — happy in sand, rocky, and loam soil and bright gold flowers, and forgives neglect, flowering as it blooms May through Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Inkberry Holly
Ilex glabra
About as hard to kill as a native gets — happy in sand, clay, and loam soil and cold-hardy to zone 4, and forgives neglect — it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–8 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Red-Twig Dogwood
Cornus sericea
Thrives on neglect once placed right: white, white berries flowers and reaching 6–9 ft, and it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–9 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Fragrant Sumac
Rhus aromatica
A beginner's native — 5–10 ft wide and yellow catkins flowers, content with whatever you give it — it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Full–part sun
- Dry
- 2–6 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Common Milkweed
Asclepias syriaca
A beginner's native — cold-hardy to zone 3 and reaching 3–5 ft, content with whatever you give it, flowering as it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Virginia Creeper
Parthenocissus quinquefolia
A beginner's native — happy in clay, rocky, and loam soil and inconspicuous green flowers, content with whatever you give it, flowering as it flowers in Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Dry–average
- 30–50 ft
- Blooms Jun
Showy Milkweed
Asclepias speciosa
Thrives on neglect once placed right: 1.5–3 ft wide and 2–4 ft tall; it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
11 more also qualify: Ninebark, Stiff Goldenrod, American Elderberry, Sideoats Grama, Wild Ginger, Common Boneset, Blue Grama, Blue Vervain, Little Bluestem, Pennsylvania Sedge, Christmas Fern.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Oklahoma
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.