Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Lobelia cardinalis

Family: (Campanulaceae)

(P) to 3′. Cardinal Flower. An American native with racemes of brilliant scarlet, fan-shaped flowers. Green leaves remain basal. A “must-have” for the red bed and the woodland. Hummingbirds love their nectar. Moist soil. Sun/partial shade. 3 & 6A

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Lobelia siphilitica

Family: (Campanulaceae)

(P) to 3′. Great Blue Lobelia. A native of eastern North America. Clear blue, sometimes white, inch-long, fan-shaped flowers with small, white stamens bloom on dense racemes from July to September. Brings a feeling of coolness to the garden in the hottest part of summer. Moist soil. Sun/partial shade. 3 & 6A

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Marshallia grandiflora

Family: (Asteraceae)

(P) to 18″. Barbara’s Buttons. An eastern American native. Tiny, pale pink, tubular florets with bluish-purple anthers form solitary, terminal shaggy flower heads that resemble Centaurea. Flowers rise on long stems from basal rosettes of deep green, lance-shaped leaves. Grows best in moist, humus-rich soil. Sun/partial shade. 3 & T2.

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Monarda fistulosa

Family: (Lamiaceae)

(P) to 4′. Wild Bergamot. Distinctive, sweetly aromatic foliage reminiscent of Earl Grey tea with lovely pale violet-pink blooms in terminal clusters of tubular, lipped flowers. Usually found in dry open fields and meadows, so it makes a good plant for the wildflower or natural garden. Blooms midsummer. 3 & T1

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Oenothera biennis

Family: (Onagraceae)

(A/B) to 4′. Common Evening Primrose. Eastern North America. A lovely native plant with erect stems of alternate, olive-green, lanceolate leaves up to 8 inches long and 2 inches wide. Terminal panicles of pale yellow, four-petalled, heart-shaped flowers with prominent stamens and a long green calyx, bloom from the bottom up. The flowers remain open from evening to early morning, but will remain open longer on cloudy days. They have a mild lemony scent, and bloom from mid-summer to fall on mature plants. Long narrow seedpods develop, which split open from the top to release many tiny, irregular brown seeds making it a prolific seeder. Useful for naturalizing in wild areas where their seeds will be devoured by small birds, particularly finches. Sun. 3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Agastache scrophulariifolia

Family: (Lamiaceae)

(P) to 5′. Purple Giant Hyssop. Native to eastern North America. Many terminal spikes of small, violet to rosy pink flowers on tall, branching stems. The coarsely toothed, lanceolate leaves are aromatic. Blooms July to September. Well-drained soil. Sun/partial shade. 4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Phytolacca americana

Family: (Phytolaccaceae)

(P) to 12′.  Pokeweed.  An American native.  Long, spike-like racemes of small, white, apetalous flowers have five petal-like sepals with numerous stamens and a large, green, globose, compound superior ovary resembling a segmented green pumpkin.  After flowering comes the Pokeweed’s raison d’être.  Many-seeded, shining, blackish purple berries follow, which hang in drooping clusters on bright, pink-red inflorescence stalks and produce deep red juice.  The juice from the fruit was used to colour wine and as ink.  The early-season green leaves are ovate-lanceolate and rather fleshy, and turn a reddish purple in autumn.  We love it only in our Flower Garden, in the back of the Red Bed.  BEWARE, all parts of this plant are poisonous!  Sun/partial shade.  3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Agrimonia gryposepala

Family: (Rosaceae)

(P) to 5′. Tall Agrimony. North America. Slender, erect racemes of bright yellow, five-petalled blooms open from the bottom upwards, atop upright, softly hairy plants bearing paired, coarsely toothed, chartreuse green leaves. This native of open woods and thickets makes a surprisingly attractive garden plant. A patch planted outside our greenhouses was a joy all summer. Well-drained soil. Partial shade/sun. 3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Pycnanthemum muticum

Family: (Lamiaceae)

(P) to 4′. Mountain Mint. North America. Flat-topped clusters of white to pale violet flowerheads are surrounded by large, silvery bracts that give the plants a delightful, frosted appearance. Pointed, oval, very aromatic, deep green leaves with a clean, pungent, minty fragrance. Midsummer. Moist, well-drained soil. Sun/partial shade. 4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Aquilegia canadensis

Family: (Ranunculaceae)

(P) to 2′. Honeysuckle Columbine. A native of eastern North America. Nodding blossoms with red spurs surrounding yellow petals and yellow anthers and an extended stigma. Dark stems and delicate foliage. Late spring to early summer bloomer. Self-sows readily. Sun/partial shade. 4 & T2