5 Native Plants for the Upper Midwest

The Upper Midwest is home to some varied and unique scenery and landscapes! Much of the Midwest is known not only for its fertile cropland but also for its rolling hills and prairies.

Today, we'll discuss five native plants from the Northern Midwest United States of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota, Wisconsin, and sometimes including Kansas and Missouri. Native plants are defined as plants that have been established in a given area for hundreds of years.

It is challenging to pinpoint an exact geographical boundary, as plants do not follow the same boundaries people do, so in Part Five of Six of our Native Regional Plants Series, we will focus on natives that grow in the Upper Midwest States.

Top Natives For The Upper Midwestern States
Honorable Mentions
Supporting Plants in the Upper Midwest US Climate
Tough Native Hardiness

Top Natives For The Upper Midwestern States

These plants have adapted to the windy and harsh environments, providing erosion control and holding the soil where it belongs with deep roots. From cold winters, hot summers, and strong storms, to continuously changing weather, the Midwestern States will put any plant to the test!

It is challenging to pinpoint an exact geographical boundary, as plants do not follow the same boundaries people do, so here are natives typically found growing in the Northern portion of the Midwest, spanning USDA planting zones 2 through 6.

1. White Spruce Trees (Picea glauca)

Featuring light green evergreen foliage with a grayish to silver overcast, the White Spruce Tree provides an excellent presence year-round. The short needles are soft to the touch, and Spruce does not require any pruning to help it keep its pyramidal shape. It is deer-resistant and will provide a fair amount of protection during the winter months. The Black Hills Spruce (Picea glauca 'Densata') is an excellent darker-needled variety of White Spruce with short, pointed needles that can be found throughout the Upper Midwest!

Long-Lived Native Evergreen
Excellent Natural Pyramidal Form
Dark Green Needles with a Bluish-Gray Overcast
Extremely Cold Hardy
Mature Height 40 - 60 feet
Mature Spread 15 - 25 feet

Spruce trees are popular, ornamental evergreen conifers. They are ideal for use as windbreaks, privacy screens, and accent plantings in your yard.

2. Cottonwood (Populus deltoides)

Reaching over 70 feet tall at maturity, Cottonwood trees are a formidable addition to any landscape. Triangular leaves balance on incredibly thin stems, allowing them to quake in the wind and create a very soothing sound. In the fall, the leaves turn a gorgeous yellow, and in the winter, the intricate gray bark provides some interest to an otherwise dreary season. The gorgeous riparian native Cottonwood Tree creates biodiversity and habitat in a hurry!

Triangular Leaves Wave In The Wind
Great Yellow Fall Color
Dependable & Fast-Growing
Highly Adaptable - Thrives in Almost Any Soil Type
Bird-Friendly Trees
Mature Height 60 - 90 Feet
Mature Spread 30 - 60 Feet

These mighty native shade trees grow fast and won't mind occasional flooding and withstand harsh storms and winds throughout a wide range of the U.S.!

3. Red Osier Dogwood

The Redosier Dogwood is very well known as the Red Twig Dogwood because of its bright red stems in the winter! Growing pretty large, these 8-12 foot tall and nearly as wide shrubs handle moist to average garden conditions in the sun. Redosier is a great pollinator and bird-friendly bush because of its flat-topped white spring flower clusters and white berries in the fall.

Lush Green Foliage
White Flowers Become White Berries
Pollinator & Bird-Friendly
Dramatic Red Stems All Winter
Suckering Naturalizing Shrubs

All growing season, you will enjoy privacy and screening from their green leaves before going burgundy to purple in the fall before showing off those red stems all winter long!

4. Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)

Purple Coneflowers are easy-to-grow and popular prairie natives that produce large, showy pinkish-purple, daisy-like flowers with a darker pincushion-like center cone. Smart landscapes rely on rugged, low-maintenance native perennials that come back year after year and produce long-lasting blooms all season long! You'll love watching butterflies and wonderful Goldfinch birds flit from flower to flower, and so will your friends and family. Hummingbirds and other beneficial pollinators will also visit your garden adding to the spectacular show!

Pinkish-Purple Daisy-Like Flowers
Hummingbird & Pollinator Friendly
Hardy Perennial Mounds
Drought Tolerant & Easy to Grow

Any xeric landscape, Rock Garden, mixed perennial border, or Cottage garden needs these long-lasting flowers! Coneflowers do double duty when it comes to benefiting wildlife.

5. Native Ornamental Grasses

Native Grasses - The Upper Midwest is home to all of the Tall and Short Grass Prairies, and the Upper Midwest is home to these large swaths of grassland. These deep-rooted perennial grasses look great and need very little care. The airy plumes add summer, fall, and winter interest, bird seed, and waving motion to the landscape. The grassy blades form clumps, fountains, or spread into large mats, depending on the variety.

Full Sun Perennial Plants
Fine-Textured Fountains & Clumping/Spreading Plants
Long-Lasting Plumes
Bird-Friendly
Wide Range of Sizes, Types & Growing Zones
Extremely Hardy & Adaptable

There is a huge variety of Ornamental Grasses available for you to choose from, which are native, rugged, and beautiful in your garden!

Honorable Mentions

Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) is are native tree that is fast-growing and develops a purple-bronze winter color. The spikey short needles can range from silver-blue to dark green for the rest of the year. Red Cedar thrives in the harshest conditions around.

Swamp Rose - a pretty single-petalled pink fragrant Rose with yellow centers. Nectar-feeding butterflies and pollen-feeding native bees love these flowers as much as you will! The 3-6 foot tall and wide shrubs have great green foliage, and when fall arrives, you get fancy red rose hips too! Handling higher moisture environments and even wet soil from flooding.

Aromatic Aster - A fall-blooming fragrant perennial that is loved by bees, and migrating Monarch butterflies benefit from these sky-blue flowers! The tiny petals look like fringe, and these perennials look like blue mist in the late-season garden.

Great Blue Lobelia - A big blue Cardinal flower, the Great Blue Lobelia has big spikes of clear purplish-blue flowers with fancy, lipped florets. The butterflies and hummingbirds love this fantastic water garden plant.

Supporting Plants in the Upper Midwest US Climate

How can you help your plants along in the Upper Midwest? There are a few key tactics to remember to give your new plants the best start and keep them growing beautifully. One good thing about the North Midwestern area is the amount of fertile soil, ample moisture access, plus year-round mild to warm conditions.

Choose native plants for your Growing Zone and weather so they need less care once established. Confirm sunlight, then find your Hardiness Zone. Learn how to choose Perennials and Shrubs. Browse Native Plants For Your State, or contact your local County Extension Office.
If your soil has Poor Drainage or stays soggy, grow up with raised beds, berms, or large planters to control soil and water right where plants need it.
To avoid splash-back mud and fungal issues, always Water At The Roots and mulch the root zone. Use the Finger Test to check moisture. Drip irrigation and soaker hoses under mulch save time.
Add a 3–4 inch mulch layer using shredded bark, Compost, and/or Arborist Mulch to hold moisture, insulate roots, and build Soil Health.
Plant with Nature Hills Root Booster to support feeder roots with mycorrhizal fungi for better moisture uptake and faster nutrient breakdown.

Tough Native Hardiness

These Native plants are already adapted to the soils and climate of the area, increasing their chances of success.

Including these trees, shrubs, and plants in your Upper Midwest landscape not only provides beauty to your space but also enriches the habitat available for pollinators and wildlife by providing them shelter and food resources!

Be amazed at how they thrive and watch the wildlife around you thrive as well!

Nature Hills ships plants with mature root systems that establish faster in your Upper Midwest landscape and pump out bigger and more bountiful blooms year after year!

Happy Planting!

Frequently Asked Questions

Which native plants grow best in the Upper Midwest for full sun, part shade, or shade?

Several native plants thrive across the Upper Midwest in USDA zones 2 through 6 depending on light conditions. White Spruce (Picea glauca) and Cottonwood (Populus deltoides) perform best in full sun, with White Spruce tolerating some shade as it matures to 40 to 60 feet. For shadier spots, look to native understory plants suited to woodland edges common throughout Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and surrounding states. Browse the full Native Plants for the Upper Midwest collection at Nature Hills to match the right plant to your specific light conditions and zone.

How do I choose the right native plants for my soil type, moisture level, and drainage?

Matching native plants to your site conditions is the key to long-term success, and the Upper Midwest offers natives suited to nearly every situation. Plants like White Spruce and Cottonwood thrive in well-drained to moist soils across USDA zones 2 through 6, while prairie natives generally prefer the drier, well-drained conditions found in open landscapes. Before planting, test your soil pH and drainage by digging a hole 12 inches deep, filling it with water, and checking how quickly it drains. Use those results to match your site to the appropriate native species, and visit naturehills.com to filter plants by zone and soil preference for your specific location.

What did the Upper Midwest landscape look like before farming, and why does it matter for choosing native plants today?

Before widespread farming, the Upper Midwest was dominated by vast rolling prairies, wetlands, and mixed woodlands that shaped the evolution of its native plants across USDA zones 2 through 6. These plants developed deep root systems and extreme resilience to handle cold winters, hot summers, and relentless wind and erosion. That evolutionary history is exactly why natives like White Spruce and Cottonwood outperform non-native alternatives in these conditions today. When selecting plants for your Upper Midwest landscape, prioritize species that are documented as native to your specific state and zone, since those plants are already proven survivors in your local soil and climate conditions.

Which native shrubs and perennials do well in wet or poorly drained soil in the Upper Midwest?

For wet or poorly drained sites in the Upper Midwest, Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) is an outstanding native shrub that thrives in boggy conditions and grows in zones 5 through 9, reaching 6 to 12 feet tall while providing excellent wildlife value. Native perennials like Blue Flag Iris (Iris virginica) and Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) are also well-suited to consistently moist or flooded soils across much of the region in zones 3 through 6. Plant these in fall or early spring to allow root systems to establish before the growing season. Visit Nature Hills to browse our selection of moisture-tolerant native shrubs and perennials suited to Upper Midwest conditions.

What native plants should I use in low-lying or wet areas of my yard?

For low-lying or wet areas in the Upper Midwest, Cottonwood (Populus deltoides) is an excellent native choice, as it naturally thrives in moist soils along rivers and floodplains and can reach over 70 feet tall at maturity. Native wetland-tolerant plants are well-adapted to zones 2 through 6 and have deep root systems that help control erosion and stabilize soil in problem areas. Visit naturehills.com to browse our selection of moisture-tolerant native trees and shrubs suited to your specific planting zone.

How do I know which native plants are truly native to the Upper Midwest versus just regionally adapted?

True native plants are defined as species that have been naturally established in a given area for hundreds of years, as opposed to introduced or regionally adapted cultivars that have simply proven tolerant of local conditions. The Upper Midwest spans USDA hardiness zones 2 through 6, covering states like Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Nebraska, North and South Dakota, and Wisconsin, and reliable natives will have originated and evolved within this range. Keep in mind that plants do not follow political boundaries, so a species native to one part of this region may not be native to another. To confirm true nativity, cross-reference any plant with your state's native plant society resources or university extension databases before purchasing.

When is the best time to plant native perennials and shrubs in the Upper Midwest?

The best time to plant native perennials and shrubs in the Upper Midwest (USDA zones 2 through 6) is during spring or fall when temperatures are cooler and rainfall is more consistent, reducing transplant stress. Fall planting, ideally 6 weeks before the ground freezes, allows roots to establish before winter dormancy sets in. Spring planting should happen after the last frost date, which varies widely across the region from late April in southern areas to late May further north. Water thoroughly at planting and apply 2 to 3 inches of mulch around the root zone to retain moisture and protect roots through the region's harsh temperature swings.

Should I start native plants from seed, plugs, bare-root plants, or container plants?

Container plants and bare-root stock from a reputable nursery give Upper Midwest gardeners the best head start, especially in the shorter growing seasons of zones 2 through 5. Bare-root plants are typically planted in early spring before bud break, while container plants offer more flexibility from spring through early fall. Starting natives from seed is rewarding but can take years before plants establish, and many require cold stratification periods of 60 to 90 days to break dormancy. For reliable results with species like White Spruce or Cottonwood, order container or bare-root plants from a trusted source like Nature Hills and plant them in early spring to allow maximum root development before winter.

How do I care for newly planted Upper Midwest native plants through their first winter?

Newly planted Upper Midwest natives in zones 2 through 6 need extra attention before the ground freezes, typically by late October or November depending on your location. Apply 2 to 3 inches of mulch around the base of trees and shrubs to regulate soil temperature and retain moisture through freeze-thaw cycles. Deep water your plants thoroughly before the first hard frost so roots go into winter well hydrated, and for smaller perennials, consider a burlap wind screen during the first season while root systems establish. Focus your efforts on watering and mulching in early fall, and trust that natives like White Spruce and Cottonwood are bred for Midwestern extremes and will reward that first-year care with vigorous growth come spring.

Can I mix native plants with non-native garden plants, or should I keep them in a dedicated native garden bed?

You can absolutely mix native and non-native plants in the same garden beds, and many successful gardens do exactly that. The key is matching plants by their cultural needs, since Upper Midwest natives like White Spruce and Cottonwood are adapted to USDA zones 2 through 6 and thrive in conditions that some ornamental exotics may not tolerate. Grouping plants with similar water, soil, and sun requirements will keep both native and non-native selections healthy regardless of their origin. Start by identifying your site conditions, then choose companions that share those requirements rather than organizing beds strictly by plant origin.

5 Spectacular Native Plants for the Upper Midwest