The ever growing list

Also known as Eurybia divaricata, White Wood Aster blooms in late summer and early fall. It is most often found to our west, in the Appalachian Mountains. While it likes open woodsy settings, and in full sun it will spread if you let it! 

This bright beauty, also known as Rudbeckia hirta, is the official flower of Maryland. You can miss it, blooming taxi-cab yellow with black eye from June through October. Many pollinators are drawn to it, and goldfinches love its seeds.

Also known as Echinacea purpurea, the purple coneflower blooms mid to late summer. Most that are found in the wild are in the midwest, and it is somewhat more unusual in the eastern U.S. It is a huge food source for bees and goldfinches!

Monarda didyma, commonly known as Oswego tea or red bergamot, is known for its  tubular flowers and aromatic foliage. Native to eastern North America, this plant attracts many pollinators and has several traditional and modern uses.

Calycanthus floridus, also known as sweetshrub, is native to the southeastern United States and is prized for its fragrant flowers. A low-maintenance plant that evolved to support beetles, it also draws bees, butterflies, and flies.

Creeping phlox (Phlox subulata) is an early bloomer! It offers significant benefits to wildlife by providing an early source of nectar for pollinators and shelter and habitat for beneficial insects and overwintering garden creatures;

Amsonia tabernaemontana is a low-maintenance perennial with soft blue spring flowers and long-season interest, culminating in a brilliant golden-yellow fall display. It is clump forming and grows into a dense, shrub-like mound.

Golden Groundsel, also known as Packera aurea or  Golden Ragwort, is another early bloomer. It produces bright yellow flowers on 10” stalks; its leave form a semi-evergreen groundcover. It grows well in moist, shady areas.

The flowers of Cornus racemosa attract pollinators, its high-fat berries feed more than 100 species of birds, and its foliage is red through autumn. Though this shrub drops its leaves in winter, the stalks remain red.

Schizachyrium, a type of grass, offers year-round cover for wildlife and is a host plant for several skipper butterflies. The seeds are a food source for songbirds and other small animals. Bumblebee queens also use it for nesting. 

Pycnanthemum muticum, or short-toothed mountain mint, is a  pollinator magnet! Stalks and dried seedheads last  through winter as shelter for small wildlife and nesting material for birds . Leaves can be used to make  tea. 

Physostegia virginiana, or Obedient Plant, is a late bloomer with pink/lavender flowers. Growing up to 5 feet tall, it can be aggressive, like its relatives in the mint family. It feeds pollinators, including bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.