Winter is here. Your ground is rock hard. What should a gardener do? Writing a garden list seems like the one activity left. Coneflower, Black-eyed Susan, Moonbeam Coreopsis and False Indigo are some fabulous natives for a northern garden wish list. Why is it important to use native plants? Native plants are good for the wildlife in your neighborhood and they save you time, water and money.

Coneflower(Echinacea) is a lovely native flower that every landscape should have. This flower is a blast of pink and an abundant resource of food for bugs and animals. It makes a great companion plant with many grasses and roses and sedum.This plant's roots can thrive in and break up clay soil and tolerate dry or moist weather. It will reseed itself and spread in a friendly and non aggressive manner. Put this one at the top of your garden "to do" list.

Black-eyed Susans are one of the best native flowers you can plant. Black-eyed Susan(Rudebeckia) will bloom with abundance in orange/yellow and brown. These beautiful natives are a show stopper. They are native plants that act like bird feedersand insect feeders. They are also quite prolific and will quickly fill up a bed within a year or two with a wondrous stand of flowers. Because of their drought tolerance and sun or partial shade tolerance they are extremely versatile and can go just about anywhere. Your garden will thank you if you add even just one of these plants to the landscape.

Moonbeam Coreopsis is a delightful addition to any garden. These natives will keep on blooming well into some frosty weather. It has a unique lemon yellow color as opposed to the very common orange yellow one sees everywhere. This native perennial is of medium hight is perky,pretty and abundant. Moonbeam Coreopsis is good for your wallet, because a little goes quite far. This plant is quite adaptable as well and will also survive in drought, and clay and give you lots of flowers to enjoy.

False Indigo or Baptisia is another native plant to consider for your garden because of it's vibrant blue flowers. Experienced gardeners know that blue flowers are hard to come by. You can't go wrong with this brilliant blue flower. This native can be a little tricky to get established because of it's deep root system. This native is hardly dull with its fabulous blue flowers. This native can tolerate full sun, part shade, drought conditions, flood conditions and solid clay soil.

These are all great and versatile native plants to add to any garden. These native plants can be left untouched even after they bloom so that the wildlife can continue to enjoy them. A touch of ornamental grass, some gazing globes and some cool garden decor and your wish list is complete!

Tags: Native Plants Echinacea Coneflower Cool Garden Things Baptisia Indigo Roses

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