Explore Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
Can't find the answer in our existing FAQs, submit a question to Mr. Smarty Plants.
Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.
rate this answer
Saturday - February 25, 2006
From: Dayton, NJ
Region: Northeast
Topic: Ferns, Herbs/Forbs, Shrubs
Title: Low cost, low maintenance, water tolerants native plants for New Jersey
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
I am planning a bed around my deck which will include shrubs and flowers. I am looking for plants that require a lot of water due to the wet soil conditions and poor drainage in my yard. Do you have any suggestions for low-cost, low-maintenance plants?ANSWER:
Here are a few suggestions that are commercially available:
Taller shrubs (6-12 feet)
1. Baccharis, or Sea myrtle (Baccharis halimifolia)
2. Coastal sweet-pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia)
Smaller shrubs (<6 feet):
3. Black huckleberry (Gaylussacia baccata) with orange and red leaves in the fall.
4. Bog-laurel (Kalmia polifolia), an evergreen
5. Rusty Labrador-tea (Ledum groenlandicum), also evergreen
6. Wax myrtle (Morella cerifera), available in a dwarf version and also evergreen.
Wildflowers:
7. Milk vetch (Astragalus canadensis)
8. Yellow marsh-marigold (Caltha palustris)
9. Great blue flag (Iris virginica)
10. Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
11. Wrinkle-leaf goldenrod (Solidago rugosa)
Fern:
12. Cinnamon fern (Osmunda cinnamomea)
On the Native Plants Database search page, select "Narrow your search" under Combination Search and you can search for more plants for New Jersey using plant characteristics and growing conditions. You can find commercial sources for these plants in the National Suppliers Directory.
More Ferns Questions
Ferns that smell like cucumber
September 27, 2008 - Are there ferns that smell like cucumber?
view the full question and answer
transplanting Maidenhair Fern (Adiantum capillus-veneris)
October 25, 2011 - Behind our house is a huge grotto with a spring flowing through it that runs into a creek. Because of the constant flow of water, there are many of the Maidenhair Ferns (Adiantum capillus-veneris). I ...
view the full question and answer
Are philodendrons, variegated ginger, sword ferns and palms toxic to horses?
February 24, 2009 - Are philodendrons, variegated ginger, sword ferns and palms toxic to horses?
view the full question and answer
Short or mowable plant for walkway
June 03, 2008 - I'd like a short and/or mowable plant to use as a walkway in and around a vegetable garden in upstate NY. I was planning on clover, but I want to use a native plant if possible. The native clovers ...
view the full question and answer
Plant that can move from outside to inside for Denton, TX
December 14, 2008 - I am looking for a plant that is either native to Texas or is well acclimated to the Denton TX area that can move from a covered outside area to an adjacent indoor area behind large glass walls, to a ...
view the full question and answer
 |
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. Mr. Smarty Plants wants you to be his Facebook friend. Click the Facebook icon to add yourself to Mr. Smarty Plants list of friends. |
