Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Saturday - March 20, 2010
From: Clarkston, MI
Region: Midwest
Topic: Water Gardens
Title: Wetland Plants for Michigan
Answered by: Anne Bossart
QUESTION:
I have an area on my wooded property with a wetland marsh area that often puddles with water along the perimeter in the spring. It is very shaded and wet but I wanted to camouflage the perimeter of the wetland(that is unsightly w/ tree stumps in it) with wild flowers-fern plants or whatever will live in this environment? Lots of water drainage and lots of shade. Can you please advise what will live here, thank you!ANSWER:
I am sorry that you think your wetland is unsightly ... I am sure that the wildlife that frequent the area think it is a delightful place to live!
There are plenty of plants native to your area that will thrive there, and adding them to create a sense of a garden and screen some of the view should change the area so gardener and garden residents will all be happy!
Ultimately, your plant selection will be determined by what is available at the garden center but you can begin the selection process by visiting our Native Plant database. Seaching the Recommended Species List for Michigan and narrowing the search by choosing shade/part shade and wet conditions results in a list of 28 plants that should be easy to source. A Combination Search yields many more which you may or may not be able to find.
Because you are so close to Ontario, you will also find the Evergreen.ca database quite helpful as you can search it for plants according to the habitat. As you can well imagine your Eco-region, The Temperate Deciduous Forest, straddles the US/Canada border. You can also learn more about your ecology by visiting the NatureServe website and searching their database as well. I cannot link you directly to that page, but once you find the database, if you choose "Ecological Communities and Systems" and then "Search by Location", you will find a wealth of information. You can cross reference these sources with our database.
Here are some plants we are familiar with that we think would be suitable. The lilnks will take you to the plant information page for detailed information and more images.
Perennials/Grasses
Actaea pachypoda (white baneberry)
Athyrium filix-femina (common ladyfern)
Calamagrostis canadensis (bluejoint)
Gentiana andrewsii (closed bottle gentian)
Osmunda cinnamomea (cinnamon fern)
Vernonia fasciculata (prairie ironweed)
Shrubs
Cephalanthus occidentalis (common buttonbush)
Ilex verticillata (common winterberry)
Physocarpus opulifolius (common ninebark)
Spiraea alba (white meadowsweet)
Viburnum opulus var. americanum (American cranberrybush)
Trees
Amelanchier arborea var. arborea (common serviceberry) Images
Larix laricina (tamarack) Images
More Water Gardens Questions
Plants for wet soil in turtle enclosure in Virginia
September 03, 2010 - We recently installed a turtle pond in our backyard in Arlington, VA. We built an enclosure around the pond to protect the turtle from raccoons and herons, and left some open area for the turtle to g...
view the full question and answer
Source for Saltmarsh cordgrass from Houston
April 16, 2013 - I work for a consulting firm and we are looking to do more of our wetland creation/restoration. Do you know where one can purchased Spartina alterniflora?
view the full question and answer
Eliminating Najas flexilis from a pond
December 22, 2014 - What method would be effective in eliminating Najas Flexilis from a pond?
view the full question and answer
Deterring geese from a wildflower garden
February 28, 2015 - I've moved into a home with a large pond beyond the grass yard. I intend to plant a sunflower house with lots of other plants as part of the structure, such as flowering vines, clover, mint and thyme...
view the full question and answer
Best time to plant wetland plants in NY
April 19, 2010 - Hello Mr. Smarty Plants -
I'm working on a fresh water, shoreline wetland creation project in New York State. I've created two zones of native wetland plantings, an emergent shallow marsh zone ...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |