Native Plants

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Monday - October 18, 2010

From: Jeffersonville, IN
Region: Midwest
Topic: Shrubs
Title: Flowering shrub for Jeffersonville, IN
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

I live in Southern Indiana and am wanting to change some of my landscaping. I have 2 fairly large double pink (?) knock out bushes and another lighter shade of pink knock out bush. I am looking for a shrub that reaches 8-10 feet tall that would compliment these roses I would love to have another flowering shrub, but am open to other suggestions.

ANSWER:

We are assuming you are referring to the Knock-Out rose, which is a recently hybridized floribunda rose. The Knock-Out is a trade name, and the hybrid has surely been patented. There are very few members of the rosa genus native to North America; most, including the floribundas, are native to China. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is dedicated to the growth, propagation and protection of plants native not only to North America but to the area in which they are being grown. This plant is out of our area of expertise, but the link above will take you to a good article about them.

We will be glad to recommend a flowering shrub native to the area of Clark County for your purposes. And, along the way, we'll show you how to use our Native Plant Database to make your own choices in the future. To make your own selection, go to our Recommended Species, click on Indiana on the map, then select "shrub" under General Appearance, and indicate the amount of sunlight and moisture in the soil that will be available, and NARROW YOUR SEARCH. You appear to be in Zones 5a to 6b, so we will check each plant we recommend to be sure it will be all right in your USDA Hardiness Zone. When we searched in this way, we found 28 possibilities; by following each link you can go to our page on each shrub and see if it fits your requirements, or use our Search technique to find others you like better.

Flowering Shrubs for Jeffersonville, IN:

Cephalanthus occidentalis (Common buttonbush) - 6-12 ft., blooms white, pink June to September

Cornus racemosa (Gray dogwood) - to 16 ft., blooms white May to June

Cornus sericea (Redosier dogwood)- 6 - 12 ft., blooms white May and June

Physocarpus opulifolius (Atlantic ninebark) - 3-10 ft., blooms white, pink May and June

From our Native Plant Image Gallery: