*Wisconsin Special Concern Species Highlighted In Red
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Common Name: Lavender Giant Hyssop
Scientific Name: Agastache foenoculum Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: The plant comes from the Mint Family and, like many plants in that family, the leaves were used for tea and a flavoring for cooking. The leaves also have a flavor similar to licorice, but it is a lot healthier! |
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Common Name: Leadplant
Scientific Name: Amorphia canescens Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: This plant was used by Native Americans to attract buffalo. A root concoction was made that they put on their clothing that had power to attract bison. Then, they believed it would provide good luck and allow them to kill as many bison as they wanted. |
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Common Name: Canada Anemone
Scientific Name: Anemone canadensis Full Height: 1-2' Bloom Season:Spring Note: The "windflower" common names comes from the Greek translation of Anemos. It signifies that the wind will blow open the flower petals. Medicinally, the plant was also used for pain relief and relaxation needs. |
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Common Name: Wild Columbine
Scientific Name: Aquilegia canadensis Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Spring Note: While the plant is toxic to many herbivores, it is edible to humans. The flower adds a colorful addition to salads! Also, if you run out of shampoo, you could boil the plant to create a hair washing liquid. |
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Common Name: Jack-In-The-Pulpit
Scientific Name: Arisaema triphyllum Full Height: 1-2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: The plant was only used after it had been dried for months. The root can be thinly cut and eaten like potato chips. It was also believed that Native American women used the dried herb as a method of birth control. |
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Common Name: Pale Indian-Plantain
Scientific Name: Arnoglossum atriplicifolium Full Height: 6-7' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: In order to set fertile seed, the florets require cross-pollination by insects. Poultice of Pale Indian-Plantain was once applied heal cuts, bruises, cancers, and draw out poisonous substances. |
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Common Name: Common Milkweed
Scientific Name: Asclepias syriaca Full Height: 5-6' Bloom Season: Summer Notes: The plant contains cardiac glycosides, allied to digitalins used in treating some heart disease. These glycosides, when absorbed by monarch butterfly larval whose sole source of food is milkweed foliage, make the larvae and adult butterflies toxic to birds and other predators. |
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Common Name: Swamp Milkweed
Scientific Name: Asclepias incarnata Full Height: 4-5' Bloom Season: Late Summer Notes: While the plant is not edible to humans, smell the flowers; you might get a whiff similar to cinnamon. Use a small amount of the roots in a tea if you are trying to get rid of parasitic worms! |
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Common Name: Butterflyweed
Scientific Name: Asclepias tuberosa Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: While the name suggests a colorful new herbal selection now sold legally in Colorado, the fibers isolated from the stem of this plant were once used in combination with hemp fibers to ensure the longevity of products like rope, cordage, and cloth. A poultice of the smashed root historically was applied to legs and shoes for additional running strength. |
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Common Name: Clammy False Foxglove
Scientific Name: Aureolaria pedicularia Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: Containing specialized roots called haustoria, this hemiparasitic plant primarily connects with oak trees to absorb sugars and proteins for its survival. In many areas it as become endangered due to forest fires and deer overgrazing. |
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Common Name: White Wild Indigo
Scientific Name: Baptisia alba Full Height: 4' Bloom Season: Late Spring Note: This stunning legume is remarkably deep rooted enabling it to sustain long periods of drought. It was also used by Native Americans and early settlers to create a blue dye, and is reputed to have been used in making of Union soldier's uniforms. |
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Common Name: Cream Wild Indigo
Scientific Name: Baptisia bracteata Full Height: 1-2' Bloom Season: Late Spring Note: A common food source for horses and cattle, and it was once used to treat cuts and fevers. There was also an ointment created from pulverized seeds and buffalo fat that was used to treat colic. |
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Common Name: Ohio Horse Mint
Scientific Name: Blephilia ciliata Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Traditionally, the Cherokee made a poultice from this plant to treat headaches. Though this plant is in the mint family, the "horse" part of the name refers to a larger and coarser leave than you would typically see from a mint leaf. Thankfully, the leaf keeps the mint fragrance and not that of the horse! |
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Common Name: Harebell
Scientific Name: Campanula rotundifolia Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Summer Note: The Latin name Campanula means "bells" which refers to the shape of the flower. The common name Harebell may allude to an association with witches, who were believed to be able to transform themselves into hares. Another common name given to this plant is Witches Thimble due to its flowering shape. |
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Common Name: Prairie Coreopsis
Scientific Name: Coreopsis palmata Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Boiled Coreopsis seeds were used by Native Americans to relieve rheumatoid arthritis. The species is also a great honey source for bee keepers as it is a great pollinator species. The genus name Coreopsis is from Greek meaning; having the appearance of a bug, which describes its seed. The species name palmata is of Latin origin and refers to the leaves that resemble human palms. |
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Common Name: White Prairie Clover
Scientific Name: Dalea candida Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Late Spring Note: While the roots can be eaten raw or boiled into tea, Native Americans used the tough stems as brooms to sweep their lodges. Some Native Americans chewed the roots like gum. Unfortunately, it won't freshen your breath at the same time. |
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Common Name: Purple Prairie Clover
Scientific Name: Dalea purpurea Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Tea made from the ground taproot has been used to ward off fever and tea made from its leaves has been used as a treatment for wounds. The unfortunately named, Southern Dog-Face Butterfly also calls this plant its host. |
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Common Name: Shooting Star
Scientific Name: Dodecatheon meadia Full Height:1' Bloom Season: Spring Note: The droopiness of the flower gives the appearance of a shooting star plummeting to earth. Visually, its flower is downward facing, but it is rumored to have been used by the Native Americans to uplift women during pregnancy. |
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Common Name: Flat-Topped Aster
Scientific Name: Doellingeria umbellata Full Height: 4-5' Bloom Season: Summer Note: With the flatness of the flower head and the cleanness of the leaves and stem (fine bristle and no teeth or lobes), this plant is a popular native ornamental used in dramatic floral displays. |
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Common Name: Pale Purple Coneflower
Scientific Name: Echinacea pallida Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: The resurgence of herbal medicine in the 1970s and 1980s has revived interest in this herb. It has been used to treat everything from colds, soar throats, reducing opportunistic infections in HIV patients, assisting severe wounds, and connective tissue repairs. |
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Common Name: Rattlesnake Master
Scientific Name: Eryngium yuccifolium Full Height: 5' Bloom Season: Summer Note: As the common name hints at, an infusion of this root was used by Native Americans to treat snake bites. It is also said to be very effective in treating scorpion stings. Additionally, Whooping Cough was prevented by Native Americans drinking a tea made from the plant. |
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Common Name: Common Boneset
Scientific Name: Eupatorium perfoliatum Full Height: 4' Bloom Season: Summer Notes: Historically, this plant was used to treat colds and flu. Today, German researchers suggest it acts as an immune system stimulant. Some believe it can be used in pain relieving to help set bones, hence the name "boneset". |
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Common Name: Purple Joe-Pye-Weed
Scientific Name: Eutrochium maculatum Full Height: 7' Bloom Season: Summer Note: The plant is named after Native american healer Joe Pye, who used it to treat deadly typhus outbreaks among other things. Additionally, believed that children were bathed in Joe Pye Weed tea to help calm them down and create restful sleep. |
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Common Name: Wild Geranium
Scientific Name: Geranium maculatum Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: While the roots can be used for stronger medicinal treatments, the leaves can be used in tea or as a paste for minor flesh wounds. The plant is also said to help relieve stress and anxiety. Skin can also be renewed from taking a bath in the summer flowers. |
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Common Name: Prairie Smoke
Scientific Name: Geum triflorum Full Height: 1' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Native Americans used to create a tea from boiling the roots that would treat sore throats and colic. The plant was also applied to skin to help wounds heal faster. The common name comes from the seed heads resembling a puff of smoke! |
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Common Name: Western Sunflower
Scientific Name: Helianthus occidentalis Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: The word occidentalis means "western" in Latin. The plant was first described in 1836, at which time the Great Lakes region was considered the western part of the United States. The oil produced from the seeds are used for soap making and cooking. |
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Common Name: Rose Mallow
Scientific Name: Hibiscus laevis Full Height: 7' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: Have you ever wondered about the strange name given to those sticky masses of sugar that we roast over a campfire? Well, the roots of this plant can be boiled to produce a white sticky substance that was said to satisfy the sweet tooth of children (Marshmallows). Native American tribes also used this plant to help cure inflamed bladders. |
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Common Name: Northern Blue Flag
Scientific Name: Iris versicolor Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Late Spring Note:Looking to avoid rattlesnakes? Do as the Native Americans did: handle the root of the plant to ensure the scent from it would permeate the skin. This would keep the rattlesnakes away, insuring they would not get bitten. |
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Common Name: Rough Blazing Star
Scientific Name: Liatris aspera Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Fall Note: A favorite American import for European flower breeders, although it is far less delicate than what one associates with a flower cutting garden. Native Americans used to feed the bulb of the plant to horses for greater endurance. |
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Common Name: Prairie Blazing Star
Scientific Name: Liatris pycnostachya Full Height: 5' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: The corms (a storage organ in the root ball)were once used to treat snakebites, sore throats, and kidney ailments. Nowadays, butterflies like this plant the most and can often be found visiting the flowers en masse. |
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Common Name: Michigan Lilly
Scientific Name: Lilium michiganense Full Height: 4-5' Bloom Season: Summer Note: After blooming for around one month, the flowers are replaced by seedpods that when matured will open and release numerous seeds throughout its surroundings. It's large showy flowers are a designation to many hummingbirds and larger day flying insects. |
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Common Name: Cardinal Flower
Scientific Name: Lobelia cardinalis Full Height: 4-5' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: Native American used the plant for medicinal and ceremonial purposes. Medicinally, it is most commonly used for bronchial spasms. When you first notice the spasm, it is best to smoke the leaves and flowers for relief. |
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Common Name: Great Blue Lobelia
Scientific Name: Lobelia siphilitica Full Height: 3-4' Bloom Season: Late Summer Notes: Despite the plant being toxic (and potentially even poisonous), the plant is used in various homeopathic treatments. It is said that Native Americans secretly added finely ground roots to food of an arguing couple to avert a divorce. |
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Common Name: Blue Lupine
Scientific Name: Lupinus perennis Full height: 2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Lupinus perennis is a notably beautiful pant that can be hard to establish, but is worth the effort, if for no other reason than to support the Karner Blue Butterfly, which is noted as a federally endangered species. It is also a legume, an important subgroup of plants that can fix nitrogen in the soil. |
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Common Name: Virginia Bluebells
Scientific Name: Mertensia virginica Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: The Mertensia virginica are incredibly adept at forming colonies on their own. Their flowers start off pink and gradually turn over to their famous shade of light blue as they mature. |
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Common Name: Spotted Bee Balm
Scientific Name: Monarda punctata Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Summer Notes: Bergamot oil is made from plants in the Lamicceae family which is what flavors Earl Grey tea. Medicinally, the herb can be applied by a poultice to lesson the pain of arthritic joints by increasing the blood flow in that area and flushing out toxins. |
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Common Name: Wild Quinine
Scientific Name: Parthenium integrifolium Full Height: 3-4' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: Wild Quinine was once used as a substitute for the bark of the cinchona tree during World War I, when the supply of the latter was disrupted, this was an attempt to maintain the supply of quinine to treat malaria. |
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Common Name: Smooth Beardtongue
Scientific Name: Penstemon digitalis Full Height: 5' Bloom Season: Spring Note: When trying to relieve toothaches, Native Americans chewed the root into the cavity location to relieve pain. This plant also has a beautiful red seed head in the fall that is equally as ornamental as the flowers. |
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Common Name: Hairy Beard Tongue
Sceintific Name: Penstemon hirsutus Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Late Spring Note: Penstemon hirsutus is considered a "plant of a special concern" in Wisconsin due to a habitat loss and decreasing population. Native Americans ground the species into fine powder that was used as a trading commodity. |
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Common Name: Woodland Phlox
Scientific Name: Phlox divaricata Full Height: 1' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Historically, this plant was highly admired by European settlers. They collected specimens for its beauty and exported it back to Europe, where it was cultivated nicely. In Victorian England, the flower symbolized love and a wish of pleasant dreams. |
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Common Name: Prairie Phlox
Scientific Name: Phlox pilosa Plant Height: 1-2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Early medical practitioners used the plant leaves in tea to help treat eczema. The Greek translation of Phlox is "flame". This might help explain why the roots of this plant were used as an ingredient in love potions! |
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Common Name: Obedient Plant
Scientific Name: Physostegia virginiana Full Height: 4' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Commonly called obedient plants because each individual flower will, upon being pushed in any one direction, temporarily remain in the new position as if it were hinged. |
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Common Name Jacob's Ladder
Scientific Name: Polemonium reptans Full Height:1' Bloom Season: Spring Note: The common name, Jacob's Ladder, comes from the pairs of opposite leaflets on the compound leaves resembling a biblical reference to a series of steps on the ladder Jacob had in his dream. |
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Common Name: Pickerel Weed
Scientific Name: Pontederia cordata Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: You often see Pickerel weed along the edges of ponds. In freshwater systems, you may find the namesake fish, Pickerel or Chain Pickerel, lurking in this area waiting to hunt a smaller fish or frog. The fish aren't the only wildlife to like this plant; hummingbirds and butterflies like the nectar source. |
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Common Name: Heal-All
Scientific Name: Prunella vulgaris Full Height:1-2' Bloom Season: Summer Note: All parts of Heal-All are edible, it has been used in salads, soups, stews, and boiled as a pot herb. The plant is considered by the Chinese to change the course of chronic disease. |
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Common Name: Yellow Coneflower
Scientific Name: Ratibida pinnata Full Height: 3-4' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: The roots of Yellow Coneflower were once used as a toothache treatment. When bruised, the flower will exude an anise scent. |
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Common Name: Pasture Rose
Scientific Name: Rosa carolina Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Late Spring Note: The fruit skins of this plant have been eaten to treat stomach ailments . The seed hairs however, have been known to cause irritation to the mouth and digestive tract if ingested. Pasture Rose is currently being investigated as a means of halting or reversing the growth of cancers. |
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Common Name: Black-Eyed Susan
Scientific Name: Rudbeckia hirta Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: The Black-eyed Susan is a larva hosts for the Silvery Checkerspot butterfly and food source/shelter for many other animals. Native Americans used it as a poultice for snake bites and to make a fusion for treating colds and worms in children. |
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Common Name: Wild Petunia
Scientific Name: Ruellia humilis Full Height: 1-2' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: This plant is a great host plant for the Common Buckeye butterfly and other pollinators. It also repels deer, thus using it as a edging plant might help encourage deer to not eat the other flowers too! |
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Common Name: Bloodroot
Scientific Name: Sanguinaria canadensis Full Height: 6" Bloom Season: Spring Note: The underground stems have a red juice that was used by Native Americans as a dye for baskets, clothing, war paint, and insect repellent. Today, the herb is used in many pharmaceuticals to treat bronchial problems. |
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Common Name: Wool Grass
Scientific Name: Scirpus cyperinus Full Height: 5' Bloom Season: Summer Note: The plant serves as a food source for many birds and other species. It is even a great source for moths and some butterflies to lay their larvae. The stems have been used for matting and ropes. The fluffy seeds can be great for pillow stuffing! |
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Common Name: Wild Senna
Scientific Name: Senna hebecarpa Full Height: 5-6' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Senna hebecarpa has purgative properties, allowing it to usually avoid consumption of mammalian herbivores. The seeds however are commonly eaten by game birds such as the turkey and bobwhite quail. |
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Common Name: Compass Plant
Scientific Name: Silphium laciniatum Full Height: 7' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: Native American children used the resin from the pant as chewing gum. As the common name implies, during the day leaves orient themselves to minimize sun exposure and can be used like a compass, with the broadest leaf surfaces facing east and west! |
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Common Name: White Meadowsweet
Scientific Name: Spiraea alba Full Height: 2-3' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Technically a scrub, this species is a host for the larvae of the Spring Azure Butterfly (Celastrina ladon). The brown seed capsules in the fall are a favorite food source for songbirds. The hollow upright stems were used historically as pipe stems. |
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Common Name: Goat's Rue
Scientific Name: Tephrosia virginiana Full Height: 2' Bloom Season: Summer Note: Goat's Rue was at one time fed to goat's to increase their milk production, but since it contains the insecticide rotenone the procedure has been discontinued. Native Americans once used the crushed roots of this plant as a fish poison. |
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Common Name: Prairie Spiderwort
Scientific Name: Tradescantia occidentalis Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Young leaves and shoots can be found in salads, while the flowers serve as a colorful, edible garnish. George Washington Carver highly recommended eating the plant and described it as "rich flavored." For a treat, sugar can be added to the flowers to make candy. |
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Common Name: Large-Flowered Trillium
Scientific Name: Trillium grandiflorum Full Height: 1-2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Trillium grandiflorum as well as other trilliums are a favorite food of white tailed deer. They consume larger individuals, leaving shorter ones behind. This plants seeds are typically dispensed by ants, which is called myrmecochory. |
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Common Name: Large-Flowered Bellwort
Scientific Name: Uvularia grandiflora Bloom Height: 1-2' Bloom Season: Spring Note: Usually found in small clusters the Large-Flowered Bellwort prefers a moist woodland hillside. The seeds of the flower contain a fleshy elaiosome that attracts ants, which assist in the spreading of the wildflower species. |
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Common Name: Blue Vervain
Scientific Name: Verbena hastata Full Height: 5' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: The plant is part of the Basil family; if you cut young leaves, you can use them for flavorings. Native Americans also dried and roasted the seeds, then ground them into powder that was used as a flour. |
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Common Name: Common Ironweed
Scientific Name: Vernonia fasciculata Full Height: 6' Bloom Season: Late Summer Note: This plant receives its common name from it tough stem, that maintains excellent posture and never slouches in its environment. Common Ironweed is one of the major larval host for the American Painted Lady Butterfly. A decoction of its leaves can be gargled and used as a treatment for sore throat. |
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Common Name: Culver's Root
Scientific Name: Veronicastrum virginicum Full Height: Full Height 4-5' Bloom Season: Summer Note: An infusion of the plant can be used to treat coughs, colds, and fevers. There have been questions about toxicity of the plant, thus it isn't used often anymore. The common name comes from Dr. Coulvert, a physician who prescribed the plant as a laxative, so it isn't related to the famous Wisconsin fast food establishment! |
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Common Name: Bird's Foot Violet
Scientific Name: Viola pedata Full Height: 6" Bloom Season: Spring Note: When the young leaves or flower buds are added to soup, they can help thicken it. Make sure that the flowers of your plant are lilac or purple, because yellow flowers can cause digestive issues. If you are color blind, be sure to ask someone before picking and tasting! |
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Common Name: Golden Alexanders
Scientific Name: Zizia aurea Full Height: 3' Bloom Season: Late Spring Though Zizia is in the Carrot family, which includes many spices like celery, cumin, and dill, the plant is not common for adding to food. When looking at the young plant, make sure it is Zizia and not poison parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) you are handling, which can cause the skin to blister! |
