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The Midwest Native Plant Primer: 225 Plants for an Earth-Friendly Garden
By Alan Branhagen
- Publisher: Timber Press, July 2020
- Paperback: 256 pages
- ISBN-10: 160469992
- Dimensions: 8” X 9”
- Price: $35.74 (Amazon.ca); $19.42 (Amazon.com – currently a 22% discount)
At first glance, Branhagen’s The Midwest Native Plant Primer looks like a great book for native plant gardeners. It has almost 45 pages in the introduction alone that covers topics like Why Cultivate Native Plants, and goes into some detail on what defines the Midwest, looking at the various habitats (grasslands, forests). And it is chock full of beautiful photos.
There’s a whole chapter on selecting native plants – how to choose your plant and what to avoid (i.e. right plant, wrong place), with a short section on gardening for birds and one on gardening for butterflies. He talks about the aesthetics of native plants in the garden (form, colour, fragrance, etc.), then devotes a chapter to Designing with Native Plants.
With lots of beautiful photographs and some great information in the lengthy introductory section, at one time I would likely have found this book delightful. But maybe my collection of books on native plant gardening is just getting too big. I found that the actual plant information is quite limited so it is unclear who its target market is or even what the overall purpose is. This book might make a great introductory book to native plants, but there are several overview books in print already and this one doesn’t really offer anything new. What’s worse, it misses out in a number of areas to be of any great value to a native plant gardener.
For starters, by the author’s own admission the “Midwest” is a very large region and he states that plants that do well in one area may not even survive in another, yet nowhere does the author let the reader know where any of the suggested plants will survive, let alone thrive. The need for accurate range maps is crucial for native plant gardeners who, more so than other gardeners, want to know what is native to their location.
The next issue is the alphabetization of the plants by common name. As with other books that use this strategy, the fact that there are often many common names for a plant, but typically only one currently accepted scientific name, means that locating a plant of interest in this book can be a challenge. For instance, I searched the index high and low for Wild Columbine, then for Wild Red Columbine, then Red Columbine and even just Columbine – all names that I am familiar with – but none of these were in the index. Fortunately I knew the scientific name was Aquilegia canadensis and could look that up, only to discover the plant was listed as Eastern Red Columbine. No wonder I couldn’t locate it. Another advantage of listing by scientific names is that similar plants (i.e. plants of the same genus) will be grouped together. For example, the milkweeds (Asclepias) will be grouped in one area, the goldenrods (Solidago), in another, etc.
This book does group the plants into the following separate sections: trees, shrubs, groundcovers, and perennials and vines, but within each grouping you need to know the sometimes very locally-known common name to find it.
I do appreciate the attempt at colour coding each of the sections of the book with a different coloured bar at the top of the pages. However, a greater differentiation of colours might have made separating the sections easier – they are all shades of purple and telling where the section on shrubs ends and the one on groundcovers begins, for example, is almost impossible.
I did have one problem with the section on ground covers, though. It is rather confusing when it includes things like Chasmanthium latifolium (called river oats in the book, but more commonly known as northern sea oats) which grows up to 3′ high, or Phlox paniculata (garden phlox) which often grows 4′ tall. Not what I would think of as ground covers.
Even more confusing, though, is the entry for Bugbane (Cimicifuga racemosa) – known more commonly as Black Cohosh, Black Baneberry, Black Snakeroot, or even as Squawroot in some regions. For starters, Bugbane is normally reserved for the species Actaea simplex (formerly Cimicifuga simplex), a native of Russia and China. In addition, most sources now accept the genus name Actaea rather than the older Cimicifuga for this plant. And there are lots more similar examples in the book.
And although there are lots of beautiful photos in the book, they are only somewhat useful to help you identify the plants, as they typically show a photo of the overall plant without much detail. As a result, they don’t help you a lot in identifying whether the plant you have is what is shown in the book. And in some cases, as with Eurybia macrophylla, or large leaf aster, they don’t even show a picture of the flowers, just of the leaves.
Finally, the most confusing part of the book has to be the fact that the author mentions both USDA plant hardiness zones and AHS (American Horticultural Society) heat zones in the introduction AND in a table at the back of the book. However, since he does not provide the relevant ranges for any of the plants in the plant descriptions, I’m not sure why this information is even in the book. This seems to be a major oversight.
Some of these oversights and problems may not be soley the author’s fault. I have talked to other authors who have published with Timber Press who told me the publisher left out what the author believed were important parts, simply to save money.
All in all, this is a pleasant book to look through, especially if you are new to native plant gardening and just want an introduction to the topic. And since you can never have TOO MANY books on the topic, this might make a good addition to your collection. Especially if you live in an area that might be considered part of the Midwest. But for me the book was rather disappointing.
Hairy Beardtongue
Scientific Name: Penstemon hirsutus
June is typically a quieter time in my gardens, with the rush of spring ephemerals long done and the riot of summer colours not quite upon us yet. Perhaps that is why I find Hairy Beardtongue so appealing. It starts its long blooming period, with its soft, powdery purple and white flowers, when most of my garden is still rather green.
As usual, the Plant Description and In the Garden sections are courtesy of Shawn Booth from In Our Nature. The content of this article is excerpted from our book The Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants of the Southern Great Lakes Region (Firefly Books), available wherever you buy your books.
Family: Scrophulariaceae (Figwort Family)
Alternate Common Names: Hairy Penstemon, Dwarf Hairy Penstemon, Eastern Penstemon, Northeastern Beardtongue, Pride of the Mountain
Plant description: Hairy Beardtongue features green to reddish brown, hairy stems. Along the stems are opposite, lance-shaped leaves with pointed tips and toothed edges. Leaves clasp the stem. Stems terminate with clusters of slender, tubular flowers. Flower stalks also emerge from upper leaf axils. Each flower is purple to violet with white tips and has 5 petals with a protruding lower lip. You will notice that the flowers are hairy inside. Flowers turn into brown, teardrop-shaped seed pods. They split open when ripe to release many small irregularly angled seeds.
In the Garden: Hairy Beardtongue transitions the garden into early summer with a fantastic display of tubular, pink flowers. It maintains a well-behaved, clumping habit and adapts to a wide range of growing conditions. The seed heads provide reliable winter interest. Plants may suffer from a reduced lifespan if grown in rich soil.
Skill level: beginner
Lifespan: perennial
Exposure: full sun to full shade
Soil Type: thin, well drained soils
Moisture: medium wet to dry
Height: 45 cm
Spread: 25-30 cm
Bloom Period: May, Jun
Colour: pink, purple
Fragrant (Y/N): N
Showy Fruit (Y/N): N
Cut Flower (Y/N): Y
Pests: no serious pests
Natural Habitat: fields and open areas
Wildlife value: attracts hummingbirds, butterflies and native bees
Butterfly Larva Host Plant For: Baltimore Checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton)
Moth Larva Host Plant For: Chalcedony Midget (Elaphria chalcedonia), Verbena Bud Moth (Endothenia hebesana), Sparganothis Leafroller Moth (Sparganothis sulfureana)
USDA Hardiness Zone: 3-9
Propagation: Direct sow in late fall through to late winter, pressing seeds into the surface of the soil without covering as seeds need light to germinate. For starting indoors, germination is enhanced with 60 days of cold, moist stratification. Slow to germinate and will spend its first year getting established, then flower in year two. Plants seem to germinate best in cool soil. Penstemon readily self seeds. Mature clumps of plants can be divided in early spring or late fall. Plants may also be propagated by layering (pinning the stem down and covering the leaf nodes with soil, which will then root) or by stem cuttings using sections of stem with 2-4 nodes.
Additional Info: This low maintenance plant blooms in my southwestern Ontario garden in the early summer, after the spring ephemerals are done and before the bulk of the colour of my other natives begins, providing a wonderful splash of colour during the “quiet” period before the blooms of summer reach their peak. As a result, it has become one of my favourites.
Native Range:
Native Plant Nursery: Rosemont Meadows Native Plants
Owner/Proprietor: Emma Murphy
Address: 21 Katherine St., Lakefield, Ontario
Web Site: Not yet! Hopefully sometime this year!
Email: rosemontmeadowsnativeplants@gmail.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/rosemontmeadows.nativeplants
Other Social Media: IG – https://www.instagram.com/rosemont_meadows_native/
When I started to grow native plants, almost 20 years ago now, there were a small handful of native plant nurseries in Ontario. As the demand has grown, so has the number of sources of native plants, as it seems more and more gardeners are realizing the benefits of “growing native”. And since I am constantly scouring the web for native plant nurseries, I am often rewarded with finding new (or almost new) businesses catering to the native plant gardening public. This month’s native plant nursery profile is one such new discovery for me.
Emma Murphy officially opened Rosemont Meadows Native Plants in the spring of 2023. This business operates under a little different model than most. She has neither a formal retail outlet that is open to the public, nor does she sell online for pickup or delivery. Instead, Emma operates out of her home for spring weekends and then by appointment for the rest of the year. The nursery is located in her back yard.
Rosemont Meadows is open May to mid-June on weekends from 9 am to 3 pm, or by appointment. The hours of operation are posted on their Facebook page (see link above). After mid-June it is by appointment only so email or call before heading out. If you’re curious about what they have in stock, the current plant availability is listed on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=rosemontmeadows.nativeplants&set=a.594150930357177).
Currently, Rosemont Meadows carries about 60 species of native plants – and this number keeps growing each year as she keeps doing more winter sowing, incorporating new plants in her garden and collecting her own seed.
Almost all her plants are true native species, though she does carry a very few nativars (variegated shorter Solomon’s Seal, for example) for those with smaller urban gardens. But she makes it very clear that such plants are not straight species.
Right now, she has a variety of annuals, biennials and perennials, as well as some ferns, sedges and grasses. The only vine she currently has is Virgin’s Bower Clematis (Clematis virginiana) but my guess is that will soon be added to.
Her plants come from seeds collected on her own property and from reputable Ontario/Canadian seed suppliers. She also buys plants from local wholesalers such as Ecology Park Native Plant Nursery, Grow Wild, and Natural Themes, or digs plants from her own gardens.
Emma brings to her gardening a Bachelor of Environmental Studies (University of Waterloo) and is a Certified Master Gardener (member of Peterborough and Area Master Gardener group). She is a self-taught gardener, starting with her first house in east Toronto almost 30 years ago and became a Master Gardener (taking courses at U of Guelph) in 2014. Part of that MG commitment includes continuous learning, and that’s where she became interested in native plants and started taking some courses.
Emma tells me that when she started incorporating native plants into her own garden, she did so with a personal goal of a 50/50 native/non-native garden and a focus on providing an ecological niche in their backyard to support pollinators, birds, insects, mammals etc. She then started writing MG blogs focusing on native plants and their benefits and has been an admin/moderator on the Master Gardeners of Ontario Facebook page for many years. Those who belong to the FB group know that Master Gardeners have an increasingly strong focus on incorporating and promoting native plants in gardens across Ontario.
It wasn’t long before Emma started creating more onsite habitat – log and brush piles, a large pond, and incorporating a wide variety of host species. She began winter sowing in 2021 for native plants because, as she says, at the time there weren’t many large nursery sources in her neck of the woods.
She soon recognized there was a market for native plants and decided to start a small nursery and is now in her 3rd year with more plants and lots of varieties. She just doesn’t have a huge inventory – yet. She is limited, in part, by size of her property (3/4 acre) so won’t be able to get real big. However, her main goal is just to get a few more native plants out into her community!!
Emma is also an avid photographer and writer and has produced a number blogs as a Master Gardener. She recently retired and has been focusing on her small native plant nursery and getting native plants out into people’s gardens in both urban and cottage/rural locations.
If you’re up in the Lakefield area, be sure to reach out to her and see what she’s got growing.
Wild Strawberry/Woodland Strawberry
Almost everyone loves strawberries (unless you’re one of those unfortunate few who are allergic to them). Our store-bought strawberries are large, sometimes juicy, and taste pretty good. The modern cultivated strawberry, Fragaria x ananassa, is a hybrid of two wild species – Fragaria virginiana from North America and Fragaria chiloensis from Chile. This hybridization (first achieved in the 1750s in Brittany, France) led to the creation of the garden strawberry which became the dominant commercial variety.
Now, imagine a much smaller strawberry, not much larger than a pea, but packed with all the concentrated flavour of the store-bought fruit. That’s our Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiensis) and also it’s close relative, the Woodland Strawberry (F. vesca). This month I will compare these two delicious fruits, and you can decide which is best in your garden. (Keep in mind, birds and squirrels also love them, so you may not get many for your own table – just saying.)
| Common Name: | Wild Strawberry | Woodland Strawberry |
| Scientific Name: | Fragaria virginiana | Fragaria vesca |
| Family: | Rosaceae (Rose family) | |
| Alternate Common Names: | Blue-leaf Strawberry, Common Wild Strawberry, Scarlet Strawberry, Virginia Strawberry | California Strawberry, Starvling Strawberry, Wild Strawberry, Wood Strawberry |
| In the Garden: | Wild Strawberry is a dependable ground cover for sunny sites. The bright white flowers are found in abundance and the semi-evergreen leaves provide excellent fall color. Suitable as a no-mow lawn alternative and for erosion control. | Woodland Strawberry is a reliable ground cover for shady areas and will spread indefinitely by runners. Its charming white flowers and vibrant red berries brighten up shady corners of the garden. Great for erosion control or as a no-mow lawn alternative. |
| Appearance Comparison: | The two species can be distinguished by carefully observing the leaf and the fruit. On F. vesca the terminal tooth on the leaf is more or less equal in size to the side teeth but are almost always smaller on F. virginiana. As well on F. vesca the leaflets are sparsely hairy, more prominently veined with large teeth, whereas F. virginiana is more softly veined and toothed and hairier overall. Woodland Strawberry fruit tends to be oblong with the seeds raised on the surface, while Wild Strawberry fruit is more round, with seeds in shallow pits. Finally, F. vesca usually has fewer flowers than F. virginiana and these are usually positioned above the leaves, while F. virginiana flower stems are typically shorter than the leaf stems. Both species are vigorous growers, so be sure to give them room to spread. | |
Note of interest – Woodland Strawberry also comes in a natural white fruited variation. I have not tasted these to see if they are as good as the red ones (the birds and squirrels get them before they are even ripe in my garden), but they make an interesting plant in the shady woodland garden.
| Wild Strawberry | Woodland Strawberry | |
| Skill Level: | Beginner | |
| Lifespan: | Perennial | |
| Exposure: | Full sun to part shade | Full shade to part shade |
| Soil Type: | Sand, Loam, Clay | |
| Moisture: | Moist to Mesic | Wet to Moist |
| Height: | 5-15 cm | 10-20 cm |
| Spread: | 60+ cm (with runners) | 100 cm (with runners) |
| Bloom Period: | Apr, May | May, Jun |
| Flower Colour: | White | |
| Showy Fruit: | Yes – edible red “berry” (actually a fruit) | |
| Cut Flower: | No | |
| Pests: | Seldom bothered by the pests and diseases that affect commercial strawberries | |
| Natural Habitat: | Fields, prairies, and woodland edges | Rich, shady woodlands |
| Wildlife Value: | Many bees rely on the nectar and pollen, and many birds and small mammals and some turtles feed on the strawberries | |
| USDA Hardiness Zones: | 3-9 | 3-10 |
| Wild Strawberry | Woodland Strawberry | |
| Butterfly Larvae Host Plant for: | Grizzled Skipper (Pyrgus centaureae), Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus) | |
| Moth Larvae Host Plant for: | Garden Webworm (Achyra rantalis), Smeared Dagger Moth (Acronicta oblinita), Strawberry Leafroller Moth (Ancylis comptana fragariae), Red-headed Ancylis (Ancylis muricana), Omnivorous Leafroller Moth (Archips purpurana), Celypha Moth (Celypha cespitana), Blackberry Looper Moth (Chlorochlamys chloroleucaria), Common Marbled Carpet (Dysstroma truncata), Wild Strawberry Seed Borer (Grapholita angleseana), Spotted Straw (Heliothis turbatus), Green Cloverworm (Hypena scabra), Drab Brown Wave (Lobocleta ossularia), Olivaceous Olethreutes (Olethreutes olivaceana), Variegated Leafroller Moth (Platynota flavedana), Garden Tortrix (Ptycholoma peritana), Purple-lined Sallow (Pyrrhia exprimens), Clandestine Dart (Spaelotis clandestina), Sparganothis Leafroller Moth (Sparganothis sulfureana), Strawberry Crown Borer (Synanthedon bibionipennis), Tinagma obscurofasciella (no common name) | |
| Wild Strawberry | Woodland Strawberry | |
| Propagation: | Germination of wild strawberry seeds is very poor and may be enhanced with 60 days of cold, moist stratification. Vegetative propagation — by separating rooted plantlets in spring or early summer, or by taking cuttings of stolon internodes — is the most effective method of multiplying plants. | |
Native Range:
Native Plant Nursery: In Our Nature
Owner/Proprietor: Shaun Booth
Address: 20725 Shaws Creek Rd, Alton, ON
Web Site: inournature.ca
Facebook Page: facebook.com/in.our.nature.gardens
Most folks reading this will realize that this month’s native plant nursery profile is for my friend and co-author’s business. I’ve known Shaun Booth for several years now – originally as the organizer of the fabulous Facebook group Ontario Native Plant Gardening (a group that now has almost 40,000 members), then as the owner of In Our Nature, but more recently as a collaborator on our unbelievably popular book on native plants.
Shaun started his nursery in 2018 for his own garden installation projects with a handful of word-of-mouth sales. He then officially opened a retail business in 2020. Though the nursery is not typically open to walk-in business, they are open by appointment. After customers make an order through the website (inournature.ca), he will reach out to establish a pick-up date. Having said that, they do offer open-house days throughout the growing season where customers can show up and browse plants in person. Watch his website for details.
When he started, In Our Nature carried about 70 species of true natives and some near natives. They currently have about 120 species. They do not sell nativars and they distinguish between the natives and near natives in the online store.
You can get a variety of native annuals, biennials, perennials, shrubs and trees as well as ferns, grasses and sedges. Shaun often has some very interesting and unusual species growing, too. I’ve picked up a couple of plants there that I have yet to see anywhere else.
Shaun starts most of his plants from seed that he either collects locally or buys from a reputable supplier. He also buys some of his plants from trusted wholesalers. The online store provides information on seed origin for locally collected seeds, too.
Although Shaun is mostly self-taught about growing native plants, he does have Ecosystem management & Environmental technician diplomas from Fleming College in Lindsay.
If you need more than just plants, In Our Nature provides natural garden design, installation and management services. They also provide custom garden design plans for clients who can do the installation themselves but need some help with the design/plant selection.
Shaun is a past volunteer at the Mono Pollinator Garden. In Our Nature has been a sponsor of the Pollination Guelph symposium.
Native Plant Nursery: Native Plants in Claremont Inc.
Owner: Karen Abrahams and Rob Messervey
Address: 4965 Westney Road, Pickering, Ontario, L1Y1A2
Web Site: www.nativeplants.ca
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/NativePlantsinClaremont
Other Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/nativeplantsinclaremont/
One of the native plant nurseries I regularly hear good things about is Native Plants in Claremont. It’s probably no wonder – they’ve been around for almost 20 years now (they officially opened in 2006) and have been supporting native plant gardeners with high quality plants for a long time.
Although their mailing address is Pickering, Ontario, their nursery is located about 20 km north of that town, 20 km south of Uxbridge, and only a 4 minute drive east of the village of Claremont. They have a retail outlet there that is open from Wednesday to Saturday, from late April or early May to October. You can even order online and arrange pick-up, or even delivery (see their website for details).
Native Plants in Claremont specializes in growing over 150 species of native sedges, grasses, wildflowers, shrubs and a few trees. Plants are primarily seed grown and the nursery adheres to the North American Native Plants Society Guidelines for Commercial Native Plants Growers, and the Society of Ecological Restoration – Ontario Chapter Native Plant Grower Guidelines. For example, for rarer plants they collect seed once and establish source plants at the nursery. And they collect no more that 10% of seed from any population, selecting seed from a number of individuals. Seeds are collected mostly in Ontario Seed Zone 34 (GTA), and also in 35/36 (east of GTA) and some in 37 (west of GTA).
For some species which readily grow vegetatively (e.g. Mayapple or Wild Strawberry), as well as growing these from seed they will also sustainably harvest plants from their established nursery beds. They also purchase and re-sell some plants from local and trusted nurseries. You can read more about their practices on their website (see link above).
Karen is mostly self taught in the native plant world, though she has built this knowledge on top of a BSc in Botany from the University of Toronto, and also gained much knowledge through an apprenticeship in the industry. Although Karen doesn’t have direct, intergenerational indigenous knowledge as part of her expertise, she does have staff that bring this knowledge to the business.
Native Plants in Claremont also provides landscape design advice. When I asked Karen what community level projects she has participated in in her local area she indicated that she has supplied plants for the projects of many clients, including retail nurseries like Evergreen Brick Works Garden Market and Loblaws, Plant sales for North American Native Plant Society, sales of plants for many David Suzuki Foundation Butterflyway Rangers, for the recipients of City of Toronto Pollinator Garden PollinateTO grants, TDSB schools, Plaza Pops, and has been involved in garden design for municipal clients like the Twp of Scugog.
Although I have not yet visited Native Plants in Claremont, it is definitely on my road trip list for this spring, when I hope to drop in to a few nurseries east of Toronto that I’ve not been to before. As my list of nurseries grows, I have a feeling I may need a bigger truck for the trip.
Native Plant Nursery Name: Dropseed Native Plant Nursery
Owner/Proprietor: Riley Grund + Bailey Austin-Macmillan
Address: 1099 Old Milford rd, Picton ON. k0k2t0
Web Site: www.Dropseed.ca
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Dropseed.pec/
Other Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/dropseed.pec/
Every spring I like to do a road trip to pick up the plants I ordered through the winter. Sometimes these trips turn into a 2-day adventure because that rare, hard-to-find plant is only available at a nursery that is many hours’ drive away.
This year, though, I am planning a road trip to check out some new-to-me native plant nurseries, and one of those is Dropseed Native Plant Nursery near Picton, Ontario, in Prince Edward County. (PEC just happens to be in the top 5 of my favourite destinations in Ontario – so I’m really looking forward to going back.)
Dropseed Native Plant Nursery is a new venture – they officially opened in May 2024. They plan to be open from spring to fall this year.
Currently they carry about 80-100 species of native plants, but are looking to expand on that number as the nursery grows. I am told they sell only true species – no nativars, no non-natives. And these include a wide range of perennials, shrubs, vines, ferns and grasses.
They grow their plants from locally collected seeds, and from seeds and plants they buy from a selection of reputable suppliers.
Although Riley is mostly self-taught in the native plant industry, her partner Bailey works as a Senior Landscape designer for a local landscape architect and is trained in architecture and sustainability. Bailey also has a Permaculture Certification. With this background, they will even do design and installation for you.
Dropseed NPN also works with their community. In the short time they’ve been operating, they have already done a beaver meadow planting with Quinte Conservation Authority and local high school students, a planting at the Macaulay Village park, worked with the Athol Public School grade 5 and 6 students planting at Dropseed nursery, and they hope to develop more community-based programming as they grow.
In addition to the plants and design/installation, Dropseed offers programming at the nursery such as nature walks, nature journaling, installing a rain garden, with more to come. 2025’s offerings will include a rammed earth wall workshop, invasive species management and more nature walks!
They have also planted demonstration gardens to showcase native perennials in different moisture and soil conditions such as a full sun drought tolerant garden and a rain garden built off their rainwater collection system.
I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty excited to drop in this spring and check out this new native plant nursery
Evening Primrose
Scientific Name: Oenothera biennis
I have never planted Evening Primrose in my gardens, yet they show up faithfully every year. In fact, this was the first native species to make an appearance before I even got into growing native plants. That’s because the seeds remain viable in the soil for many years, waiting for a disturbance, and when I dug a small patch of earth to plant vegetables shortly after moving into my house, Evening Primrose popped up with their lovely lemony yellow flowers.
Evening Primrose has a very deep taproot, and being short-lived (a biennial), the decaying root helps to aerate and take nutrients deep into the soil profile. The only potential downside to them is that they are a favourite of Japanese Beetles. However, I use that to my advantage because the Evening Primrose brings the beetles to a single eye-level location where they’re easily picked off into a bucket of soapy water.
As usual, the Plant Description and In the Garden sections are courtesy of Shawn Booth from In Our Nature. The content of this article is excerpted from our book The Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants of the Southern Great Lakes Region (Firefly Books), available wherever you buy your books.
Family: Onagraceae (Evening Primrose Family)
Alternate Common Names: Bastard Evening Primrose, Common Evening-primrose, Evening Star, Fever Plant, Four-o’clock, German Rampion, Golden Candlestick, Hoary Evening Primrose, Hog Weed, King’s Cure-all, Night Primrose, Night Willow-herb, Sand Lily, Scabish, Scavey, Scurvish, Speckled John, Tree Primrose, Weedy Evening Primrose, Wild Beet, Wine-trap
Plant description: Evening Primrose has a two-year life-cycle. During the first year it produces a low rosette of basal leaves. During the second year, it sends up a light green to red central stems covered in white hairs. Lance-elliptic leaves are found in an alternate pattern along the stem and measure up to 20cm long and 5cm wide (they are usually smaller than this). They are hairless to finely hairy, toothless or with small teeth and borne on little to no leaf stalk. Stems terminate with spike-like clusters of many yellow flowers each about 5cm across. Each flower has 4 heart-shaped petals surrounding 8 yellow stamens and a cross-shaped stigma. Each flower appears to be borne on a long stalk but this is actually an elongated calyx tube (the part that bears the sepals and stamens). Four sepals are found behind each flower, measuring about 3cm long and bending backwards as the flower matures. As the flowers fade, they produce 3-4cm long, tubular seed pods that contain hundreds of tiny seeds.
In the Garden: Evening Primrose features a spire of vibrant, lemon-yellow flowers. These flowers open up in the evening and stay open until hit by the morning sun. They also stay open to brighten up cloudy days! A dependable choice for nutrient poor soils and the sturdy stems will persist into the winter months to extend interest.
Skill level: beginner to intermediate
Lifespan: biennial
Exposure: full sun to full shade
Soil Type: rocky, gravelly or sandy soils.
Moisture: dry to medium
Height: 90-150 cm (up to 210 cm in ideal conditions)
Spread: 30-90 cm
Bloom Period: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep
Colour: yellow
Fragrant (Y/N): Y (lemon scent)
Showy Fruit (Y/N): N
Cut Flower (Y/N): Y
Pests: no serious insect or disease problems though leaf spot and powdery mildew may occur; this plant is a favourite of the invasive Japanese Beetle (Popillia japonica)
Natural Habitat: occurs throughout the region in disturbed areas, along roadsides, lakeshores and river valleys
Wildlife value: Moths are the main pollinators of the flowers, especially Sphinx Moths. The high oil-content seeds are eaten by goldfinches and other small birds. It is the host plant for a number of moths including the Primrose Moth (Schinia florida), Pearly Wood Nymph (Endryas unio) and White-Lined Sphinx (Hyles lineata).
Butterfly Larva Host Plant For: none
Moth Larva Host Plant For: Pearly Wood Nymph (Endryas unio), Grape Leaffolder Moth (Desmia funeralis), White-Lined Sphinx (Hyles lineata), Sparganothis Leafroller Moth (Sparganothis sulfureana), and Red-Streaked Momphid (Mompha eloisella)
USDA Hardiness Zone: 4-9
Propagation: the very small seeds need light to germinate (surface sow) but do not need to be stratified. Store in a cool, dry environment if spring sowing. Stem cuttings can be taken in spring.
Native Range:
Natural Themes Native Plant Nursery
Owner/Proprietor: Bea Heissler
Address: 219 Maybee Road, Frankford, Ontario
Web Site: naturalthemes.com
Facebook Page: Natural Themes Native Plant Nursery
Instagram: @naturalthemesfarms
Email: bea@naturalthemes.com
Over the last few years, I have visited MANY native plant nurseries throughout southern Ontario, though most have been located west of Toronto with only a couple of them east of the city. One eastern Ontario native plant nursery I haven’t made it to yet, however, is Natural Themes Native Plant Nursery, located just north of the 401 highway near Prince Edward County.
Natural Themes is a family operation with Bea Heissler (mother) and Maya Navrot (daughter) operating the partnership. The business opened in 2006 and currently carries about 400 species of trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers, ferns and vines. However, in response to customer demands (I’m told), that number of plants includes several non-native species. In fact, my cursory examination of the website shows close to 50 species on their list that are not actually native in southern Ontario. But that means, in theory at least, they have at least 350 native species. Be sure to know the scientific name of the plant you’re interested in so you can check the VASCAN website (https://data.canadensys.net/vascan/search) to make sure the plant you’re getting is actually native to Ontario.
Natural Themes Nursery sources their plants both locally and from a variety of sources, as both seeds and plants. They offer garden design, consultations and planting services. In addition, they collaborate with local municipalities, conservation organizations, community groups, horticulture clubs, and local conservation authorities to supply plants for restoration, reforestation, and garden projects. They also offer expertise and advice to community partners in conservation efforts.
Although they are primarily self-taught about native plants, Bea has a post-secondary education in biology with a focus on botany while Maya holds an Honors Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science and Biology.
If you want to check them out, they are open to the public on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 1-5 or by request. You might also want to check out the blog post they have on their website at About Us – Natural Themes Native Plant Nursery.
