Butterfly milkweed (Asceplias tuberosa), shown here growing companionably with a non-native geranium, is one of the pollinator-friendly prairie plants that do well in gardens.
By Beth Botts | For the Chicago Tribune
A prairie is in its glory in late summer, with varied flowers, grasses just beginning to go golden, and bees and butterflies everywhere. It may make you think, “I wish I could take this home.”
Well, you can, or at least plants from it. “Many prairie plants can do well in a home garden, if you choose them carefully to match the sun and soil conditions in your yard,” said Michael Jesiolowski, manager of the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle.
Late summer, when you can visit restored sites such as the Schulenberg Prairie at The Morton Arboretum, is a good time to plan for adding more native plants to the garden next spring.
Don’t limit yourself to summer bloomers. “Planting a wide range of species that flower at different times gives us a beautiful garden all season,” said Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist in the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum. “It also will be of benefit to a lot of different pollinators.”
A garden that includes native plants is not the same as a wild-growing prairie. “Native gardens do need to be maintained so they don’t become weed patches,” Yiesla said. Without regular weeding, native plants can become overgrown and choked by the same non-native weeds that grow everywhere else. Like any perennials, prairie plants will need regular watering for at least a year or two, until their roots are established.
Some of the most common perennials in Midwestern gardens, such as purple coneflower, black-eyed Susan and bee balm, are prairie species, but they aren’t the only options.
“There are many prairie species to choose from,” Jesiolowski said. “Just make sure you research the plant carefully, so you know how large it will get, whether it will fit in your space, and whether you have the sun for it. Ask the same questions you would ask about any other perennials.”
Here are some plants from the prairie that Yiesla and Jesiolowski suggest you consider.
Royal catchfly (Silene regia): Tall stems bear fabulously red star-shaped summer flowers that attract hummingbirds as well as butterflies. Rare in the wild, royal catchfly does well in full-sun gardens.
Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium): Grasses provide a contrast for garden perennials. This one grows in 3-foot-tall clumps that are soft blue-green in spring and early summer, changing to shades of orange, red and purple in fall.
Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica): This plant, which likes moist soils, has tall spikes of clear blue flowers in August.
Purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata): Magenta flowers appear in late spring and early summer on this low plant that will spread like a ground cover. Native to the shortgrass prairies of the Great Plains, it’s suited to poor, gravelly soils.
Goldenrod (Solidago species): Much of the gold in late summer and early fall comes from goldenrods, with their whisks of tiny yellow flowers. There are 22 species of goldenrod native to different habitats in the Chicago region, from prairies to woods. Be sure to choose one that fits your particular situation.
White turtlehead (Chelone glabra): The blooms’ rolled-up petals remind some of a turtle’s head peeking out of its shell. The plant does well in wet areas and will tolerate part shade.
Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis): This graceful grass, growing about 2 feet tall, has slender green blades that turn golden in late summer, with a buttered-popcorn fragrance.
Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa): With vivid orange summer blooms, this is one of the milkweeds that monarch butterflies need. It is shorter than common milkweed and less likely to reseed all over a garden.
For tree and plant advice, contact the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum (630-719-2424, mortonarb.org/plant-clinic, or plantclinic@mortonarb.org). Beth Botts is a staff writer at the Arboretum.
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