Maryland; Rain Garden Plant List - Montgomery County
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Rainscapes Plants for Rain Gardens
rainscapes.org
easy/ reliable
Botanical Name
Common Name
Bloom
Color
Sun Type
Soils
Height
Spacing Comments
Aquiligea canadensis
Wild columbine
June-Aug
Amsonia hubrechtii Asclepias incarnata Asclepias syriaca Asclepias tuberosa Aster novae angliae Aster divaricatus Baptisia australis
Blue-Star Flower Swamp Milkweed Common Milkweed Butterfly weed
May-June June-Aug May-Aug may-june
New England Aster Aug-Oct White Wood Aster False Blue Indigo Jul-Oct may-june
red and Sand, Loam, Clay, yellow Sun-Shade moist-dry blue flowers, yellow fall Sun-Pt color Shade Sand, Loam, Clay, pink Sun-Shade Dry-wet pale purple Sun Moist Sand, Loam, Clay, orange Sun Dry-med Sand, Loam, Clay, purple Sun-Shade Med-wet pt Shadewhite sh dry-med wet blue, purple Sun-Shade sand, loam Sand, Loam, Clay, Sun-Shade Dry-med Sand, Loam, Clay, Sun-Shade Dry-med
2'
1'
2'
18"
deer resistant 3' tall, fine texture, blue summer flowers, yellow fall color, needs part sun deer resistant deer resistant deer resistant deer resistant spreads freely
DELICATE deer resistant deer resistant deer resistant deer resistant deer resistant cultivars are shorter deer resistant, plant in driest parts of rain garden deer resistant
Big Bluestem Broomsedge Tussock Sedge Pennsylvania Sedge River Oats
aug-oct aug-nov may-aug
Sun, PS Sun, PS Sun, PS Shade-PS
Dry-Moist-Wet Dry Moist-Wet
3-8' 1-3' 1-3' 6"
deer resistant aggressive; thin as needed also used as shade lawn replacement deer resistant, spreads freely may not come back in hard winter; only plant in spring deer resistant, cultivars shorter ('Shenandoah') deer resistant
jul-sep
Moist-Wet 6-8" dry-med, clay, loam, Sun-Shade sand 2-5' pink efflorescence s Sun Dry, well drained moist Sand, Loam, Clay, Sun-Shade Med-wet Sun-pt Shade dry
Aronia arbutifolia (Photinia pyrifolia) Red chokeberry
Mar-May
white Maroon flowers yellow fall color
sun-ps
dry to wet dry to wet
1.5'-13' 3' 3-8' 3'
red berries, upright/narrow, favorite (unless 'Athens' cultivar yellow), fragrant flowers when in full sun great wildlife Pink Flowers, upright, dwarf, yellow fall color
Calycanthus floridus
Sweetshrub
June July-Aug
white pink
sun-PS
moist-wet
3-10'
4'
Cephalanthus occidentalis Buttonbush Ruby Spice Summersweet, Pink dwarf Sweet Pepperbush Alternate-leaf Dogwood Silky dogwood gray dogwood Redosier Dogwood Black Huckleberry
Spring white white May-Jun May-Jun white flowers May-June May-July white white white white white PS dry-moist 6-12' 6-12' red fall color, understory shrub red branches in winter red branches in winter Red winter twig
sun-PS moist-wet Sun-shade dry-moist
sun-pt shade full sun-pt shade
dry- moist dry-wet
2-3' 6-12' females w/red berries in winter; deciduous - may abort fruit in dry summers; choose appropriate MaleFemale pairing females w/black berries; Densa is a compact/ dwarf form Spicebush Butterfly plant, deer resistant Fine-medium texture, evergreen, shears well Fine texture, evergreen, shears well, wildlife plant purple fruit-wildlife
Winterberry Ilex glabra 'Densa' Inkberry yellow Lindera benzoin Myrica cerifera ' Nana' Myrica pensylvanica Sambucus canadensis Spicebush Dwarf Wax Myrtle Northern Bayberry Common elderberry Jun-July late Spring shade-pt moist-dry shade Sun-shade moist-dry well drained Sun-shade moist-dry well drained sun-shade dry to wet 6-10' 3' 3' 6' 4' 6-12' May-Jun white sun-shade dry-moist 6-10'
white
Page 5 of 6
easy/ reliable
Botanical Name
Common Name
Bloom
Color
Sun Type
Soils
Height
Spacing Comments
white Viburnum acerifolium Viburnum dentatum Viburnum prunifolium Mapleleaf viburnum May April-May Arrowood Apr-May Blackhaw white white
pt shade
dry 3-6.5' 20'
Sun-pt shad dry to moist sun-pt shadedry to moist
Mauvey fall color, maple shaped leaves, dk purple fruit-wildlife purple fruit-wildlife
Trees Amelanchier canadensis Betula nigra 'Little King' Cercis canadensis Serviceberry; shadbush Little King River Birch Redbud May-July white PS to shade moist-wet 15-25' 15-20' April-May pink White sun-PS dry 20-35' yellow fall color, gray winter bark; females make olive like drupes yellow fall leaf color females w/red berries in winter Dwarf River birch; also called 'Fox Valley'