Anise Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum
Scented enough to plant where you brush past it, 1.5–2 ft wide — it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Indiana · Zones 5–7
Fragrant Native Plants in Indiana
Native plants with scented flowers or foliage — the ones that make a garden smell as good as it looks. For Indiana, the right natives are shaped by Eastern Corn Belt Plains & oak savanna and a humid continental climate. Every species below, from Anise Hyssop and Woodland Phlox to the rest of the list, is genuinely native to Indiana and the wider flora of the Midwest and hardy through zones 5–7. Fragrance is easy to overlook on paper and unforgettable in person, so plant the scented natives where you will brush past them — along a path, by a door, beside a bench. Some carry it in the flowers and some in the crushed leaves, and many of the aromatic-leaved species double as deer-resistant. Site them in sun, where warmth lifts the scent into the air.
The plants
11 native species for Indiana
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 5–7 · see this collection in other states.
Woodland Phlox
Phlox divaricata
Worth a spot by a path or door for the scent, hardy in zones 3–8, and it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 10–15 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Worth a spot by a path or door for the scent, rose pink flowers — it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Short-Toothed Mountain Mint
Pycnanthemum muticum
Fragrant in flower or leaf — site it where you'll catch it, happy in clay and loam soil; it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Wild Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa
Scented enough to plant where you brush past it, reaching 2–4 ft, flowering as it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Scarlet Beebalm
Monarda didyma
Fragrant in flower or leaf — site it where you'll catch it, spreading 1.5–3 ft; it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2.5–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
Scented enough to plant where you brush past it, mauve-pink flowers, and it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Common Milkweed
Asclepias syriaca
Carries a fragrance you'll want within reach, dusty mauve-pink flowers, and it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
American Elderberry
Sambucus canadensis
Carries a fragrance you'll want within reach, reaching 6–12 ft; it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
Carries a fragrance you'll want within reach, chartreuse-gold flowers — it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Prairie Dropseed
Sporobolus heterolepis
Fragrant in flower or leaf — site it where you'll catch it, reaching 2–3 ft.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Fall color
Sourcing
Where to find these in Indiana
Seeds & live plants on Amazon
Seed packets, plugs, and starter plants for many of these species ship to your door.
Browse on AmazonSome links here are affiliate links — we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. The surest source of locally-adapted stock is a native-plant nursery or a native plant society sale in your area.