Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, for clay and loam ground, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Kentucky · Zones 6–7
Native Rain Garden Plants in Kentucky
Moisture-loving natives for rain gardens, pond edges, downspout basins, and the low spots that stay soggy after a storm. For Kentucky, the right natives are shaped by Bluegrass, Cumberland Plateau & Pennyroyal and a humid, four-season climate. Every species below, from Arrowwood Viburnum and Golden Alexanders to the rest of the list, is genuinely native to Kentucky and the wider flora of the Southeast and hardy through zones 6–7. A rain garden catches roof and driveway runoff and lets it soak in instead of rushing to the storm drain, and these natives are built for that boom-and-bust of flood then dry. Put the most water-tolerant species in the wet center and the merely moisture-loving ones up on the sloped edges. Once established they handle both the standing water and the dry weeks between storms.
The plants
26 native species for Kentucky
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 6–7 · see this collection in other states.
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, spreading 1–2 ft, where it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, good through zone 8, where it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, rose pink flowers, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, 2–4 ft tall, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, good through zone 9, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, reaching 2–3 ft, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, hardy in zones 5–9, where it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, white spring lace flowers, where it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, good through zone 8, where it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, happy in clay and loam soil, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, 2–4 ft tall, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, happy in clay and loam soil, where it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Scarlet Beebalm
Monarda didyma
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, reaching 2.5–4 ft, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2.5–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, sky blue flowers, where it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
Blue Vervain
Verbena hastata
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, good through zone 8, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Common Boneset
Eupatorium perfoliatum
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Red-Twig Dogwood
Cornus sericea
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, good through zone 7, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–9 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
American Elderberry
Sambucus canadensis
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, happy in clay and loam soil, where it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Ninebark
Physocarpus opulifolius
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, reaching 5–10 ft, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry to wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Inkberry Holly
Ilex glabra
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, good through zone 9, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–8 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, hardy in zones 4–9, where it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Big Bluestem
Andropogon gerardii
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, 2–3 ft wide.
- Full sun
- Dry to wet
- 4–7 ft
- Fall color
2 more also qualify: Switchgrass, Cinnamon Fern.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Kentucky
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.