Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, spreading 12–18 in, where it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
New York · Zones 3–7
Native Rain Garden Plants in New York
Moisture-loving natives for rain gardens, pond edges, downspout basins, and the low spots that stay soggy after a storm. New York sits in a landscape of Adirondacks, Finger Lakes & Hudson Valley, and the natives that thrive here are the ones built for its humid continental character. The list below — led by Virginia Bluebells and Serviceberry — is filtered to species genuinely native to New York and the wider flora of the Northeast and hardy through zones 3–7. 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 New York
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 3–7 · see this collection in other states.
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, spreading 10–20 ft, where it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, for clay and loam ground, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, for clay and loam ground, where it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Scarlet Beebalm
Monarda didyma
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, reaching 2.5–4 ft, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2.5–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
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
Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, mauve-pink flowers, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, for clay and loam ground, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, spreading 6–10 ft, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, reaching 3–5 ft, where it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, cold-hardy to zone 3, where it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
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 blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, 12–18 in wide, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, spreading 2–4 ft, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, spreading 1.5–2 ft, where it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Ninebark
Physocarpus opulifolius
Takes the wet center of a rain garden through flood and dry spell alike, happy in clay, rocky, and loam soil, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry to wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Inkberry Holly
Ilex glabra
Happy in the wet center of a rain garden and ground that stays soggy after a storm, spreading 4–8 ft, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–8 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, hardy in zones 4–9, where it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Common Boneset
Eupatorium perfoliatum
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, foamy white flowers, where it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Blue Vervain
Verbena hastata
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, good through zone 8, where it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Red-Twig Dogwood
Cornus sericea
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, white, white berries flowers, where it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–9 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
American Elderberry
Sambucus canadensis
Built for the wet center of a rain garden and the boom-and-bust of storm runoff, creamy umbels flowers, where it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 6–12 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Big Bluestem
Andropogon gerardii
For the wet center of a rain garden and damp low spots, hardy in zones 3–9.
- Full sun
- Dry to wet
- 4–7 ft
- Fall color
2 more also qualify: Switchgrass, Cinnamon Fern.
Sourcing
Where to find these in New York
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.