Native Plants for Rhode Island

Narragansett Bay reaches deep into Rhode Island, and the ocean is close to everywhere. That proximity does two things: it moderates temperature, giving the state mild winters by New England standards, and it exposes an unusual share of gardens to salt-laden wind.

Salt tolerance is therefore a more common requirement here than in neighboring states. Wind-driven spray burns foliage on the exposed side of a plant well inland of the actual shoreline, and it does the damage in winter as readily as in summer. The coastal natives, bayberry, beach plum, inkberry, seaside goldenrod, and the switchgrass and little bluestem of back-dune grassland, take it without complaint.

South county sand, north county rock

The southern third of the state is glacial outwash: flat, sandy, fast-draining ground running down to the coastal ponds and barrier beaches. The natural vegetation there is pitch pine and scrub oak with coastal shrubland and remnants of sandplain grassland, and it is dry ground despite the humidity.

North and west, the land rises into rockier, more typical New England woodland on till soils, cooler and with a longer winter. The difference across such a short distance is easy to underestimate.

Aquidneck Island, Block Island, and the other coastal areas each have their own exposure, and Block Island in particular is windswept enough that shrub thickets rather than tall trees are the natural cover.

Planting for sand and salt

On outwash soils, plant lean-ground species and let them be. Adding rich compost to a sandy native bed produces soft growth that suffers in the first drought and does not help the plants that belong there.

Where salt is a factor, put the tolerant species on the windward edge as a screen and place less tolerant plants in their lee. A native shrub hedge on the exposed side is the traditional solution and it works.

Fall planting is a good option statewide thanks to the long mild autumn, giving roots months to establish before summer.

Confirming what is native to your county

The Rhode Island Natural History Survey documents the state's species and habitats, and the Rhode Island Wild Plant Society focuses specifically on native flora, running plant sales and field trips. Native Plant Trust covers the state in its regional conservation work, and the University of Rhode Island publishes guidance on coastal and stormwater plantings that is directly useful here.

Sources: Rhode Island Natural History Survey (species and habitat documentation); Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (coastal habitats); USDA PLANTS Database (native status by state).