10 Small Native Plants to Beautify Your Garden in Spring

By Julie Boudreau

It’s not a secret, every motivation to make our world a better place always end up with native plants! Sustainable development? Native plants! Saving pollinators? Native plants! Low maintenance naturalized garden? Native plants! Protection against erosion, revegetation of banks, solutions to climate issues? Yes, native plants!

So, in this spirit of adding more native plants to the garden, I present to you 10 plants native to Quebec and Canada, that provide spring interest and are easy to grow in the garden. Except for the yellow marsh marigold, you will notice that these are all woodland plants. In fact, these plants take advantage of the fact that the trees are leafless to charm a few pollinating insects and capture as much sunlight as possible. Also, there are plenty of white blooms. One of the theories put forward to explain this phenomenon is that the first pollinating insects to wake up in spring are flies and solitary bees and that they are more attracted by light intensity than by colors. And finally, with the exception of Labrador Tea, which I consider a must-have in Quebec gardens, it is a selection of hardy herbaceous plants which are reborn from the ground every spring.

Buy… From a Trusted Source!

It is impossible to approach the subject of native plants without emphasizing the importance of respecting the natural environment. Forest harvesting is not recommended by the author of this text. I am making an exception here for natural environments which are being destroyed for residential or commercial development. In this case, it’s a rescue mission!

All the plants on this list are produced by trusted nurseries in Quebec. Because we actually have several producers of native plants who work with rigorous professional ethics. These plants are generally produced in nurseries, from seedlings, cuttings or divisions. Be wary of containers that contain something other than the desired plant. These often involve samples taken directly from the natural environment, which is not desirable. Also, note that the high price of native plants produced in nurseries is largely justified. For example, a trillium may take 7 to 10 years to produce its first flower from seedling. Some plants produce very few seeds or multiply slowly.

#1 White trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)

When you have seen carpets of white trillium in bloom once in your life, as far as the eye can see, you quiver with emotion in front of this plant! It is a large trillium that can reach a maximum height of 1 foot (35 cm). A rich woodland plant, it likes to grow at the basis of deciduous trees. The plant goes dormant after flowering. USDA zone 4.  

#2 Large-flowered Bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora)

The large-flowered bellwort is a slightly more discreet plant because its yellow flowering is curved downwards and the petals never quite open. Reaching 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm), it is an undergrowth plant that multiplies by rhizomes. It is possible to plant it in a small colony in rich, fresh soil. USDA zone 4.  

#3 Heart-leaved Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia)

Heart-leaved Foamflower is already well known to gardeners, as there are many ornamental cultivars developed from this species. It is an excellent shade plant that does well as a ground cover. That said, it is also very interesting as a specimen plant, mixed with other shade plants. The foliage is semi-evergreen, which means that it is already present as soon as the snow melts. It is a small plant, 10 inches (25 cm) high. USDA zone 3  

#4 Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)

It’s a great curiosity! The burgundy and greenish flower of the Blue cohosh may not be the most spectacular, but it still has charm. It is a plant with delicate foliage which has the appearance of a meadow-rue (Thalictrum spp.). It forms a beautiful background for the bellworts. In very rich soil, the blue cohosh can reach up to 90 cm. At the end of summer, the plant produces very decorative blue berries. USDA zone 3.  

#5 Large False Solomon’s Seal (Maianthemum racemosum, formerly Smilacina racemosa)

This plant deserves a greater presence in shade gardens. We often look for a plant similar to Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum spp.) but not as tall. Also, instead of small flowers hanging along the stems, the flowers are at the end of the stem. The plant reaches between 1 and 3 feet (30 and 90 cm) in height and prefers rich, drained soils. USDA zone 3.

 

#6 American spikenard (Aralia racemosa)

This plant forms a generous bush of foliage above which develops a flowering of creamy-white clusters. Subsequently, the plant produces a multitude of small berries changing from green to red, then black, each at a different stage. It is a fairly tall and wide plant that can reach 4 feet (120 cm). It prefers shade and partial shade, but in very cool soil, it can tolerate the sun. USDA zone 3.  

#7 Red Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)

It is one of our native beauties, with its flowers of a certain complexity. The red petals fade towards yellow and it is the elongated spurs behind the flower which give it its unique appearance. It is a delicate plant, about 30 inches (75 cm) high, which likes rocky soils. It generally grows in partial shade. USDA zone 4.  

#8 Labrador tea (Rhododendron groenlandicum, formerly Ledum groenlandicum)

The only shrub in my current selection, but what a shrub! In spring, this little rhododendron is covered with balls of small white flowers. In its natural environment, it is found alternately in peat bogs or on mountain tops. That said, it grows well in naturally acidic soil, in a shady or semi-shaded location. The important thing is not to grow it in dry soil. This plant is exceptionally hardy. USDA zone 1.  

#9 Yellow Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris)

The yellow marsh marigold is very different from the rest of this selection because it is a wetland plant. Its preferred habitats are forest streams, peat bogs and swamps. In the garden it will therefore be suitable for ditches or a location where the soil never really dries out. Despite everything, its yellow flowering is remarkable, as is the beautiful mass of rounded leaves approximately 1 foot (30 cm) in diameter. USDA zone 2.  

#10 Woolly Blue Violet (Viola sororia)

This little pansy blooms early. It is a woodland plant that will be happy to naturalize your lawn. No taller than 6 inches (15 cm), it generally bears purple flowers with a white throat, but there is often variation in the seedlings, which gives a whole palette of more or less pale mauves. USDA zone 3.  

There are many other beautiful spring-flowering native plants, such as bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), baneberry (Actaea spp.) or the jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum). Even if it is very beautiful in photos, I do not recommend growing the Canada anemone (Anemonastrum canadense, formerly Anemone canadensis) due to its very aggressive tendency. Apart from this exception, those spring favorites are great opportunities to introduce native plants into your garden, just to charm the insects that wake up quickly from their hibernation. But above all to charm you with these beautiful, incredible flowers!

Photos: Trillium: CCCP; Uvularia: The Cosmonaut; Tiarella: Evan M. Raskin; Caulophyllum and Viola: Cbaile19; Maianthemum and Rhododendron: Robert Flogaus-Faust; Aralia: Cephasu; Aquilegia: Ragesoss; Caltha: H. Zell. All images come from Wikimedia Commons.