| Latin name | Common name | Attributes |
| Blooming Forbs | | |
| Actaea (Cimicifuga) racemosa | Common Black Cohosh, Bugbane | Graceful white wands in mid-summer |
| Agrimonia parviflora | | |
| Allium cernuum | Nodding onion | Summer-blooming nectar source; reseeds |
| Aquilegia Canadensis | Wild or Eastern Red Columbine | Attracts bees, butterflies, hawk moths |
| Arisaema triphyllum | Jack-in-the-pulpit | Statuesque green, late spring bloomer |
| Asarum canadense | Common Wild Ginger | Colonizing shady groundcover |
| Asclepias incarnata | Swamp milkweed | High nectar and host plant value |
| Asclepias tuberosa | Butterfly-weed | High nectar and host plant value |
| Baptisia australis | Blue Wild Indigo | Pollinated by queen bumblebees |
| Carex blanda | | |
| Chrysogonum virginianum | Green and Gold | Semi-evergreen groundcover |
| Dicentra cucullaria | Dutchman’s Breeches | Charming spring ephemeral |
| Elephantopus carolinianus | Elephant’s Foot | Late summer, reseeding bloomer |
| Eurybia divaricata | White Wood Aster | Attracts butterflies with fall bloom |
| Euthamia graminifolia | Grass-leaved Goldenrod, Common Flat-top | Late-season nectar & pollen source |
| Eutrochium species | Joe Pye Weed | Showy, fragrant, attractive to butterflies |
| Fragaria virginiana | Virginia strawberry | High nectar and host plant value |
| Geranium maculatum | Wild or Spotted Geranium | Special value to native bees |
| Helenium autumnale | Autumn Sneezeweed | Late summer nectar and host plant |
| Iris cristata | Dwarf Crested Iris | Deer resistant; nectar & food source |
| Jeffersonia diphylla | Twinleaf | Uncommon native |
| Lobelia cardinalis | Cardinal flower | Hummingbirds, late summer blooms |
| Lobelia siphilitica | Great Blue Lobelia | Tolerates shade and moisture; nectar source |
| Mertensia virginica | Virginia Bluebell | Lovely reseeding spring ephemeral |
| Mitchella repens | Partridgeberry | Dainty, acid-loving groundcover |
| Monarda didyma | Scarlet Beebalm or Oswego Tea | Summer-blooming mint; nectar source |
| Monarda fistulosa | Wild Bergamot | Lavender blooms for butterflies and hummingbirds |
| Monarda punctata | Spotted Beebalm or Horsemint | Popular for pollinators and predatory wasps |
| Packera aurea | Golden or Heartleaf Ragwort | Evergreen groundcover, March bloom |
| Penstemon digitalis | Foxglove, Tall White Beardtongue | Long bloom period; valuable nectar plant |
| Penstemon hirsutus | Hairy Beardtongue | High nectar & host plant value |
| Phlox divaricata | Wild Blue or Woodland Phlox | Attracts hummingbirds and pollinators |
| Phlox stolonifera | Creeping Phlox | Evergreen groundcover, spring bloom |
| Podophyllum peltatum | Mayapple | Spring ephemeral, box turtle favorite |
| Polemonium reptans | Spreading Jacobs Ladder | Self-seeding spring bloomer |
| Pycnanthemum incanum | Hoary Mountain Mint | Mint family; densely packed flowers |
| Pycnanthemum muticum | Clustered Mountain Mint | Butterflies and bees love it |
| Pycnanthemum tenuifolium | Narrow Leaf Mountain Mint | Nectar magnet, fragrant |
| Rudbeckia fulgida | Orange Coneflower | Summer-blooming; feeds a variety of wildlife |
| Sanguinaria canadensis | Bloodroot | Early spring ephemeral |
| Sedum ternatum | Wild Stonecrop | Spreading groundcover |
| Sisyrinchium angustifolium | Blue-eyed Grass | Spring-blooming lily; nectar for native bees |
| Stylophorum diphyllum | Celandine Poppy | Yellow spring-bloomer for dense shade |
| Symphyotrichum novae-angliae | New England Aster | Outstanding fall nectar & pollen source |
| Thalictrum (Anemonella) thalictroides | Rue-anemone | Delicate low-growing reseeder |
| Thalictrum dioicum | Early Meadow-rue | Tall, delicate fern-like foliage |
| Tiarella cordifolia | Foamflower | Spring flowering groundcover |
| Trillium flexipes | Nodding Wake Robin | Spring-blooming sturdy perennial |
| Trillium sessile | Toadshade, Sessile Trillium | Spring-blooming, clumping perennial |
| Waldsteinia [Geum] fragaroides | Northern or Appalachian Barren Strawberry | Evergreen mat-forming ground cover |
| Zizia aurea | Golden Alexander | Larval host to Black Swallowtail |
| Ferns | | |
| Adiantum pedatum | Northern Maidenhair Fern | Delicate texture, sturdy constitution |
| Diplazium pycnocarpon | Glade Fern | Rhizomatous fern of rich forests/slopes |
| Dryopteris goldiana | Goldie’s or Giant Wood Fern | The giant of our native wood ferns |
| Dryopteris marginalis | Marginal Wood Fern | Semi-evergreen woodland fern |
| Onoclea sensibilis | Sensitive Fern | Spreads by rhizomes in deep shade |
| Osmundastrum cinnamomeum | Cinnamon Fern | Tall fern bears fertile fronds in spring |
| Phegopteris hexagonoptera | Broad Beech Fern | Deciduous woodland fern forms colonies |
| Polystichum acrostichoides | Christmas Fern | Semi-evergreen tough, adaptable fern |
| Woodwardia areolata | Netted Chain Fern | Deciduous fern, spreads in moist sites |
| Grasses and sedges | | |
| Carex blanda | Eastern Woodland Sedge | Evergreen clumping sedge; liriope alternative |
| Carex flaccosperma | Thin-fruited or Blue Wood Sedge | Good texture, alternative to liriope |
| Carex plantaginea | Plantain-leaved or Seersucker Sedge | Good texture, alternative to liriope |
| Carex rosea | Rosy Sedge | Host plant for skippers & moths |
| Chasmanthium latifolium | River Oats, Northern Oat Grass | Reseeds liberally; graceful habit |
| Elymus hystrix | Bottlebrush Grass | Hosts over 30 species of lepidoptera |
| Eragrostis spectabilis | Purple Love Grass | Clumping grass; hosts Zabulon skipper |
| Erigeron pulchellus | Robin’s Plantain | High wildlife value, late spring bloom |
| Panicum virgatum Northwind | Switchgrass cultivar NorthWind | Sturdy, compact; hosts skippers & butterflies |
| Panicum virgatum Purple Tears | Switchgrass cultivar Purple Tears | Sturdy, compact; hosts skippers & butterflies |
| Woody plants (trees and shrubs) | | |
| Amelanchior canadensis | Canada Serviceberry | Brilliant fall color, edible fruit |
| Calycanthus floridus | Eastern Sweetshrub, Carolina Allspice | Fragrant blooms |
| Catalpa species | Catalpa or Catawba | Hosts the Catalpa Sphinx moth |
| Cercis canadensis | Eastern Redbud | Fast growing adaptable tree; spring buds |
| Cornus amomum | Silky Dogwood | Nourishes bees, birds & butterflies; fragrant |
| Cornus florida | Flowering Dogwood | Nourishes bees, birds & butterflies |
| Hamamelis virginiana | Witch Hazel | Brilliant fall color, late fall bloom |
| Ilex opaca | American Holly | Understory woodland tree |
| Itea Virginica | Virginia Sweetspire | Spring bloom, good fall color |
| Lindera benzoin | Spicebush | Host for Spicebush & Tiger Swallowtails |
| Magnolia virginiana | Sweetbay Magnolia | Fragrant late-spring flowers |
| Morella cerifera | Wax Myrtle, Southern Bayberry | Aromatic foliage & blue berries |
| Viburnum acerifolium | Maple-leaved Viburnum | Colorful in fall; birds feed on the drupes |
| Viburnum dentatum | Arrowwood Viburnum | Creamy white flowers, blue-black fruit |
| Viburnum nudum | Southern Wild Raisin, Possumhaw, Witherod | Showy, edible fruits, likes damp spots |