Alternative Plant Choices
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Thrillers
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Amsonia illustris
Blue star
Herbaceous perennial
Commonly called Ozark bluestar or shining blue star. A clump-forming plant that features pyramidal clusters of soft light blue flowers. Grows 2-3’ tall.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 fee
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Carex grayi
grey sedge
Rush or Sedge
Grows best in moist soil in full sun or light shade. Greenish yellow to brown seed heads look like spiked clubs. Grows to 2-3’ tall. Fruits remain on plant in winter. Grass-like leaves are semi-evergreen.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Ceanothus americanus
New Jersey tea
Deciduous shrub
Grows in full sun to part shade. A compact, dense, rounded shrub which typically grows 2-3’ tall. Cylindrical clusters of tiny, fragrant, white flowers appear on long stalk in late spring. Dried leaves were used as a tea substitute in American Revolutionary War times.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 3.00 to 4.00 feet
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Likes moist to wet soils in part shade. This species of turtlehead is stiffly erect and typically grows 2-3' tall. Snapdragon-like white flowers tinged with pink bloom from late summer into autumn.
Sun: Part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Best grown in moist soils in full sun to part shade. Hooded, snapdragon-like, deep rose flowers appear in late summer into autumn reaching 2-3' tall.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Likes full sun and dry, sandy soils. Features bristly-edged, sword-shaped leaves that resemble yucca plants. Whitish flower heads appear in tight clusters atop stiff stems typically rising to 3-4’.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 4.00 to 5.00 feet
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Iris fulva
copper iris
Herbaceous perennial
Likes fertile, slightly acidic, consistently moist soil in full sun. Tolerates part shade. Commonly called copper iris because of the unusual copper color of its flowers that appear in late spring.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Liatris pycnostachya
prairie blazing star
Herbaceous perennial
Typically growing 2-4’ tall, this liatris species is the tallest in cultivation. It features rounded, fluffy, deep rose-purple flower heads atop thickly leafed, rigid flower stalks. Blooms in summer.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 2.00 to 5.00 feet
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Lobelia cardinalis
cardinal flower
Herbaceous perennial
Grows in hummus, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Needs constant moisture. Features cardinal red flowers on stalks rising typically to a height of 2-3’. White and rose-colored forms are also available.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 2.00 to 4.00 feet
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Rudbeckia subtomentosa
Sweet coneflower
Herbaceous perennial
Grown in full sun to part shade. Typically grows 3-5’ tall and features daisy-like flowers with yellow rays and dark brownish purple center disks on branched stems. Long summer-to-early-fall bloom period.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 3.00 to 5.00 feet
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Schizachyrium scoparium
Little bluestem
Ornamental grass
Grown in full sun. Tolerates heat and humidity. This ornamental grass grows 2-4’ tall with slender green leaves with a tinge of blue at the base. Purplish bronze flowers appear on stems rising above the foliage in August. Attractive seed heads and bronze foliage color last into late fall.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 2.00 to 4.00 feet
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Verbena stricta
hoary vervain
Herbaceous perennial
Easily grown in full sun. A vigorous, clump-forming perennial with gray-green leaves and stems. Grows to 2-4’ tall and features blue-purple flowers. Flowers are densely packed and bloom a few at a time from bottom to top, May to September.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 2.00 to 4.00 feet
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Zizia aurea
Golden alexander
Herbaceous perennial
Grows in full sun to part shade. Features flat-topped clusters of tiny yellow flowers in late spring atop stems growing to 3’ tall. Has simple, heart-shaped basal leaves. It is a larval food source for the Missouri woodland swallowtail butterfly (Papilio joanae).
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 1.50 to 3.00 feet
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Fillers
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Easily grown in average, dry to medium soil in full sun to light shade. Plants typically grow 12-18” tall. Clumps feature narrow, grass-like leaves and tiny pink (to lilac) bell-shaped flowers which appear in loose, nodding clusters. Blooms in summer.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 1.00 to 1.50 feet
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Antennaria parlinii
pussy toes
Herbaceous perennial
Grows in full sun to part shade. One of the few native Missouri plants which grows well in dry, shady locations. Non-showy, fuzzy, whitish flower heads bloom in early spring. Flowers are crowded into terminal clusters. Commonly called pussytoes because of the supposed resemblance of each tight flower cluster to the soft pads of a cat’s paw. Great addition to trough gardens.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 0.50 to 1.00 feet
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Wide range of soil tolerance if drainage is provided. Prefers light to moderate shade. Features drooping, bell-like, red and yellow flowers. Delicate foliage remains attractive throughout the summer if soils are kept moist. Flowers are quite attractive to hummingbirds.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Carex albicans
oak sedge
Rush or Sedge
Part to full shade but will grow in full sun. Features dainty, grass-like, bright green leaf blades. Flowers bloom in late spring on stems rising to as much as 20” tall.
Sun: Part shade to full shade
Water: Medium
Height: 1.00 to 1.50 feet
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Coreopsis lanceolata
lanceleaf coreopsis
Herbaceous perennial
Grows in full sun. Prompt deadheading of spent flower stalks encourages additional bloom. Typically grows to 2' tall. Features solitary, yellow, daisy-like flowers with flat yellow center disks.Blooms in summer.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 1.00 to 2.00 feet
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An annual best grown in full sun. Plant new seeds in containers each year around the time of the last spring frost date. Produces purplish red flowers from July to October roughly 10-20” tall that are attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Medium
Height: 1.00 to 2.00 feet
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An adaptable plant that is tolerant of heat and humidity. Removal of spent flowers promotes reblooming. Grows 1-2’ tall on rigid, upright, hairy stems. Flowers feature light pink to pale purple petals with orange-brown center cones. Blooms in June and July. Goldfinches are attracted to the seeds.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 1.00 to 2.00 feet
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Geranium maculatum
wild geranium
Herbaceous perennial
Grows in full sun to part shade. Prefers moist, hummus soils. Forms a mound of foliage that grows to 24” tall and 18” wide withpink to lilac flowers in spring.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 1.50 to 2.00 feet
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Easily grown in full sun. Avoid overfertilization which may cause plants to grow too tall. Cut back in May-early June to reduce plant height and to encourage branching and more flowers. An erect, clump-forming plant that branches near the top. Typically grows 1-3’ tall. Daisy-like flowers (to 1.5” across) with drooping, bright yellow rays and brownish purple center disks. Blooms from summer to fall.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 1.00 to 3.00 feet
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Grows in full sun. One of the shortest of the many native sunflowers. Basal leaves form a 4-8” foliage clump. Sunflowers with orange-yellow rays and yellow disks appear on stiff flower stems 2-3’ tall. Blooms from mid-summer to fall.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 2.00 to 4.00 feet
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Best grown in organically rich soils in full sun to part shade. Best foliage color may occur in sunny spots with some afternoon shade. Foliage grows in a basal mound to 12” tall with slender flowering stems that rise to 18”. White to pink flowers appear from late July to September. .
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 0.75 to 1.00 feet
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Best grown in full sun to part shade. Features a 12-18" tall basal clump of heart-shaped green leaves. Tiny, greenish, bell-shaped flowers develop in open, airy panicles on slender, wiry stems to a height of 18-24" in spring to early summer.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 1.00 to 2.00 feet
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Best grown in moist, well-drained soils in part shade. Will tolerate close to full shade. Pale blue, lilac,or lavender iris flowers with gold crests on the falls are borne on very short stems. Narrow, sword-shaped, medium green leaves arise from a network of branching rhizomes.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 0.50 to 0.75 feet
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Best grown in part shade. Plants grow to 10-20” tall on an arching single stem. Each is topped in May-June with white to greenish-white star-shaped flowers. Fruits mature from green with blue-black stripes to blackish- red to black.
Sun: Part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 1.00 to 2.00 feet
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Likes moist, well-drained soil in part shade. Typically grows to 12” tall. Features light blue, bell-shaped flowers in loose, terminal clusters on weak stems in mid to late spring. Oval leaflets are arranged like the rungs of a ladder.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 1.00 to 1.50 feet
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Easily grown in average well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. This erect, many-branched perennial grows 2-3’ tall with needle-like leaves and profuse clusters of small, white flowers. Blooms in late summer.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Easily grown in dry to medium, well-drained soil in full sun. Typically grows 2-3’ tall and features daisy-like flowers with yellow rays and black center disks on branched stems. Blooms from summer to early fall.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 2.00 to 3.00 feet
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Grows best in full sun. A bushy, compact plant with hairy stems. Forms mound 1-2’ tall with small daisy-like flowers with violet blue rays and yellow center disks. Blue-green leaves are fragrant when crushed.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 1.00 to 3.00 feet
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Spillers
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Features two downy, heart-shaped to kidney-shaped, dark green leaves. Cup-shaped, purplish brown flowers appear in spring on short, ground-level stems. Flowers are attractive but bloom singly on or near the ground, usually hidden by the foliage.
Sun: Part shade to full shade
Water: Medium to wet
Height: 0.50 to 1.00 feet
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Grows in well-drained soils in full sun. Typically forms a low foliage mound from 6-9” tall. Solitary, poppy-like, magenta flowerscontinuously appearing from mid-spring to fall.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 0.50 to 1.00 feet
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Grows in medium-moisture, well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. A small-fruited, wild strawberry. It forms a compact, stemless, 4-8” tall plant that spreads by runners. Small, 5-petaled white flowers with yellow centers appear throughout summer.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 0.25 to 0.75 feet
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Grows in well-drained soils in full sun. It is a clumping, sprawling plant that grows to 6-18” tall. Flat-topped clusters of 5-petaled, rose-pink to rose-purple flowers appear atop stems in late spring to late summer.
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 0.50 to 1.50 feet
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Can be grown in well-drained soil in light shade but performs best in full sun. A mat-forming phlox that grows to only 6” tall and spreads by trailing. Produces pale blue to almost white flowers in spring.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Dry to medium
Height: 0.25 to 0.50 feet
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Grows in full sun to part shade. Prefers hummus, slightly acidic soil. An ornamental, strawberry-like plant. Mat-forming growth habit which spreads by runners and will spill over the rim of the container. Features 5-petaled yellow flowers which bloom singly or in clusters in spring. Foliage is evergreen. Fruits are inedible.
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Height: 0.25 to 0.50 feet
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