Native Plants

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

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Thursday - May 15, 2014

From: Ann Arbor, MI
Region: Midwest
Topic: Shrubs
Title: Small Shrub for a Foundation Planting in Michigan
Answered by: Anne Van Nest

QUESTION:

I need a small, native, perennial shrub for a foundation planting in Michigan.

ANSWER:

The first place to go to find a list of potential plants is our Native Plants Database. Use the Combination Search feature instead of Recommended Species. This will provide a bigger selection with much more choice to narrow down. The volunteers and staff at the Wildflower Center who maintain the database have partners in different regions to help with these recommended species lists based on what is easy to access in local nurseries.
Under Combination Search, select the following categories: State – Michigan, Habit – Shrub, Duration – Perennial, and Light Requirement – Sun (or part shade, or shade depending on which side of the house you are planting). Then select the soil moisture that you have – dry, moist or wet and the height you have available for your shrub. You can also narrow the search by indicating blooming color and blooming time.

Some shrubs (1-3 ft.) for example that might fit your requirements include:

Andromeda polifolia (bog rosemary)

Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (kinnikinnick)

Gaylussacia baccata (black huckleberry)

Ledum groenlandicum (bog Labrador tea)

Vaccinium uliginosum (alpine blueberry)

Vaccinium vitis-idaea (lingonberry)

Some taller (3-6 ft.) native shrubs include: