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Native plants · Alabama

Native plants of Blount County

205 plant species are recorded as native to Alabama in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Blount County by USDA PLANTS. 125 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 1 more species is listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Blount County, Alabama

Native species
205 Typical Alabama county: 253 (median of 66 counties)
Garden-ready natives
125 Typical Alabama county: 146
Share by type (all 205 native species)
Percent of the 205 native species in each growth type
Tree 38% (77)
Shrub 10% (20)
Wildflower (forb) 25% (52)
Grass or grass-like 7% (14)
Vine 7% (15)
Fern 13% (27)

Trees make up the largest share of the native list (38%), followed by wildflowers (25%).

Recorded native ranges can include long-established populations that spread from gardens; check your state’s native plant society list for local guidance. How native status is decided.

ZIP codes mainly in this county fall in USDA hardiness zone 8a (2023 map).

The native plant list

Cold hardiness is estimated from each plant’s PLANTS minimum temperature. How we estimate it.

Garden-ready natives 125

Native species with PLANTS growing records (height, light, moisture, minimum temperature). “—” means PLANTS has no value.

Garden-ready native plants of Blount County, Alabama
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
American basswood Tilia americana Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
American beech Fagus grandifolia Tree 80 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
American holly Ilex opaca Tree 40 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5a
American hornbeam Carpinus caroliniana Tree 30 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
American plum Prunus americana Tree 24 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
American snowbell Styrax americanus Tree 10 ft Sun–part shade — Zone 5b
American sycamore Platanus occidentalis Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
American water-willow Justicia americana Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
American witchhazel Hamamelis virginiana Tree 20 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
Appalachian blazing star Liatris squarrulosa Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 7a
bedstraw St. Johnswort Hypericum galioides Shrub 2.5 ft Sun High Zone 7a
bigleaf snowbell Styrax grandifolius Tree 10 ft Sun–part shade — Zone 4b
black cherry Prunus serotina Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
black maple Acer nigrum Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
black oak Quercus velutina Tree 80 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
black walnut Juglans nigra Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 4b
blackgum Nyssa sylvatica Tree 95 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5b
blackhaw Viburnum prunifolium Tree 16 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
blackjack oak Quercus marilandica Tree 25 ft Sun Low Zone 6a
blue cohosh Caulophyllum thalictroides Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
blunt broom sedge Carex tribuloides Grass or grass-like 3 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
blunt spikerush Eleocharis obtusa Grass or grass-like 1.6 ft Sun Medium Zone 11a
broadleaf cattail Typha latifolia Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
bursting-heart Euonymus americanus Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5a
butternut Juglans cinerea Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
butterweed Packera glabella Wildflower (forb) 3.2 ft Sun High Zone 10b
Carolina buckthorn Frangula caroliniana Tree 20 ft Shade-tolerant — Zone 4b
cat greenbrier Smilax glauca Vine 1 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 6a
chestnut oak Quercus montana Tree 73 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
cinnamon fern Osmunda cinnamomea Fern 4.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
coastal plain willow Salix caroliniana Tree 33 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 7b
cockspur hawthorn Crataegus crus-galli Tree 30 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
common hackberry Celtis occidentalis Tree 60 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 2b
common serviceberry Amelanchier arborea Tree 36 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
common sweetleaf Symplocos tinctoria Tree 20 ft Shade-tolerant — Zone 5a
cupseed Calycocarpum lyonii Vine 30 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
deerberry Vaccinium stamineum Shrub 16 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 5a
deertongue Dichanthelium clandestinum Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
devil's darning needles Clematis virginiana Vine 15 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
eastern baccharis Baccharis halimifolia Tree 10 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 7a
eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides Tree 190 ft Sun High Zone 3a
eastern narrowleaf sedge Carex amphibola Grass or grass-like 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
eastern redbud Cercis canadensis Tree 30 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4b
eastern redcedar Juniperus virginiana Tree 50 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
Elliott's blueberry Vaccinium elliottii Shrub 10 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 7a
false indigo bush Amorpha fruticosa Shrub 15 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
farkleberry Vaccinium arboreum Tree 28 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 6a
flowering dogwood Cornus florida Tree 30 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4b
fowl mannagrass Glyceria striata Grass or grass-like 5.7 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
fox sedge Carex vulpinoidea Grass or grass-like 3.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
fringed brome Bromus ciliatus Grass or grass-like 4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
frost grape Vitis vulpina Vine 83 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 5a
giant cane Arundinaria gigantea Shrub 25 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
green arrow arum Peltandra virginica Wildflower (forb) 2.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5a
green bulrush Scirpus atrovirens Grass or grass-like 5.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 2a
hazel alder Alnus serrulata Tree 30 ft Sun High Zone 5a
heartleaf peppervine Ampelopsis cordata Vine 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 6b
highbush blueberry Vaccinium corymbosum Shrub 12 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
honeylocust Gleditsia triacanthos Tree 70 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
hophornbeam Ostrya virginiana Tree 45 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
Indianhemp Apocynum cannabinum Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
Jack in the pulpit Arisaema triphyllum Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5b
Kentucky yellowwood Cladrastis kentukea Tree 40 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4a
late purple aster Symphyotrichum patens Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
laurel oak Quercus laurifolia Tree 70 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
leafy pondweed Potamogeton foliosus Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
loblolly pine Pinus taeda Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 6b
marsh seedbox Ludwigia palustris Wildflower (forb) 2 in Sun High Zone 4a
mockernut hickory Carya tomentosa Tree 85 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
mountain laurel Kalmia latifolia Tree 6 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 5a
muscadine Vitis rotundifolia Vine 30 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 5b
New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus Shrub 3 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4b
New York fern Thelypteris noveboracensis Fern 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4b
northern maidenhair Adiantum pedatum Fern 1.3 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
northern red oak Quercus rubra Tree 81 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
oakleaf hydrangea Hydrangea quercifolia Shrub 6 ft Sun Medium Zone 7a
Ohio buckeye Aesculus glabra Tree 68 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
painted buckeye Aesculus sylvatica Tree 65 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 8a
pale touch-me-not Impatiens pallida Wildflower (forb) 8.2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 10b
pawpaw Asimina triloba Tree 25 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
pignut hickory Carya glabra Tree 80 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
possumhaw Ilex decidua Tree 33 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5b
post oak Quercus stellata Tree 60 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
rattlesnake fern Botrychium virginianum Fern 1.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
red buckeye Aesculus pavia Tree 25 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
red chokeberry Aronia arbutifolia Shrub 5 ft Sun High Zone 5b
red maple Acer rubrum Tree 68 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 2b
river birch Betula nigra Tree 70 ft Sun High Zone 4a
roundleaf greenbrier Smilax rotundifolia Vine 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
sassafras Sassafras albidum Tree 75 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
saw greenbrier Smilax bona-nox Vine 4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5b
shallow sedge Carex lurida Grass or grass-like 3.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
shingle oak Quercus imbricaria Tree 45 ft Sun Medium Zone 5b
shrubby St. Johnswort Hypericum prolificum Shrub 3.2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
Shumard's oak Quercus shumardii Tree 100 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
silky dogwood Cornus amomum Shrub 10 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
slippery elm Ulmus rubra Tree 85 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3a
smooth sumac Rhus glabra Tree 12 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
sourwood Oxydendrum arboreum Tree 35 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 6a
southern red oak Quercus falcata Tree 75 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 6a
southern sugar maple Acer floridanum Tree 50 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5b
southern waternymph Najas guadalupensis Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun High Zone 3b
stiff dogwood Cornus foemina Tree 16 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 7a
stiff marsh bedstraw Galium tinctorium Wildflower (forb) 10 in Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
sugar maple Acer saccharum Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
sugarberry Celtis laevigata Tree 80 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
summer grape Vitis aestivalis Vine 30 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5a
swamp chestnut oak Quercus michauxii Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
swamp tupelo Nyssa biflora Tree 115 ft Sun High Zone 5b
sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 5a
trumpet honeysuckle Lonicera sempervirens Vine 16 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
trumpetweed Eutrochium fistulosum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
tuliptree Liriodendron tulipifera Tree 120 ft Sun Medium Zone 5b
Virginia pine Pinus virginiana Tree 70 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
Virginia sweetspire Itea virginica Shrub 10 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
water oak Quercus nigra Tree 90 ft Sun High Zone 5a
water tupelo Nyssa aquatica Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 5a
waterthread pondweed Potamogeton diversifolius Wildflower (forb) 3.2 ft Sun High Zone 3b
wavy hairgrass Deschampsia flexuosa Grass or grass-like 2.6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
white ash Fraxinus americana Tree 90 ft Sun High Zone 4a
white oak Quercus alba Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
willow oak Quercus phellos Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 5a
winged elm Ulmus alata Tree 65 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5b
winged sumac Rhus copallinum Tree 8 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
yaupon Ilex vomitoria Tree 25 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 8a

Other native species recorded here 80

PLANTS has no growing records for these, so light, moisture, height and zone filters cannot include them. Many are wild species seldom sold by nurseries.

  • Adam's needle Yucca filamentosa
  • Alabama lipfern Cheilanthes alabamensis
  • American bladdernut Staphylea trifolia
  • American columbo Frasera caroliniensis
  • American ginseng Panax quinquefolius
  • American lopseed Phryma leptostachya
  • arrowhead rattlebox Crotalaria sagittalis
  • bent sedge Carex styloflexa
  • blackstem spleenwort Asplenium resiliens
  • Blue Ridge blueberry Vaccinium pallidum
  • bluntlobe cliff fern Woodsia obtusa
  • bristly locust Robinia hispida
  • broad beechfern Phegopteris hexagonoptera
  • bulblet bladderfern Cystopteris bulbifera
  • Carolina coralbead Cocculus carolinus
  • Christmas fern Polystichum acrostichoides
  • climbing dogbane Trachelospermum difforme
  • cutleaf evening primrose Oenothera laciniata
  • cutleaf grapefern Botrychium dissectum
  • dogtooth violet Erythronium americanum
  • dwarf hawthorn Crataegus uniflora
  • eastern false rue anemone Enemion biternatum
  • eastern hayscented fern Dennstaedtia punctilobula
  • eastern poison ivy Toxicodendron radicans
  • eastern sweetshrub Calycanthus floridus
  • ebony spleenwort Asplenium platyneuron
  • fairywand Chamaelirium luteum
  • forkleaf toothwort Cardamine dissecta
  • fox grape Vitis labrusca
  • fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica
  • glade fern Diplazium pycnocarpon
  • Goldie's woodfern Dryopteris goldieana
  • greater tickseed Coreopsis major
  • hairy alumroot Heuchera villosa
  • hairy lipfern Cheilanthes lanosa
  • hairy skullcap Scutellaria elliptica
  • hairyjoint meadowparsnip Thaspium barbinode
  • heartleaf hedgenettle Stachys cordata
  • Heller's cudweed Pseudognaphalium helleri
  • herbwilliam Ptilimnium capillaceum
  • hornleaf riverweed Podostemum ceratophyllum
  • Indian-tobacco Lobelia inflata
  • largeflower tickseed Coreopsis grandiflora
  • largeleaf waterleaf Hydrophyllum macrophyllum
  • licorice bedstraw Galium circaezans
  • limestone adderstongue Ophioglossum engelmannii
  • lobed spleenwort Asplenium pinnatifidum
  • lowland bladderfern Cystopteris protrusa
  • maidenhair spleenwort Asplenium trichomanes
  • marginal woodfern Dryopteris marginalis
  • Maryland meadowbeauty Rhexia mariana
  • Michaux's croton Croton michauxii
  • netted chainfern Woodwardia areolata
  • oneflowered broomrape Orobanche uniflora
  • openflower rosette grass Dichanthelium laxiflorum
  • purple cliffbrake Pellaea atropurpurea
  • reflexed sedge Carex retroflexa
  • rock polypody Polypodium virginianum
  • sand hickory Carya pallida
  • sensitive fern Onoclea sensibilis
  • slender toothwort Cardamine angustata
  • southern blue monkshood Aconitum uncinatum
  • southern crab apple Malus angustifolia
  • southern jointweed Polygonella americana
  • spreading sandwort Arenaria lanuginosa
  • St. Andrew's cross Hypericum hypericoides
  • star tickseed Coreopsis pubescens
  • sticky catchfly Silene caroliniana
  • striped prince's pine Chimaphila maculata
  • thin paspalum Paspalum setaceum
  • tiny bluet Houstonia pusilla
  • Venus' pride Houstonia purpurea
  • Virginia chainfern Woodwardia virginica
  • white baneberry Actaea pachypoda
  • whorled rosinweed Silphium trifoliatum
  • wild hydrangea Hydrangea arborescens
  • woman's tobacco Antennaria plantaginifolia
  • woolly dutchman's pipe Aristolochia tomentosa
  • woolly lipfern Cheilanthes tomentosa
  • yellowroot Xanthorhiza simplicissima
Also listed as native and introduced here 1

PLANTS labels these species both native and introduced in this state: some forms are native and others were brought in from elsewhere. Most gardeners should choose plants from the main list.

  • annual ragweedAmbrosia artemisiifolia

Compared with Alabama

The typical county is the median of the 66 Alabama counties with PLANTS county records; the statewide figure counts every species native anywhere in the state. More species is not better or worse: counties differ in size, habitat and how thoroughly they have been surveyed.

Native species counts, Blount County and Alabama
MeasureBlount CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 205 253 1,758
Garden-ready natives 125 146 605
Tree 77 — 195
Shrub 20 — 81
Wildflower (forb) 52 — 923
Grass or grass-like 14 — 413
Vine 15 — 76
Fern 27 — 70

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Blount County.

Look up another ZIP

Matches your ZIP to the county it mostly lies in, then lists the plants recorded as native to your state (Kew’s World Checklist and USDA PLANTS) and recorded in that county by USDA PLANTS.

Source & data date

Source
USDA NRCS PLANTS Database: county distribution records, native status and plant characteristics. CC0 (public domain dedication, per the data.gov catalog record).
Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP): native or introduced status by state. CC BY 3.0.
USGS US-RIIS (ver. 2.0): species listed as introduced are excluded. CC0.
Citation
USDA, NRCS. 2026. The PLANTS Database (https://plants.usda.gov, 11/04/2026). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.
Govaerts R. (ed.) (2026). WCVP: World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Data file dated 2026-06-04, http://sftp.kew.org/pub/data-repositories/WCVP/ (retrieved 2026-11-04). Paper: Govaerts R. et al. (2021) The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity. Scientific Data 8, 215.
Data date
Retrieved from PLANTS on November 4, 2026; WCVP data file dated June 4, 2026.
Zones
USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023) ZIP table: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed November 3, 2026. Plant zones on this site are our estimate, not the official map.
Scope
Blount County (county FIPS 01009), Alabama. 205 native species from PLANTS county distribution records; garden-ready = species with a PLANTS characteristics record.
Method
A species is listed when it is recorded as native to the state in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in the county by USDA PLANTS. Species PLANTS labels both native and introduced are listed separately. Full method · All sources

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