Native plants · Georgia

Native plants of Jones County

118 plant species are recorded as native to Georgia in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Jones County by USDA PLANTS. 35 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Jones County, Georgia

Native species: 118 Typical Georgia county: 129 (median of 159 counties)
Garden-ready natives: 35 Typical Georgia county: 58
Share by type (all 118 native species): Percent of the 118 native species in each growth type

Tree 10% (12)
Shrub 7% (8)
Wildflower (forb) 58% (69)
Grass or grass-like 15% (18)
Vine 6% (7)
Fern 3% (4)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (58%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (15%).

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 8b (2023 map).

The native plant list

Garden-ready natives 35

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

Garden-ready native plants of Jones County, Georgia
Plant	Type	Height	Light	Water use	Hardy to
American beautyberry Callicarpa americana	Shrub	6 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 6b
blackeyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta	Wildflower (forb)	1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
blackjack oak Quercus marilandica	Tree	25 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 6a
broomsedge bluestem Andropogon virginicus	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5b
buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides	Grass or grass-like	6 in	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4a
calico aster Symphyotrichum lateriflorum	Wildflower (forb)	4 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
Canadian horseweed Conyza canadensis	Wildflower (forb)	5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 12b
climbing hempvine Mikania scandens	Vine	1 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 3b
common selfheal Prunella vulgaris	Wildflower (forb)	1.5 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
cucumber tree Magnolia acuminata	Tree	100 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 5b
deerberry Vaccinium stamineum	Shrub	16 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 5a
dwarf palmetto Sabal minor	Tree	9 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 8a
eastern gamagrass Tripsacum dactyloides	Grass or grass-like	5 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
graybark grape Vitis cinerea	Vine	50 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 6b
hairawn muhly Muhlenbergia capillaris	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	High	Zone 8a
hazel alder Alnus serrulata	Tree	30 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
longleaf woodoats Chasmanthium sessiliflorum	Grass or grass-like	5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 7a
Maryland senna Senna marilandica	Wildflower (forb)	6.6 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 5b
mountain azalea Rhododendron canescens	Shrub	14 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 6a
New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus	Shrub	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 4b
orangegrass Hypericum gentianoides	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 12a
partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata	Wildflower (forb)	2.4 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 7a
prairie fleabane Erigeron strigosus	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4b
purple lovegrass Eragrostis spectabilis	Grass or grass-like	11 in	Sun	Low	Zone 3a
purpletop tridens Tridens flavus	Grass or grass-like	2.5 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 5a
riverbank wildrye Elymus riparius	Grass or grass-like	4.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
splitbeard bluestem Andropogon ternarius	Grass or grass-like	3.9 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 5b
spotted St. Johnswort Hypericum punctatum	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
swamp sunflower Helianthus angustifolius	Wildflower (forb)	5.6 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4b
turkey oak Quercus laevis	Tree	40 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 7a
water oak Quercus nigra	Tree	90 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
willow oak Quercus phellos	Tree	100 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
winged sumac Rhus copallinum	Tree	8 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4b
woolgrass Scirpus cyperinus	Grass or grass-like	4.9 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a

Other native species recorded here 83

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.

American burnweed Erechtites hieraciifolius
anisescented goldenrod Solidago odora
Atlantic pigeonwings Clitoria mariana
Atlantic poison oak Toxicodendron pubescens
axilflower Mecardonia acuminata
beaked panicgrass Panicum anceps
bearded skeletongrass Gymnopogon ambiguus
bigtop lovegrass Eragrostis hirsuta
camphorweed Heterotheca subaxillaris
Canada lettuce Lactuca canadensis
Carolina larkspur Delphinium carolinianum
Carolina wild petunia Ruellia caroliniensis
Christmas fern Polystichum acrostichoides
clasping milkweed Asclepias amplexicaulis
common yellow oxalis Oxalis stricta
devil's grandmother Elephantopus tomentosus
dogfennel Eupatorium capillifolium
downy lobelia Lobelia puberula
dwarf hackberry Celtis pumila
dwarf hawthorn Crataegus uniflora
eastern milkpea Galactia regularis
eastern poison ivy Toxicodendron radicans
false flowering spurge Euphorbia pubentissima
fan clubmoss Lycopodium digitatum
fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica
greater tickseed Coreopsis major
hairy bedstraw Galium pilosum
hairy pinweed Lechea mucronata
hairy skullcap Scutellaria elliptica
hairy small-leaf ticktrefoil Desmodium ciliare
hairy sunflower Helianthus hirsutus
hyssopleaf thoroughwort Eupatorium hyssopifolium
juniper leaf Polypremum procumbens
largebracted plantain Plantago aristata
lateflowering thoroughwort Eupatorium serotinum
longleaf summer bluet Houstonia longifolia
marsh bristlegrass Setaria parviflora
Maryland goldenaster Chrysopsis mariana
meadow spikemoss Selaginella apoda
Michaux's croton Croton michauxii
nakedflower ticktrefoil Desmodium nudiflorum
Nuttall's ticktrefoil Desmodium nuttallii
pink fuzzybean Strophostyles umbellata
poorjoe Diodia teres
poverty oatgrass Danthonia spicata
procession flower Polygala incarnata
queendevil Hieracium gronovii
rabbit-tobacco Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium
rice button aster Symphyotrichum dumosum
rosepink Sabatia angularis
Sampson's snakeroot Orbexilum pedunculatum
sand hickory Carya pallida
seaside threeawn Aristida tuberculosa
sensitive fern Onoclea sensibilis
sensitive partridge pea Chamaecrista nictitans
showy goldenrod Solidago erecta
shrubby lespedeza Lespedeza frutescens
sidebeak pencilflower Stylosanthes biflora
silver plumegrass Saccharum alopecuroides
slender lespedeza Lespedeza virginica
slender threeseed mercury Acalypha gracilens
slenderleaf false foxglove Agalinis tenuifolia
small Venus' looking-glass Triodanis biflora
southern crab apple Malus angustifolia
Spanish needles Bidens bipinnata
spoonleaf purple everlasting Gamochaeta purpurea
spurred butterfly pea Centrosema virginianum
St. Andrew's cross Hypericum hypericoides
striped prince's pine Chimaphila maculata
tall lespedeza Lespedeza stuevei
tall thistle Cirsium altissimum
thickleaf phlox Phlox carolina
twining snoutbean Rhynchosia tomentosa
Venus' pride Houstonia purpurea
violet lespedeza Lespedeza violacea
Virginia plantain Plantago virginica
Virginia snakeroot Aristolochia serpentaria
white snakeroot Ageratina altissima
wingstem Verbesina alternifolia
woodland pinkroot Spigelia marilandica
woollysheath threeawn Aristida lanosa
yankeeweed Eupatorium compositifolium
yellow thistle Cirsium horridulum

Compared with Georgia

The typical county is the median of the 159 Georgia 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, Jones County and Georgia
Measure	Jones County	Typical county	Statewide
Native species	118	129	1,750
Garden-ready natives	35	58	608
Tree	12	—	202
Shrub	8	—	91
Wildflower (forb)	69	—	908
Grass or grass-like	18	—	403
Vine	7	—	78
Fern	4	—	68

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Jones County.

Baldwin County, GA 39 garden-ready
Bibb County, GA 88 garden-ready
Jasper County, GA 51 garden-ready
Monroe County, GA 23 garden-ready
Putnam County, GA 49 garden-ready
Twiggs County, GA 15 garden-ready
Wilkinson County, GA 21 garden-ready

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: Jones County (county FIPS 13169), Georgia. 118 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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