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Native plants · Iowa

Native plants of Crawford County

168 plant species are recorded as native to Iowa in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Crawford County by USDA PLANTS. 70 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

Crawford County, Iowa

Native species
168 Typical Iowa county: 44 (median of 99 counties)
Garden-ready natives
70 Typical Iowa county: 24
Share by type (all 168 native species)
Percent of the 168 native species in each growth type
Tree 11% (18)
Shrub 5% (8)
Wildflower (forb) 63% (106)
Grass or grass-like 16% (27)
Vine 4% (6)
Fern 2% (3)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (63%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (16%).

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 zones 5a to 5b (2023 map).

The native plant list

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

Garden-ready natives 70

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

Garden-ready native plants of Crawford County, Iowa
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
American basswood Tilia americana Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
American bellflower Campanulastrum americanum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 12b
American elm Ulmus americana Tree 120 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 2b
American hazelnut Corylus americana Shrub 10 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
American water plantain Alisma subcordatum Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun High Zone 4a
big bluestem Andropogon gerardii Grass or grass-like 6 ft Sun Low Zone 2b
bitternut hickory Carya cordiformis Tree 75 ft Sun Medium Zone 2b
black cherry Prunus serotina Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
black raspberry Rubus occidentalis Shrub 6 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
black walnut Juglans nigra Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 4b
black willow Salix nigra Tree 100 ft Sun High Zone 1b
broadleaf arrowhead Sagittaria latifolia Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 4a
broadleaf cattail Typha latifolia Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
bur oak Quercus macrocarpa Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
bur-reed sedge Carex sparganioides Grass or grass-like 3 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
Canada germander Teucrium canadense Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
Canada wildrye Elymus canadensis Grass or grass-like 3 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
Canadian horseweed Conyza canadensis Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 12b
Canadian milkvetch Astragalus canadensis Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun Medium Zone 3b
chokecherry Prunus virginiana Tree 25 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
common blue violet Viola sororia Wildflower (forb) 4 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
common cowparsnip Heracleum maximum Wildflower (forb) 8 ft Sun High Zone 3b
common duckweed Lemna minor Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
coon's tail Ceratophyllum demersum Wildflower (forb) — Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
cup plant Silphium perfoliatum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade — Zone 2b
dotted blazing star Liatris punctata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
downy paintedcup Castilleja sessiliflora Wildflower (forb) 1.3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides Tree 190 ft Sun High Zone 3a
eastern woodland sedge Carex blanda Grass or grass-like 2 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
fall panicgrass Panicum dichotomiflorum Grass or grass-like 3.3 ft Sun High Zone 3a
field horsetail Equisetum arvense Fern 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
fowl bluegrass Poa palustris Grass or grass-like 4 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
fragrant flatsedge Cyperus odoratus Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 11b
giant goldenrod Solidago gigantea Wildflower (forb) 8.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
gray dogwood Cornus racemosa Shrub 10 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
green bulrush Scirpus atrovirens Grass or grass-like 5.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 2a
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
leadplant Amorpha canescens Shrub 4 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
leafy pondweed Potamogeton foliosus Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
littleleaf buttercup Ranunculus abortivus Wildflower (forb) 2.8 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
Missouri ironweed Vernonia missurica Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
Missouri River willow Salix eriocephala Tree 52 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
nodding fescue Festuca subverticillata Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
northern red oak Quercus rubra Tree 81 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata Wildflower (forb) 2.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
Pennsylvania smartweed Polygonum pensylvanicum Wildflower (forb) 3.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
Philadelphia fleabane Erigeron philadelphicus Wildflower (forb) 2.8 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
pinnate prairie coneflower Ratibida pinnata Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
prairie cordgrass Spartina pectinata Grass or grass-like 8 ft Sun High Zone 3b
prairie fleabane Erigeron strigosus Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
rattlesnake fern Botrychium virginianum Fern 1.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
reed canarygrass Phalaris arundinacea Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun High Zone 3b
riverbank grape Vitis riparia Vine 45 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
sandbar willow Salix interior Tree 30 ft Sun — Zone 1a
shagbark hickory Carya ovata Tree 75 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
slippery elm Ulmus rubra Tree 85 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3a
smooth horsetail Equisetum laevigatum Fern 5 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
smooth sumac Rhus glabra Tree 12 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
swamp milkweed Asclepias incarnata Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
switchgrass Panicum virgatum Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
tall hairy agrimony Agrimonia gryposepala Wildflower (forb) 5.9 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera Wildflower (forb) 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
western snowberry Symphoricarpos occidentalis Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
western wheatgrass Pascopyrum smithii Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
wheat sedge Carex atherodes Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun High Zone 3b
white avens Geum canadense Wildflower (forb) 3.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
wild bergamot Monarda fistulosa Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
wild blue phlox Phlox divaricata Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a

Other native species recorded here 98

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 hogpeanut Amphicarpaea bracteata
  • Aunt Lucy Ellisia nyctelea
  • Baldwin's ironweed Vernonia baldwinii
  • biannual lettuce Lactuca ludoviciana
  • blackseed plantain Plantago rugelii
  • bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis
  • bog yellowcress Rorippa palustris
  • bristly greenbrier Smilax tamnoides
  • buffalobur nightshade Solanum rostratum
  • Canada lettuce Lactuca canadensis
  • Canadian anemone Anemone canadensis
  • Canadian blacksnakeroot Sanicula canadensis
  • Canadian clearweed Pilea pumila
  • Canadian honewort Cryptotaenia canadensis
  • candle anemone Anemone cylindrica
  • carpenter's square Scrophularia marilandica
  • clustered blacksnakeroot Sanicula odorata
  • common milkweed Asclepias syriaca
  • common moonseed Menispermum canadense
  • common pricklyash Zanthoxylum americanum
  • compassplant Silphium laciniatum
  • curlytop knotweed Polygonum lapathifolium
  • downy hawthorn Crataegus mollis
  • dutchman's breeches Dicentra cucullaria
  • eastern bottlebrush grass Elymus hystrix
  • eastern daisy fleabane Erigeron annuus
  • eastern poison ivy Toxicodendron radicans
  • eastern waterleaf Hydrophyllum virginianum
  • elmleaf goldenrod Solidago ulmifolia
  • feathery false lily of the valley Maianthemum racemosum
  • feverwort Triosteum perfoliatum
  • Flodman's thistle Cirsium flodmanii
  • flowering spurge Euphorbia corollata
  • foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
  • fringed loosestrife Lysimachia ciliata
  • golden zizia Zizia aurea
  • hairy wildrye Elymus villosus
  • heartleaf four o'clock Mirabilis nyctaginea
  • heavy sedge Carex gravida
  • hedge false bindweed Calystegia sepium
  • Heller's rosette grass Dichanthelium oligosanthes
  • hemlock waterparsnip Sium suave
  • hoary puccoon Lithospermum canescens
  • hoary verbena Verbena stricta
  • lanceleaf sage Salvia reflexa
  • longbract spiderwort Tradescantia bracteata
  • longstyle sweetroot Osmorhiza longistylis
  • mapleleaf goosefoot Chenopodium simplex
  • Maryland sanicle Sanicula marilandica
  • mat sandbur Cenchrus longispinus
  • Michigan lily Lilium michiganense
  • Missouri gooseberry Ribes missouriense
  • narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
  • narrowleaf stoneseed Lithospermum incisum
  • northern bog violet Viola nephrophylla
  • Norwegian cinquefoil Potentilla norvegica
  • Nuttall's prairie parsley Polytaenia nuttallii
  • pale dock Rumex altissimus
  • paleleaf woodland sunflower Helianthus strumosus
  • Pennsylvania pellitory Parietaria pensylvanica
  • pointedleaf ticktrefoil Desmodium glutinosum
  • prairie blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium campestre
  • prairie rose Rosa arkansana
  • prairie violet Viola pedatifida
  • purple meadow-rue Thalictrum dasycarpum
  • red baneberry Actaea rubra
  • red columbine Aquilegia canadensis
  • ribseed sandmat Chamaesyce glyptosperma
  • richwoods sedge Carex oligocarpa
  • rigid sedge Carex tetanica
  • rosy sedge Carex rosea
  • rough barnyardgrass Echinochloa muricata
  • slender yellow woodsorrel Oxalis dillenii
  • smooth forked nailwort Paronychia canadensis
  • smooth oxeye Heliopsis helianthoides
  • smooth rose Rosa blanda
  • smooth Solomon's seal Polygonatum biflorum
  • soft agrimony Agrimonia pubescens
  • spotted sandmat Chamaesyce maculata
  • spreading dogbane Apocynum androsaemifolium
  • Standley's goosefoot Chenopodium standleyanum
  • starry false lily of the valley Maianthemum stellatum
  • stiff tickseed Coreopsis palmata
  • swamp verbena Verbena hastata
  • sweetscented joe pye weed Eutrochium purpureum
  • tall thimbleweed Anemone virginiana
  • toothed spurge Euphorbia dentata
  • tufted lovegrass Eragrostis pectinacea
  • Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana
  • western waterweed Elodea nuttallii
  • white fawnlily Erythronium albidum
  • white snakeroot Ageratina altissima
  • white vervain Verbena urticifolia
  • whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata
  • widowsfrill Silene stellata
  • witchgrass Panicum capillare
  • yellow giant hyssop Agastache nepetoides
  • yellowfruit sedge Carex annectens
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.

Compared with Iowa

The typical county is the median of the 99 Iowa 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, Crawford County and Iowa
MeasureCrawford CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 168 44 1,374
Garden-ready natives 70 24 496
Tree 18 — 110
Shrub 8 — 72
Wildflower (forb) 106 — 779
Grass or grass-like 27 — 298
Vine 6 — 55
Fern 3 — 60

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Crawford 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
Crawford County (county FIPS 19047), Iowa. 168 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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