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Native plants · Iowa

Native plants of Sioux County

237 plant species are recorded as native to Iowa in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Sioux County by USDA PLANTS. 106 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

Sioux County, Iowa

Native species
237 Typical Iowa county: 44 (median of 99 counties)
Garden-ready natives
106 Typical Iowa county: 24
Share by type (all 237 native species)
Percent of the 237 native species in each growth type
Tree 8% (19)
Shrub 3% (8)
Wildflower (forb) 59% (141)
Grass or grass-like 24% (56)
Vine 5% (11)
Fern <1% (2)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (59%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (24%).

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 5a (2023 map).

The native plant list

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

Garden-ready natives 106

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

Garden-ready native plants of Sioux County, Iowa
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
alkali buttercup Ranunculus cymbalaria Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
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 black currant Ribes americanum Shrub 3 ft — — Zone 2b
American elm Ulmus americana Tree 120 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 2b
American licorice Glycyrrhiza lepidota Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
American vetch Vicia americana Vine 1.3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
American water plantain Alisma subcordatum Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun High Zone 4a
Bicknell's sedge Carex bicknellii Grass or grass-like 3.4 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
big bluestem Andropogon gerardii Grass or grass-like 6 ft Sun Low Zone 2b
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
blackeyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
blue grama Bouteloua gracilis Grass or grass-like 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
boxelder Acer negundo Tree 60 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
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
Canada goldenrod Solidago altissima Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
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 duckweed Lemna minor Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
common evening primrose Oenothera biennis Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
common hackberry Celtis occidentalis Tree 60 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 2b
common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
composite dropseed Sporobolus compositus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
cursed buttercup Ranunculus sceleratus Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 12b
cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata Wildflower (forb) 8.2 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
devil's beggartick Bidens frondosa Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 12a
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 pussytoes Antennaria neglecta Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
fowl bluegrass Poa palustris Grass or grass-like 4 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
fox sedge Carex vulpinoidea Grass or grass-like 3.2 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
green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica Tree 80 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
green bulrush Scirpus atrovirens Grass or grass-like 5.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 2a
green needlegrass Nassella viridula Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
hairy grama Bouteloua hirsuta Grass or grass-like 6 in Sun Low Zone 3b
honeylocust Gleditsia triacanthos Tree 70 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutans Grass or grass-like 6 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Indianhemp Apocynum cannabinum Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
Jerusalem artichoke Helianthus tuberosus Wildflower (forb) 9.8 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
jewelweed Impatiens capensis Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 10b
leadplant Amorpha canescens Shrub 4 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
leafy pondweed Potamogeton foliosus Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
littleleaf buttercup Ranunculus abortivus Wildflower (forb) 2.8 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
marsh muhly Muhlenbergia racemosa Grass or grass-like 3 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
nodding beggartick Bidens cernua Wildflower (forb) 3.2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 12a
nodding fescue Festuca subverticillata Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
northern catalpa Catalpa speciosa Tree 60 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
Ohio buckeye Aesculus glabra Tree 68 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata Wildflower (forb) 2.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
peachleaf willow Salix amygdaloides Tree 60 ft Sun High Zone 4a
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
plains muhly Muhlenbergia cuspidata Grass or grass-like 1.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
porcupinegrass Hesperostipa spartea Grass or grass-like 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
prairie dropseed Sporobolus heterolepis Grass or grass-like 2.3 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
prairie fleabane Erigeron strigosus Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
prairie Junegrass Koeleria macrantha Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
prairie sandreed Calamovilfa longifolia Grass or grass-like 4.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
purple locoweed Oxytropis lambertii Wildflower (forb) 1.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
purpleleaf willowherb Epilobium coloratum Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
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
rice cutgrass Leersia oryzoides Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 4a
riverbank grape Vitis riparia Vine 45 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
roughleaf dogwood Cornus drummondii Tree 20 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
roundhead lespedeza Lespedeza capitata Wildflower (forb) 2.6 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
roundleaf serviceberry Amelanchier sanguinea Tree 10 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
sago pondweed Stuckenia pectinata Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
sand dropseed Sporobolus cryptandrus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
sandbar willow Salix interior Tree 30 ft Sun — Zone 1a
sawtooth sunflower Helianthus grosseserratus Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
silver maple Acer saccharinum Tree 90 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 2b
slender wheatgrass Elymus trachycaulus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
smooth blue aster Symphyotrichum laeve Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
smooth horsetail Equisetum laevigatum Fern 5 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
softstem bulrush Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani Grass or grass-like 9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
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
teal lovegrass Eragrostis hypnoides Grass or grass-like 4 in Sun High Zone 3b
threelobe beggarticks Bidens tripartita Wildflower (forb) 3.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 12a
Torrey's rush Juncus torreyi Grass or grass-like 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera Wildflower (forb) 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
Virginia creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia Vine 1 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
Virginia wildrye Elymus virginicus Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
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
white avens Geum canadense Wildflower (forb) 3.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
white prairie clover Dalea candida Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
white sagebrush Artemisia ludoviciana Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
whitegrass Leersia virginica Grass or grass-like 3.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
wild bergamot Monarda fistulosa Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
wirestem muhly Muhlenbergia frondosa Grass or grass-like 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b

Other native species recorded here 131

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 bird's-foot trefoil Lotus unifoliolatus
  • American hogpeanut Amphicarpaea bracteata
  • Aunt Lucy Ellisia nyctelea
  • autumn onion Allium stellatum
  • bald spikerush Eleocharis erythropoda
  • bastard toadflax Comandra umbellata
  • biannual lettuce Lactuca ludoviciana
  • big devils beggartick Bidens vulgata
  • blackseed plantain Plantago rugelii
  • blackseed ricegrass Patis racemosa
  • bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis
  • bog yellowcress Rorippa palustris
  • bottomland aster Symphyotrichum ontarionis
  • buffalobur nightshade Solanum rostratum
  • bushy knotweed Polygonum ramosissimum
  • Canadian anemone Anemone canadensis
  • Canadian blacksnakeroot Sanicula canadensis
  • Canadian honewort Cryptotaenia canadensis
  • Canadian woodnettle Laportea canadensis
  • carelessweed Cyclachaena xanthiifolia
  • Carolina larkspur Delphinium carolinianum
  • Clayton's sweetroot Osmorhiza claytonii
  • clustered blacksnakeroot Sanicula odorata
  • common milkweed Asclepias syriaca
  • common moonseed Menispermum canadense
  • common threeseed mercury Acalypha rhomboidea
  • compassplant Silphium laciniatum
  • Cuman ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya
  • curlycup gumweed Grindelia squarrosa
  • curlytop knotweed Polygonum lapathifolium
  • desert biscuitroot Lomatium foeniculaceum
  • downy phlox Phlox pilosa
  • earlyleaf brome Bromus latiglumis
  • eastern bottlebrush grass Elymus hystrix
  • eastern poison ivy Toxicodendron radicans
  • eastern waterleaf Hydrophyllum virginianum
  • fall rosette grass Dichanthelium wilcoxianum
  • feathery false lily of the valley Maianthemum racemosum
  • field thistle Cirsium discolor
  • fire on the mountain Euphorbia cyathophora
  • fleshy hawthorn Crataegus succulenta
  • Flodman's thistle Cirsium flodmanii
  • foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
  • fringed loosestrife Lysimachia ciliata
  • golden zizia Zizia aurea
  • great ragweed Ambrosia trifida
  • grooved flax Linum sulcatum
  • groundplum milkvetch Astragalus crassicarpus
  • hairy four o'clock Mirabilis hirsuta
  • hairy hedgenettle Stachys pilosa
  • hairy wildrye Elymus villosus
  • hairy woodland brome Bromus pubescens
  • heartleaf four o'clock Mirabilis nyctaginea
  • heavy sedge Carex gravida
  • hedge false bindweed Calystegia sepium
  • Heller's rosette grass Dichanthelium oligosanthes
  • hoary puccoon Lithospermum canescens
  • hoary verbena Verbena stricta
  • Jersey tea Ceanothus herbaceus
  • lanceleaf sage Salvia reflexa
  • large Indian breadroot Pediomelum esculentum
  • Leiberg's panicum Dichanthelium leibergii
  • longbract spiderwort Tradescantia bracteata
  • longstyle sweetroot Osmorhiza longistylis
  • Macoun's barley ×Elyhordeum macounii
  • mapleleaf goosefoot Chenopodium simplex
  • Maryland sanicle Sanicula marilandica
  • mat sandbur Cenchrus longispinus
  • meadow garlic Allium canadense
  • Missouri gooseberry Ribes missouriense
  • narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
  • Norwegian cinquefoil Potentilla norvegica
  • pale dock Rumex altissimus
  • Pennsylvania pellitory Parietaria pensylvanica
  • pointedleaf ticktrefoil Desmodium glutinosum
  • poverty oatgrass Danthonia spicata
  • prairie blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium campestre
  • prairie goldenrod Oligoneuron album
  • prairie groundsel Packera plattensis
  • prairie ironweed Vernonia fasciculata
  • prairie rose Rosa arkansana
  • prairie violet Viola pedatifida
  • puffsheath dropseed Sporobolus neglectus
  • purple meadow-rue Thalictrum dasycarpum
  • red columbine Aquilegia canadensis
  • redwhisker clammyweed Polanisia dodecandra
  • ribseed sandmat Chamaesyce glyptosperma
  • Richardson's alumroot Heuchera richardsonii
  • rough barnyardgrass Echinochloa muricata
  • rush skeletonplant Lygodesmia juncea
  • Short's rockcress Arabis shortii
  • shortbeak sedge Carex brevior
  • silverleaf Indian breadroot Pediomelum argophyllum
  • sleepy silene Silene antirrhina
  • slender yellow woodsorrel Oxalis dillenii
  • smallflower fumewort Corydalis micrantha
  • smooth oxeye Heliopsis helianthoides
  • smooth rose Rosa blanda
  • snow on the mountain Euphorbia marginata
  • soft-hair marbleseed Onosmodium bejariense
  • spotted sandmat Chamaesyce maculata
  • spotted water hemlock Cicuta maculata
  • Sprengel's sedge Carex sprengelii
  • Standley's goosefoot Chenopodium standleyanum
  • starry false lily of the valley Maianthemum stellatum
  • stiff sunflower Helianthus pauciflorus
  • stiff tickseed Coreopsis palmata
  • swamp verbena Verbena hastata
  • tall blazing star Liatris aspera
  • tall thimbleweed Anemone virginiana
  • tufted lovegrass Eragrostis pectinacea
  • upright carrionflower Smilax ecirrhata
  • veiny pea Lathyrus venosus
  • violet woodsorrel Oxalis violacea
  • Virginia groundcherry Physalis virginiana
  • Virginia pepperweed Lepidium virginicum
  • Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana
  • western poison ivy Toxicodendron rydbergii
  • western silver aster Symphyotrichum sericeum
  • western tansymustard Descurainia pinnata
  • white fawnlily Erythronium albidum
  • white heath aster Symphyotrichum ericoides
  • white snakeroot Ageratina altissima
  • white vervain Verbena urticifolia
  • whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata
  • widowsfrill Silene stellata
  • wild cucumber Echinocystis lobata
  • witchgrass Panicum capillare
  • woodland lettuce Lactuca floridana
  • woodland strawberry Fragaria vesca
  • 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, Sioux County and Iowa
MeasureSioux CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 237 44 1,374
Garden-ready natives 106 24 496
Tree 19 — 110
Shrub 8 — 72
Wildflower (forb) 141 — 779
Grass or grass-like 56 — 298
Vine 11 — 55
Fern 2 — 60

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Sioux 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
Sioux County (county FIPS 19167), Iowa. 237 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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