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Native plants · Kentucky

Native plants of Lawrence County

230 plant species are recorded as native to Kentucky in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Lawrence County by USDA PLANTS. 122 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Lawrence County, Kentucky

Native species
230 Typical Kentucky county: 426 (median of 120 counties)
Garden-ready natives
122 Typical Kentucky county: 190
Share by type (all 230 native species)
Percent of the 230 native species in each growth type
Tree 30% (68)
Shrub 6% (13)
Wildflower (forb) 35% (81)
Grass or grass-like 13% (31)
Vine 6% (14)
Fern 10% (23)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (35%), followed by trees (30%).

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 6b to 7a (2023 map).

The native plant list

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

Garden-ready natives 122

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

Garden-ready native plants of Lawrence County, Kentucky
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 bellflower Campanulastrum americanum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 12b
American chestnut Castanea dentata Tree 115 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
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 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 sycamore Platanus occidentalis Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
American wisteria Wisteria frutescens Vine 50 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
American witchhazel Hamamelis virginiana Tree 20 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
beaked agrimony Agrimonia rostellata Wildflower (forb) 2.3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
black cherry Prunus serotina Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
black locust Robinia pseudoacacia Tree 60 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
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 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
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 mistflower Conoclinium coelestinum Wildflower (forb) 3.2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 6a
blunt spikerush Eleocharis obtusa Grass or grass-like 1.6 ft Sun Medium Zone 11a
boxelder Acer negundo Tree 60 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
bursting-heart Euonymus americanus Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5a
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 lousewort Pedicularis canadensis Wildflower (forb) 1.3 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
Carolina rose Rosa carolina Shrub 5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
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
Chickasaw plum Prunus angustifolia Tree 12 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
cinnamon fern Osmunda cinnamomea Fern 4.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
cockspur hawthorn Crataegus crus-galli Tree 30 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
common goldstar Hypoxis hirsuta Wildflower (forb) 10 in Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
common hackberry Celtis occidentalis Tree 60 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 2b
common persimmon Diospyros virginiana Tree 55 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5a
common selfheal Prunella vulgaris Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
common serviceberry Amelanchier arborea Tree 36 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
coralberry Symphoricarpos orbiculatus Shrub 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5a
cucumber tree Magnolia acuminata Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5b
deerberry Vaccinium stamineum Shrub 16 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 5a
devil's darning needles Clematis virginiana Vine 15 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
eastern hemlock Tsuga canadensis Tree 105 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
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
field horsetail Equisetum arvense Fern 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
field pussytoes Antennaria neglecta Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
flowering dogwood Cornus florida Tree 30 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4b
foxglove beardtongue Penstemon digitalis Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
fragrant flatsedge Cyperus odoratus Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 11b
frost grape Vitis vulpina Vine 83 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 5a
giant cane Arundinaria gigantea Shrub 25 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
golden ragwort Packera aurea Wildflower (forb) 3.9 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3a
gray goldenrod Solidago nemoralis Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
graybark grape Vitis cinerea Vine 50 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 6b
great laurel Rhododendron maximum Tree 25 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 6a
green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica Tree 80 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
hairy lespedeza Lespedeza hirta Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun Low Zone 6a
hazel alder Alnus serrulata Tree 30 ft Sun High Zone 5a
honeylocust Gleditsia triacanthos Tree 70 ft Sun Medium 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
late purple aster Symphyotrichum patens Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
little barley Hordeum pusillum Grass or grass-like 1.2 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
littleleaf buttercup Ranunculus abortivus Wildflower (forb) 2.8 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
mapleleaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium Shrub 6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
Maryland senna Senna marilandica Wildflower (forb) 6.6 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 5b
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
narrowleaf blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium angustifolium Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 7a
nodding lady's tresses Spiranthes cernua Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun High Zone 3b
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
northern spicebush Lindera benzoin Tree 12 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 5a
partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata Wildflower (forb) 2.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
pawpaw Asimina triloba Tree 25 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
pitch pine Pinus rigida Tree 80 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
post oak Quercus stellata Tree 60 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
purpleleaf willowherb Epilobium coloratum Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
purpletop tridens Tridens flavus Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
rattlesnake fern Botrychium virginianum Fern 1.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
red maple Acer rubrum Tree 68 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 2b
red mulberry Morus rubra Tree 70 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
redroot flatsedge Cyperus erythrorhizos Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 11a
rice cutgrass Leersia oryzoides Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 4a
river birch Betula nigra Tree 70 ft Sun High Zone 4a
roundleaf greenbrier Smilax rotundifolia Vine 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
sandbar willow Salix interior Tree 30 ft Sun — Zone 1a
sassafras Sassafras albidum Tree 75 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
sharpwing monkeyflower Mimulus alatus Wildflower (forb) 2.3 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
shellbark hickory Carya laciniosa Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
silky willow Salix sericea Tree 12 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
silver maple Acer saccharinum Tree 90 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 2b
slender flatsedge Cyperus bipartitus Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
slippery elm Ulmus rubra Tree 85 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3a
smooth phlox Phlox glaberrima Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
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
stiff marsh bedstraw Galium tinctorium Wildflower (forb) 10 in Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
strawcolored flatsedge Cyperus strigosus Grass or grass-like 3.2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
sugar maple Acer saccharum Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
sweet birch Betula lenta Tree 60 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
trumpet creeper Campsis radicans Vine 2 ft Sun Low Zone 6a
trumpetweed Eutrochium fistulosum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
umbrella-tree Magnolia tripetala Tree 30 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
Virginia creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia Vine 1 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
Virginia pine Pinus virginiana Tree 70 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
Virginia wildrye Elymus virginicus Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
white ash Fraxinus americana Tree 90 ft Sun High Zone 4a
white fringetree Chionanthus virginicus Tree 25 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
white oak Quercus alba Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
wild sweetwilliam Phlox maculata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 5b
winged sumac Rhus copallinum Tree 8 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
woodland muhly Muhlenbergia sylvatica Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
wrinkleleaf goldenrod Solidago rugosa Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
yellow buckeye Aesculus flava Tree 65 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5b
yellow flatsedge Cyperus flavescens Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 11b

Other native species recorded here 108

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 bladdernut Staphylea trifolia
  • American climbing fern Lygodium palmatum
  • Appalachian bristle fern Trichomanes boschianum
  • Atlantic pigeonwings Clitoria mariana
  • black edge sedge Carex nigromarginata
  • bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis
  • Bradley's spleenwort Asplenium bradleyi
  • bristly greenbrier Smilax tamnoides
  • broad looseflower sedge Carex laxiflora
  • Carolina geranium Geranium carolinianum
  • Carolina vetch Vicia caroliniana
  • Christmas fern Polystichum acrostichoides
  • clubmoss Lycopodium ×habereri
  • common cinquefoil Potentilla simplex
  • common moonseed Menispermum canadense
  • creeping lespedeza Lespedeza repens
  • Culver's root Veronicastrum virginicum
  • Cumberland sedge Carex cumberlandensis
  • cutleaf grapefern Botrychium dissectum
  • deeproot clubmoss Lycopodium tristachyum
  • dogtooth violet Erythronium americanum
  • downy hawthorn Crataegus mollis
  • dwarf hackberry Celtis pumila
  • eastern gray beardtongue Penstemon canescens
  • eastern greenviolet Hybanthus concolor
  • eastern hayscented fern Dennstaedtia punctilobula
  • eastern leatherwood Dirca palustris
  • eastern poison ivy Toxicodendron radicans
  • ebony spleenwort Asplenium platyneuron
  • Elliott's bentgrass Agrostis elliottiana
  • fan clubmoss Lycopodium digitatum
  • fire pink Silene virginica
  • fourleaf milkweed Asclepias quadrifolia
  • fuzzy wuzzy sedge Carex hirsutella
  • hairy bedstraw Galium pilosum
  • harbinger of spring Erigenia bulbosa
  • Heller's cudweed Pseudognaphalium helleri
  • Howell's pussytoes Antennaria howellii
  • Indianpipe Monotropa uniflora
  • intermediate woodfern Dryopteris intermedia
  • James' sedge Carex jamesii
  • Juda's bush Iresine rhizomatosa
  • jumpseed Polygonum virginianum
  • largebracted plantain Plantago aristata
  • leafy bulrush Scirpus polyphyllus
  • lesser yellow lady's slipper Cypripedium parviflorum
  • lobed spleenwort Asplenium pinnatifidum
  • longleaf summer bluet Houstonia longifolia
  • longstalk sedge Carex pedunculata
  • low spikesedge Kyllinga pumila
  • marginal woodfern Dryopteris marginalis
  • meadow spikemoss Selaginella apoda
  • meadow zizia Zizia aptera
  • moccasin flower Cypripedium acaule
  • mountain silverbell Halesia tetraptera
  • mountain spleenwort Asplenium montanum
  • nakedflower ticktrefoil Desmodium nudiflorum
  • northern dewberry Rubus flagellaris
  • oak mistletoe Phoradendron leucarpum
  • palegreen orchid Platanthera flava
  • parasol sedge Carex umbellata
  • partridgeberry Mitchella repens
  • pear hawthorn Crataegus calpodendron
  • Pennsylvania sedge Carex pensylvanica
  • pipevine Aristolochia macrophylla
  • prostrate ticktrefoil Desmodium rotundifolium
  • rabbit-tobacco Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium
  • rare clubmoss Lycopodium obscurum
  • rattlesnakeweed Hieracium venosum
  • red trillium Trillium erectum
  • ribbed sedge Carex virescens
  • rock buttercup Ranunculus micranthus
  • rosepink Sabatia angularis
  • scaly blazing star Liatris squarrosa
  • shaved sedge Carex tonsa
  • shining clubmoss Huperzia lucidula
  • shortpod draba Draba brachycarpa
  • sidebeak pencilflower Stylosanthes biflora
  • silver plumegrass Saccharum alopecuroides
  • sixweeks fescue Vulpia octoflora
  • slimspike threeawn Aristida longespica
  • Small's blacksnakeroot Sanicula smallii
  • smallflower halfchaff sedge Lipocarpha micrantha
  • smooth forked nailwort Paronychia canadensis
  • smooth rockcress Arabis laevigata
  • sparselobe grapefern Botrychium biternatum
  • spotted water hemlock Cicuta maculata
  • spring coralroot Corallorhiza wisteriana
  • St. Andrew's cross Hypericum hypericoides
  • striped prince's pine Chimaphila maculata
  • thin paspalum Paspalum setaceum
  • thinleaf sunflower Helianthus decapetalus
  • thymeleaf pinweed Lechea minor
  • twoflower dwarfdandelion Krigia biflora
  • violet lespedeza Lespedeza violacea
  • Virginia springbeauty Claytonia virginica
  • walking fern Asplenium rhizophyllum
  • wavyleaf aster Symphyotrichum undulatum
  • waxyfruit hawthorn Crataegus pruinosa
  • white trillium Trillium grandiflorum
  • whitetinge sedge Carex albicans
  • whorled milkwort Polygala ambigua
  • whorled milkwort Polygala verticillata
  • whorled yellow loosestrife Lysimachia quadrifolia
  • wild hydrangea Hydrangea arborescens
  • Willdenow's sedge Carex willdenowii
  • yellow crownbeard Verbesina occidentalis
  • yellowfruit horse-gentian Triosteum angustifolium

Compared with Kentucky

The typical county is the median of the 120 Kentucky 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, Lawrence County and Kentucky
MeasureLawrence CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 230 426 1,719
Garden-ready natives 122 190 568
Tree 68 — 181
Shrub 13 — 73
Wildflower (forb) 81 — 931
Grass or grass-like 31 — 376
Vine 14 — 85
Fern 23 — 73

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Lawrence 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
Lawrence County (county FIPS 21127), Kentucky. 230 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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