Native plants · Maryland

Native plants of Carroll County

110 plant species are recorded as native to Maryland in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Carroll County by USDA PLANTS. 46 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Carroll County, Maryland

Native species: 110 Typical Maryland county: 184 (median of 24 counties)
Garden-ready natives: 46 Typical Maryland county: 61
Share by type (all 110 native species): Percent of the 110 native species in each growth type

Tree 3% (3)
Shrub <1% (1)
Wildflower (forb) 28% (31)
Grass or grass-like 54% (59)
Vine 4% (4)
Fern 11% (12)

Grasses and grass-like plants make up the largest share of the native list (54%), followed by wildflowers (28%).

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 7a (2023 map).

The native plant list

Garden-ready natives 46

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

Garden-ready native plants of Carroll County, Maryland
Plant	Type	Height	Light	Water use	Hardy to
American black currant Ribes americanum	Shrub	3 ft	—	—	Zone 2b
American water-willow Justicia americana	Wildflower (forb)	2.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
awlfruit sedge Carex stipata	Grass or grass-like	3.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 3b
blunt broom sedge Carex tribuloides	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
bristlystalked sedge Carex leptalea	Grass or grass-like	1.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
broom sedge Carex scoparia	Grass or grass-like	2.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 3b
bur-reed sedge Carex sparganioides	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
Bush's sedge Carex bushii	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 5a
Canada goldenrod Solidago altissima	Wildflower (forb)	5 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4b
Canada goldenrod Solidago canadensis	Wildflower (forb)	3.5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
crested woodfern Dryopteris cristata	Fern	1.6 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
drooping sedge Carex prasina	Grass or grass-like	2.3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
eastern narrowleaf sedge Carex amphibola	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 7a
eastern redcedar Juniperus virginiana	Tree	50 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 3a
eastern white pine Pinus strobus	Tree	150 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
eastern woodland sedge Carex blanda	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4b
field horsetail Equisetum arvense	Fern	11 in	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3a
fox sedge Carex vulpinoidea	Grass or grass-like	3.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
Frank's sedge Carex frankii	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 5a
fringed sedge Carex crinita	Grass or grass-like	5.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
giant goldenrod Solidago gigantea	Wildflower (forb)	8.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
graceful sedge Carex gracillima	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
gray goldenrod Solidago nemoralis	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
Gray's sedge Carex grayi	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
graybark grape Vitis cinerea	Vine	50 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 6b
greater bladder sedge Carex intumescens	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
greater straw sedge Carex normalis	Grass or grass-like	5 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
hairyfruit sedge Carex trichocarpa	Grass or grass-like	3.5 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a
hop sedge Carex lupulina	Grass or grass-like	4.3 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
New York fern Thelypteris noveboracensis	Fern	1.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 4b
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
oval-leaf sedge Carex cephalophora	Grass or grass-like	2.6 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 4a
rattlesnake fern Botrychium virginianum	Fern	1.4 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 3b
roundleaf goldenrod Solidago patula	Wildflower (forb)	6.6 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3a
roundleaf greenbrier Smilax rotundifolia	Vine	1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
scarlet Indian paintbrush Castilleja coccinea	Wildflower (forb)	1.6 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
shallow sedge Carex lurida	Grass or grass-like	3.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
squarrose sedge Carex squarrosa	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
star sedge Carex echinata	Grass or grass-like	1.5 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3b
twisted sedge Carex torta	Grass or grass-like	2.8 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
upright sedge Carex stricta	Grass or grass-like	4.2 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 3b
Virginia pine Pinus virginiana	Tree	70 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 5a
white edge sedge Carex debilis	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 6a
wreath goldenrod Solidago caesia	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4b
wrinkleleaf goldenrod Solidago rugosa	Wildflower (forb)	3.3 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a

Other native species recorded here 64

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.

bashful bulrush Trichophorum planifolium
black edge sedge Carex nigromarginata
broad looseflower sedge Carex laxiflora
brome-like sedge Carex bromoides
Buxbaum's sedge Carex buxbaumii
Canadian burnet Sanguisorba canadensis
downy rattlesnake plantain Goodyera pubescens
early goldenrod Solidago juncea
eastern hayscented fern Dennstaedtia punctilobula
eastern star sedge Carex radiata
ebony spleenwort Asplenium platyneuron
elmleaf goldenrod Solidago ulmifolia
fan clubmoss Lycopodium digitatum
feathery false lily of the valley Maianthemum racemosum
fescue sedge Carex festucacea
fibrousroot sedge Carex communis
fourleaf yam Dioscorea quaternata
fuzzy wuzzy sedge Carex hirsutella
glomerate sedge Carex aggregata
green false hellebore Veratrum viride
Indian cucumber Medeola virginiana
marginal woodfern Dryopteris marginalis
Mead's sedge Carex meadii
moccasin flower Cypripedium acaule
Muhlenberg's sedge Carex muehlenbergii
netted nutrush Scleria reticularis
nodding sedge Carex gynandra
openfield sedge Carex conoidea
parasol sedge Carex umbellata
Pennsylvania sedge Carex pensylvanica
perfoliate bellwort Uvularia perfoliata
potato dwarfdandelion Krigia dandelion
pubescent sedge Carex hirtifolia
purple fringeless orchid Platanthera peramoena
red milkweed Asclepias rubra
ribbed sedge Carex virescens
rock polypody Polypodium virginianum
rosy sedge Carex rosea
sensitive fern Onoclea sensibilis
shaved sedge Carex tonsa
showy orchid Galearis spectabilis
slender looseflower sedge Carex gracilescens
slender woodland sedge Carex digitalis
Smith's bulrush Schoenoplectiella smithii
smooth Solomon's seal Polygonatum biflorum
smoothsheath sedge Carex laevivaginata
soft fox sedge Carex conjuncta
spinulose woodfern Dryopteris carthusiana
spreading sedge Carex laxiculmis
sundial lupine Lupinus perennis
swamp wedgescale Sphenopholis pensylvanica
Swan's sedge Carex swanii
Virginia mountainmint Pycnanthemum virginianum
whip-poor-will flower Trillium cernuum
white beaksedge Rhynchospora alba
white colicroot Aletris farinosa
white goldenrod Solidago bicolor
whitetinge sedge Carex albicans
whorled mountainmint Pycnanthemum verticillatum
wild yam Dioscorea villosa
Willdenow's sedge Carex willdenowii
winged lythrum Lythrum alatum
woolly sedge Carex pellita
yellowfruit sedge Carex annectens

Compared with Maryland

The typical county is the median of the 24 Maryland 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, Carroll County and Maryland
Measure	Carroll County	Typical county	Statewide
Native species	110	184	1,872
Garden-ready natives	46	61	635
Tree	3	—	174
Shrub	1	—	112
Wildflower (forb)	31	—	965
Grass or grass-like	59	—	463
Vine	4	—	72
Fern	12	—	86

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Carroll County.

Baltimore County, MD 78 garden-ready
Frederick County, MD 61 garden-ready
Howard County, MD 52 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: Carroll County (county FIPS 24013), Maryland. 110 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

Independent reference site. No government affiliation or endorsement.