Natives by ZIP

Native plants recorded in your state and county

Native plants · Minnesota

Native plants of Pennington County

242 plant species are recorded as native to Minnesota in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Pennington County by USDA PLANTS. 137 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 2 more species are listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Pennington County, Minnesota

Native species
242 Typical Minnesota county: 435 (median of 87 counties)
Garden-ready natives
137 Typical Minnesota county: 193
Share by type (all 242 native species)
Percent of the 242 native species in each growth type
Tree 10% (24)
Shrub 8% (19)
Wildflower (forb) 54% (131)
Grass or grass-like 26% (62)
Vine 2% (4)
Fern <1% (2)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (54%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (26%).

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 3b to 4a (2023 map).

The native plant list

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

Garden-ready natives 137

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

Garden-ready native plants of Pennington County, Minnesota
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
alkali buttercup Ranunculus cymbalaria Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
alkali cordgrass Spartina gracilis Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
American basswood Tilia americana Tree 100 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
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 horehound Lycopus americanus Wildflower (forb) 1.8 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
awlfruit sedge Carex stipata Grass or grass-like 3.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
balsam poplar Populus balsamifera Tree 80 ft Sun High Zone 1a
beaked hazelnut Corylus cornuta Tree 15 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
Bebb's sedge Carex bebbii Grass or grass-like 3 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
black ash Fraxinus nigra Tree 65 ft Sun High Zone 2b
black cherry Prunus serotina Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
blackeyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
blanketflower Gaillardia aristata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
blue cohosh Caulophyllum thalictroides Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
bog birch Betula pumila Shrub 20 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
bog Labrador tea Ledum groenlandicum Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
bog willowherb Epilobium leptophyllum Wildflower (forb) 3.6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
boxelder Acer negundo Tree 60 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
broadfruit bur-reed Sparganium eurycarpum Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
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
buckbean Menyanthes trifoliata Wildflower (forb) 10 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
bur oak Quercus macrocarpa Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
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
Canadian milkvetch Astragalus canadensis Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun Medium Zone 3b
Canadian waterweed Elodea canadensis Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 4a
chokecherry Prunus virginiana Tree 25 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
closed bottle gentian Gentiana andrewsii Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
clustered field sedge Carex praegracilis Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
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 goldstar Hypoxis hirsuta Wildflower (forb) 10 in Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
common rivergrass Scolochloa festucacea Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
common snowberry Symphoricarpos albus Shrub 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
common spikerush Eleocharis palustris Grass or grass-like 1.3 ft Sun High Zone 3b
crested sedge Carex cristatella Grass or grass-like 3 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
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
ditch stonecrop Penthorum sedoides Wildflower (forb) 2.6 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
dotted smartweed Polygonum punctatum Wildflower (forb) 3.2 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
downy arrowwood Viburnum rafinesqueanum Shrub 6 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3a
eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides Tree 190 ft Sun High Zone 3a
fiddleleaf hawksbeard Crepis runcinata Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
field horsetail Equisetum arvense Fern 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
flatstem spikerush Eleocharis compressa Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun High Zone 4a
fowl bluegrass Poa palustris Grass or grass-like 4 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
fowl mannagrass Glyceria striata Grass or grass-like 5.7 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
fox sedge Carex vulpinoidea Grass or grass-like 3.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
fringed brome Bromus ciliatus Grass or grass-like 4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
gray alder Alnus incana Tree 25 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
gray goldenrod Solidago nemoralis Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica Tree 80 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
hardstem bulrush Schoenoplectus acutus Grass or grass-like 9.8 ft Sun High Zone 3b
hooded lady's tresses Spiranthes romanzoffiana Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
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
inland sedge Carex interior Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
jewelweed Impatiens capensis Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 10b
knotted rush Juncus nodosus Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
largeleaf avens Geum macrophyllum Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
leadplant Amorpha canescens Shrub 4 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
limestone meadow sedge Carex granularis Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
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
livid sedge Carex livida Grass or grass-like 1 ft Sun — Zone 1a
longleaf starwort Stellaria longifolia Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
longstyle rush Juncus longistylis Grass or grass-like 1.8 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
Macoun's buttercup Ranunculus macounii Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun — Zone 1a
marsh grass of Parnassus Parnassia palustris Wildflower (forb) 2.2 ft Sun High Zone 3b
Mexican muhly Muhlenbergia mexicana Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
Missouri River willow Salix eriocephala Tree 52 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
nannyberry Viburnum lentago Tree 28 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
needle and thread Hesperostipa comata Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
northern bedstraw Galium boreale Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
northern black currant Ribes hudsonianum Shrub 5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
northern singlespike sedge Carex scirpoidea Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
Nuttall's alkaligrass Puccinellia nuttalliana Grass or grass-like 10 in Sun Medium Zone 3b
old man's whiskers Geum triflorum Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
pale agoseris Agoseris glauca Shrub 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
peachleaf willow Salix amygdaloides Tree 60 ft Sun High Zone 4a
Pennsylvania buttercup Ranunculus pensylvanicus Wildflower (forb) 3.9 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
Philadelphia fleabane Erigeron philadelphicus Wildflower (forb) 2.8 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
porcupinegrass Hesperostipa spartea Grass or grass-like 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
poverty rush Juncus tenuis Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun–part shade 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
prairie Junegrass Koeleria macrantha Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
prairie wedgescale Sphenopholis obtusata Grass or grass-like 3.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
purple milkvetch Astragalus agrestis Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
purple prairie clover Dalea purpurea Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
quaking aspen Populus tremuloides Tree 65 ft Sun High Zone 1a
quill sedge Carex tenera Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
red currant Ribes triste Shrub 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 1a
redosier dogwood Cornus sericea Tree 12 ft Sun High 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
rough bugleweed Lycopus asper Wildflower (forb) 2.1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
sageleaf willow Salix candida Shrub 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
saltgrass Distichlis spicata Grass or grass-like 1.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
sandbar willow Salix interior Tree 30 ft Sun — Zone 1a
sandcherry Prunus pumila Shrub 6 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4a
scarlet Indian paintbrush Castilleja coccinea Wildflower (forb) 1.6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
shortawn foxtail Alopecurus aequalis Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
showy milkweed Asclepias speciosa Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa Shrub 2.5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
silverberry Elaeagnus commutata Shrub 12 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
silverweed cinquefoil Argentina anserina Wildflower (forb) 6 in Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
slimstem reedgrass Calamagrostis stricta Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
small floating mannagrass Glyceria borealis Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 4a
small white violet Viola macloskeyi Wildflower (forb) 6 in Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
smooth blue aster Symphyotrichum laeve Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
smooth horsetail Equisetum laevigatum Fern 5 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
stiff goldenrod Oligoneuron rigidum Wildflower (forb) 3.6 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
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 cinquefoil Potentilla arguta Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
tamarack Larix laricina Tree 80 ft Sun Medium Zone 1a
toad rush Juncus bufonius Grass or grass-like 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 12a
Torrey's rush Juncus torreyi Grass or grass-like 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
tufted bulrush Trichophorum cespitosum Grass or grass-like 1.3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
tufted hairgrass Deschampsia cespitosa Grass or grass-like 3.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
water knotweed Polygonum amphibium Wildflower (forb) 1 in Sun High Zone 5a
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 meadowsweet Spiraea alba Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade 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
wild bergamot Monarda fistulosa Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
wild sarsaparilla Aralia nudicaulis Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
winter bentgrass Agrostis hyemalis Grass or grass-like 3.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
Woods' rose Rosa woodsii Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a

Other native species recorded here 105

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.

  • Allegheny monkeyflower Mimulus ringens
  • American lopseed Phryma leptostachya
  • American sloughgrass Beckmannia syzigachne
  • autumn onion Allium stellatum
  • bastard toadflax Comandra umbellata
  • Bebb willow Salix bebbiana
  • blue giant hyssop Agastache foeniculum
  • bluntleaf sandwort Moehringia lateriflora
  • bulblet-bearing water hemlock Cicuta bulbifera
  • Canada mayflower Maianthemum canadense
  • Canadian anemone Anemone canadensis
  • candle anemone Anemone cylindrica
  • common bladderwort Utricularia macrorhiza
  • Cuman ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya
  • cypress-like sedge Carex pseudocyperus
  • dioecious sedge Carex sterilis
  • dryspike sedge Carex siccata
  • eastern bottlebrush grass Elymus hystrix
  • eastern star sedge Carex radiata
  • fen grass of Parnassus Parnassia glauca
  • fireberry hawthorn Crataegus chrysocarpa
  • flat-top goldentop Euthamia graminifolia
  • Flodman's thistle Cirsium flodmanii
  • foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
  • Fraser's marsh St. Johnswort Triadenum fraseri
  • fringed loosestrife Lysimachia ciliata
  • golden zizia Zizia aurea
  • grassleaf mudplantain Heteranthera dubia
  • hairy sunflower Helianthus hirsutus
  • hairystem gooseberry Ribes hirtellum
  • harlequin blueflag Iris versicolor
  • hemlock waterparsnip Sium suave
  • hoary puccoon Lithospermum canescens
  • Indianpipe Monotropa uniflora
  • knotsheath sedge Carex retrorsa
  • large Indian breadroot Pediomelum esculentum
  • leathery knotweed Polygonum achoreum
  • Leiberg's panicum Dichanthelium leibergii
  • lesser yellow lady's slipper Cypripedium parviflorum
  • Lindley's aster Symphyotrichum ciliolatum
  • liverleaf wintergreen Pyrola asarifolia
  • longleaf summer bluet Houstonia longifolia
  • marsh arrowgrass Triglochin palustris
  • marsh pea Lathyrus palustris
  • Maryland sanicle Sanicula marilandica
  • Maximilian sunflower Helianthus maximiliani
  • meadow willow Salix petiolaris
  • meadow zizia Zizia aptera
  • mountain deathcamas Zigadenus elegans
  • narrowleaf hawkweed Hieracium umbellatum
  • needle beaksedge Rhynchospora capillacea
  • needletip blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium mucronatum
  • northern bog aster Symphyotrichum boreale
  • northern bog bedstraw Galium labradoricum
  • northern bog violet Viola nephrophylla
  • northern bugleweed Lycopus uniflorus
  • northern green rush Juncus alpinoarticulatus
  • northern sweetgrass Hierochloe hirta
  • northern water plantain Alisma triviale
  • northern wildrice Zizania palustris
  • obedient plant Physostegia virginiana
  • palespike lobelia Lobelia spicata
  • pear hawthorn Crataegus calpodendron
  • Pennsylvania cinquefoil Potentilla pensylvanica
  • plains bluegrass Poa arida
  • prairie groundsel Packera plattensis
  • prairie violet Viola pedatifida
  • purple marshlocks Comarum palustre
  • purple meadow-rue Thalictrum dasycarpum
  • purple rattlesnakeroot Prenanthes racemosa
  • Pursh seepweed Suaeda calceoliformis
  • red columbine Aquilegia canadensis
  • redwool plantain Plantago eriopoda
  • Richardson's alumroot Heuchera richardsonii
  • roughleaf ricegrass Oryzopsis asperifolia
  • scaldweed Cuscuta gronovii
  • scarlet beeblossom Oenothera suffrutescens
  • seaside arrowgrass Triglochin maritima
  • Seneca snakeroot Polygala senega
  • showy ticktrefoil Desmodium canadense
  • silky prairie clover Dalea villosa
  • silverleaf Indian breadroot Pediomelum argophyllum
  • smooth oxeye Heliopsis helianthoides
  • smooth rose Rosa blanda
  • smooth Solomon's seal Polygonatum biflorum
  • soft-hair marbleseed Onosmodium bejariense
  • spotted water hemlock Cicuta maculata
  • starry false lily of the valley Maianthemum stellatum
  • sticky tofieldia Triantha glutinosa
  • strict blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium montanum
  • swamp lousewort Pedicularis lanceolata
  • swamp verbena Verbena hastata
  • tall thimbleweed Anemone virginiana
  • threadleaf crowfoot Ranunculus trichophyllus
  • twoflower dwarfdandelion Krigia biflora
  • Virginia mountainmint Pycnanthemum virginianum
  • Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana
  • whip-poor-will flower Trillium cernuum
  • white lady's slipper Cypripedium candidum
  • whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata
  • wild cucumber Echinocystis lobata
  • wood lily Lilium philadelphicum
  • woolly sedge Carex pellita
  • woollyfruit sedge Carex lasiocarpa
  • yellow avens Geum aleppicum
Also listed as native and introduced here 2

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 Minnesota

The typical county is the median of the 87 Minnesota 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, Pennington County and Minnesota
MeasurePennington CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 242 435 1,506
Garden-ready natives 137 193 550
Tree 24 — 105
Shrub 19 — 96
Wildflower (forb) 131 — 824
Grass or grass-like 62 — 361
Vine 4 — 43
Fern 2 — 77

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Pennington 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
Pennington County (county FIPS 27113), Minnesota. 242 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.