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Native plants · Montana

Native plants of Dawson County

180 plant species are recorded as native to Montana in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Dawson County by USDA PLANTS. 100 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 3 more species are listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Dawson County, Montana

Native species
180 Typical Montana county: 161 (median of 56 counties)
Garden-ready natives
100 Typical Montana county: 104
Share by type (all 180 native species)
Percent of the 180 native species in each growth type
Tree 9% (17)
Shrub 11% (20)
Wildflower (forb) 59% (107)
Grass or grass-like 17% (31)
Vine 2% (4)
Fern <1% (1)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (59%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (17%).

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 4a to 4b (2023 map).

The native plant list

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

Garden-ready natives 100

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

Garden-ready native plants of Dawson County, Montana
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
alkali cordgrass Spartina gracilis Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
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 plum Prunus americana Tree 24 ft Sun Medium 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
big sagebrush Artemisia tridentata Tree 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
blanketflower Gaillardia aristata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
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
broadbeard beardtongue Penstemon angustifolius Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
broadleaf cattail Typha latifolia Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
broom snakeweed Gutierrezia sarothrae Shrub 1.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
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
chokecherry Prunus virginiana Tree 25 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
clustered field sedge Carex praegracilis Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
common juniper Juniperus communis Tree 10 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
creeping juniper Juniperus horizontalis Shrub 4 ft Sun High Zone 3a
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
fourwing saltbush Atriplex canescens Shrub 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
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
golden currant Ribes aureum Shrub 10 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
greasewood Sarcobatus vermiculatus Shrub 10 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica Tree 80 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
green needlegrass Nassella viridula Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
hairy false goldenaster Heterotheca villosa Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
Indian ricegrass Achnatherum hymenoides Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
lambstongue ragwort Senecio integerrimus Wildflower (forb) 1.1 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
largeflower hawksbeard Crepis occidentalis Wildflower (forb) 11 in Sun Low Zone 5a
Lewis flax Linum lewisii Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
littleseed ricegrass Piptatheropsis micrantha Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
longstyle rush Juncus longistylis Grass or grass-like 1.8 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
Missouri goldenrod Solidago missouriensis Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
Nebraska sedge Carex nebrascensis Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun High Zone 3b
needle and thread Hesperostipa comata Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
nodding beggartick Bidens cernua Wildflower (forb) 3.2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 12a
northern bedstraw Galium boreale Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
Nuttall's povertyweed Monolepis nuttalliana Wildflower (forb) 10 in Sun Medium Zone 12a
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
prairie sagewort Artemisia frigida Shrub 2 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
purple locoweed Oxytropis lambertii Wildflower (forb) 1.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
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
redosier dogwood Cornus sericea Tree 12 ft Sun High Zone 3b
Rocky Mountain juniper Juniperus scopulorum Tree 50 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
rubber rabbitbrush Ericameria nauseosa Shrub 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
sagebrush buttercup Ranunculus glaberrimus Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun High Zone 3a
sago pondweed Stuckenia pectinata Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
saltgrass Distichlis spicata Grass or grass-like 1.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
sand dropseed Sporobolus cryptandrus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
Sandberg bluegrass Poa secunda Grass or grass-like 1.4 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
sanddune wallflower Erysimum capitatum Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
Saskatoon serviceberry Amelanchier alnifolia Tree 15 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 1a
scarlet globemallow Sphaeralcea coccinea Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
shadscale saltbush Atriplex confertifolia Shrub 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
showy locoweed Oxytropis splendens Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa Shrub 2.5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
silver buffaloberry Shepherdia argentea Tree 18 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
silver sagebrush Artemisia cana Shrub 5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
silverweed cinquefoil Argentina anserina Wildflower (forb) 6 in Shade-tolerant High Zone 5a
silvery lupine Lupinus argenteus Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
skunkbush sumac Rhus trilobata Shrub 4 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 2a
slender wheatgrass Elymus trachycaulus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
slimstem reedgrass Calamagrostis stricta Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade High 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
squirreltail Elymus elymoides Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
stiff goldenrod Oligoneuron rigidum Wildflower (forb) 3.6 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
tall cinquefoil Potentilla arguta Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
tall cottongrass Eriophorum angustifolium Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun High Zone 3a
tanseyleaf tansyaster Machaeranthera tanacetifolia Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
textile onion Allium textile Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
threadleaf sedge Carex filifolia Grass or grass-like 1.2 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
thrift mock goldenweed Stenotus armerioides Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
toad rush Juncus bufonius Grass or grass-like 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 12a
tufted evening primrose Oenothera caespitosa Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun Low Zone 6a
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera Wildflower (forb) 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
Utah sweetvetch Hedysarum boreale Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
water birch Betula occidentalis Tree 25 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 1a
wax currant Ribes cereum Shrub 3 ft Sun Low 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
western white clematis Clematis ligusticifolia Vine 1 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
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
wild bergamot Monarda fistulosa Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
winterfat Krascheninnikovia lanata Shrub 2 ft Sun Low Zone 2a
Woods' rose Rosa woodsii Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
woolly groundsel Packera cana Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
woolly plantain Plantago patagonica Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun Low Zone 12b
woollypod milkvetch Astragalus purshii Wildflower (forb) 7 in Sun Low Zone 4a
yellow willow Salix lutea Tree 16 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3a

Other native species recorded here 80

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.

  • aromatic aster Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
  • Aunt Lucy Ellisia nyctelea
  • ballhead ipomopsis Ipomopsis congesta
  • bastard toadflax Comandra umbellata
  • Bebb willow Salix bebbiana
  • bigbract verbena Verbena bracteata
  • Canadian gooseberry Ribes oxyacanthoides
  • candle anemone Anemone cylindrica
  • Carolina draba Draba reptans
  • common starlily Leucocrinum montanum
  • curlycup gumweed Grindelia squarrosa
  • cutleaf nightshade Solanum triflorum
  • desert biscuitroot Lomatium foeniculaceum
  • fetid marigold Dyssodia papposa
  • fineleaf hymenopappus Hymenopappus filifolius
  • fireberry hawthorn Crataegus chrysocarpa
  • flatspine stickseed Lappula occidentalis
  • foothill bladderpod Lesquerella ludoviciana
  • foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
  • fringed loosestrife Lysimachia ciliata
  • groundplum milkvetch Astragalus crassicarpus
  • hoary tansyaster Machaeranthera canescens
  • large Indian breadroot Pediomelum esculentum
  • Laxmann's milkvetch Astragalus laxmannii
  • lemon scurfpea Psoralidium lanceolatum
  • lilac penstemon Penstemon gracilis
  • longleaf groundcherry Physalis longifolia
  • Louisiana broomrape Orobanche ludoviciana
  • manybranched pepperweed Lepidium ramosissimum
  • meadow sedge Carex praticola
  • mountain tansymustard Descurainia incana
  • narrowleaf four o'clock Mirabilis linearis
  • narrowleaf goosefoot Chenopodium leptophyllum
  • narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
  • narrowleaf stoneseed Lithospermum incisum
  • needleleaf sedge Carex duriuscula
  • New England aster Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
  • nodding stickseed Hackelia deflexa
  • northern woodland violet Viola septentrionalis
  • painted milkvetch Astragalus ceramicus
  • pale spikerush Eleocharis macrostachya
  • Pennsylvania cinquefoil Potentilla pensylvanica
  • Pennsylvania pellitory Parietaria pensylvanica
  • plains springparsley Cymopterus acaulis
  • povertyweed Iva axillaris
  • prairie false dandelion Nothocalais cuspidata
  • prairie rose Rosa arkansana
  • prairie spiderwort Tradescantia occidentalis
  • prairie sunflower Helianthus petiolaris
  • redwhisker clammyweed Polanisia dodecandra
  • Richardson's alumroot Heuchera richardsonii
  • rosy pussytoes Antennaria rosea
  • rough false pennyroyal Hedeoma hispida
  • rush skeletonplant Lygodesmia juncea
  • rusty lupine Lupinus pusillus
  • scarlet beeblossom Oenothera suffrutescens
  • shaggy fleabane Erigeron pumilus
  • silverleaf Indian breadroot Pediomelum argophyllum
  • silverscale saltbush Atriplex argentea
  • sixweeks fescue Vulpia octoflora
  • small-leaf pussytoes Antennaria parvifolia
  • snow on the mountain Euphorbia marginata
  • spiny phlox Phlox hoodii
  • spinystar Escobaria vivipara
  • starry false lily of the valley Maianthemum stellatum
  • stemless four-nerve daisy Tetraneuris acaulis
  • stiff sunflower Helianthus pauciflorus
  • stiffstem flax Linum rigidum
  • strict blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium montanum
  • tiny trumpet Collomia linearis
  • veiny meadow-rue Thalictrum venulosum
  • water whorlgrass Catabrosa aquatica
  • wavyleaf thistle Cirsium undulatum
  • western poison ivy Toxicodendron rydbergii
  • western tansymustard Descurainia pinnata
  • whitest evening primrose Oenothera albicaulis
  • whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata
  • wild cucumber Echinocystis lobata
  • woolly sedge Carex pellita
  • yellow avens Geum aleppicum
Also listed as native and introduced here 3

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 Montana

The typical county is the median of the 56 Montana 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, Dawson County and Montana
MeasureDawson CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 180 161 1,086
Garden-ready natives 100 104 606
Tree 17 — 71
Shrub 20 — 98
Wildflower (forb) 107 — 609
Grass or grass-like 31 — 246
Vine 4 — 18
Fern 1 — 44

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Dawson 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
Dawson County (county FIPS 30021), Montana. 180 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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