Native plants · Montana

Native plants of Richland County

158 plant species are recorded as native to Montana in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Richland County by USDA PLANTS. 92 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

Richland County, Montana

Native species: 158 Typical Montana county: 161 (median of 56 counties)
Garden-ready natives: 92 Typical Montana county: 104
Share by type (all 158 native species): Percent of the 158 native species in each growth type

Tree 10% (16)
Shrub 11% (18)
Wildflower (forb) 60% (95)
Grass or grass-like 16% (26)
Vine 1% (2)
Fern <1% (1)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (60%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (16%).

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 4a (2023 map).

The native plant list

Garden-ready natives 92

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

Garden-ready native plants of Richland County, Montana
Plant	Type	Height	Light	Water use	Hardy to
alkali buttercup Ranunculus cymbalaria	Wildflower (forb)	1 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 3b
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
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
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
cosmopolitan bulrush Bolboschoenus maritimus	Grass or grass-like	3.2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
creeping juniper Juniperus horizontalis	Shrub	4 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3a
curvepod yellowcress Rorippa curvisiliqua	Wildflower (forb)	1 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 12b
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
drooping woodreed Cinna latifolia	Grass or grass-like	4.5 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3b
eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides	Tree	190 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3a
fowl bluegrass Poa palustris	Grass or grass-like	4 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
fringed grass of Parnassus Parnassia fimbriata	Wildflower (forb)	1.2 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4b
Gardner's saltbush Atriplex gardneri	Shrub	4 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 3b
golden currant Ribes aureum	Shrub	10 ft	Sun–part shade	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
hardstem bulrush Schoenoplectus acutus	Grass or grass-like	9.8 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
Indian ricegrass Achnatherum hymenoides	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 3a
Indianhemp Apocynum cannabinum	Wildflower (forb)	3.3 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3a
Lewis flax Linum lewisii	Wildflower (forb)	2.5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
Missouri goldenrod Solidago missouriensis	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	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
Nootka rose Rosa nutkana	Shrub	10 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 8a
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
Nuttall's sunflower Helianthus nuttallii	Wildflower (forb)	10 ft	Sun	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 cordgrass Spartina pectinata	Grass or grass-like	8 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
prairie Junegrass Koeleria macrantha	Grass or grass-like	1.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 3b
prairie sagewort Artemisia frigida	Shrub	2 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 3a
prickly rose Rosa acicularis	Shrub	4 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 3b
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
reed canarygrass Phalaris arundinacea	Grass or grass-like	5 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
Rocky Mountain juniper Juniperus scopulorum	Tree	50 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 3b
rough bugleweed Lycopus asper	Wildflower (forb)	2.1 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 3b
russet buffaloberry Shepherdia canadensis	Shrub	6 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 1a
sagebrush buttercup Ranunculus glaberrimus	Wildflower (forb)	6 in	Sun	High	Zone 3a
saltgrass Distichlis spicata	Grass or grass-like	1.1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
sandbar willow Salix interior	Tree	30 ft	Sun	—	Zone 1a
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
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
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
skunkbush sumac Rhus trilobata	Shrub	4 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 2a
slender cinquefoil Potentilla gracilis	Wildflower (forb)	2.4 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 3a
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
soapweed yucca Yucca glauca	Shrub	1 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4b
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
sticky cinquefoil Potentilla glandulosa	Wildflower (forb)	1.5 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 4a
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
tanseyleaf tansyaster Machaeranthera tanacetifolia	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
tenpetal blazingstar Mentzelia decapetala	Wildflower (forb)	3.5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
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
threelobe beggarticks Bidens tripartita	Wildflower (forb)	3.5 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 12a
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera	Wildflower (forb)	3.1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
western snowberry Symphoricarpos occidentalis	Shrub	3 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 3b
western water hemlock Cicuta douglasii	Wildflower (forb)	6 ft	Sun	High	Zone 4b
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 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
yellow owl's-clover Orthocarpus luteus	Wildflower (forb)	1.5 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 12b
yellow willow Salix lutea	Tree	16 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3a

Other native species recorded here 66

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 sloughgrass Beckmannia syzigachne
annual buckwheat Eriogonum annuum
aridland goosefoot Chenopodium desiccatum
Aunt Lucy Ellisia nyctelea
bastard toadflax Comandra umbellata
biannual lettuce Lactuca ludoviciana
bigbract verbena Verbena bracteata
brittle pricklypear Opuntia fragilis
bushy knotweed Polygonum ramosissimum
Canadian anemone Anemone canadensis
Canadian gooseberry Ribes oxyacanthoides
candle anemone Anemone cylindrica
curlycup gumweed Grindelia squarrosa
cutleaf nightshade Solanum triflorum
Drummond's false pennyroyal Hedeoma drummondii
entireleaved thelypody Thelypodium integrifolium
fineleaf hymenopappus Hymenopappus filifolius
fireberry hawthorn Crataegus chrysocarpa
flatspine stickseed Lappula occidentalis
foothill bladderpod Lesquerella ludoviciana
foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
great ragweed Ambrosia trifida
groundplum milkvetch Astragalus crassicarpus
large Indian breadroot Pediomelum esculentum
Laxmann's milkvetch Astragalus laxmannii
lemon scurfpea Psoralidium lanceolatum
lesser spikemoss Selaginella densa
lilac penstemon Penstemon gracilis
manyflower stickseed Hackelia floribunda
meadow zizia Zizia aptera
mountain deathcamas Zigadenus elegans
narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
narrowleaf stoneseed Lithospermum incisum
nodding stickseed Hackelia deflexa
pale spikerush Eleocharis macrostachya
palespike lobelia Lobelia spicata
Pennsylvania cinquefoil Potentilla pensylvanica
povertyweed Iva axillaris
prairie rose Rosa arkansana
prairie sunflower Helianthus petiolaris
Pursh seepweed Suaeda calceoliformis
pygmyflower rockjasmine Androsace septentrionalis
ribseed sandmat Chamaesyce glyptosperma
Richardson's alumroot Heuchera richardsonii
rosy pussytoes Antennaria rosea
rough false pennyroyal Hedeoma hispida
rush skeletonplant Lygodesmia juncea
scarlet beeblossom Oenothera suffrutescens
seaside arrowgrass Triglochin maritima
shaggy fleabane Erigeron pumilus
silverleaf Indian breadroot Pediomelum argophyllum
small-leaf pussytoes Antennaria parvifolia
spiny phlox Phlox hoodii
spreading fleabane Erigeron divergens
stemless four-nerve daisy Tetraneuris acaulis
stiff sunflower Helianthus pauciflorus
strict blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium montanum
tiny trumpet Collomia linearis
tumblegrass Schedonnardus paniculatus
water whorlgrass Catabrosa aquatica
wavyleaf thistle Cirsium undulatum
western marsh cudweed Gnaphalium palustre
western rockjasmine Androsace occidentalis
white prairie aster Symphyotrichum falcatum
whitest evening primrose Oenothera albicaulis
whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata

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.

common pepperweedLepidium densiflorum
Kentucky bluegrassPoa pratensis
white sagebrushArtemisia ludoviciana

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, Richland County and Montana
Measure	Richland County	Typical county	Statewide
Native species	158	161	1,086
Garden-ready natives	92	104	606
Tree	16	—	71
Shrub	18	—	98
Wildflower (forb)	95	—	609
Grass or grass-like	26	—	246
Vine	2	—	18
Fern	1	—	44

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Richland County.

Dawson County, MT 100 garden-ready
Roosevelt County, MT 87 garden-ready
McKenzie County, ND 154 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: Richland County (county FIPS 30083), Montana. 158 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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