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Native plants · North Dakota

Native plants of Hettinger County

116 plant species are recorded as native to North Dakota in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Hettinger County by USDA PLANTS. 66 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 1 more species is listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Hettinger County, North Dakota

Native species
116 Typical North Dakota county: 287 (median of 53 counties)
Garden-ready natives
66 Typical North Dakota county: 143
Share by type (all 116 native species)
Percent of the 116 native species in each growth type
Tree 2% (2)
Shrub 8% (9)
Wildflower (forb) 59% (69)
Grass or grass-like 24% (28)
Vine 3% (3)
Fern 4% (5)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (59%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (24%).

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

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

Garden-ready natives 66

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

Garden-ready native plants of Hettinger County, North Dakota
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
American vetch Vicia americana Vine 1.3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
arumleaf arrowhead Sagittaria cuneata Wildflower (forb) 2.6 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
beaked hazelnut Corylus cornuta Tree 15 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2b
big bluestem Andropogon gerardii Grass or grass-like 6 ft Sun Low Zone 2b
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
broadbeard beardtongue Penstemon angustifolius Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
broom snakeweed Gutierrezia sarothrae Shrub 1.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Canada germander Teucrium canadense Wildflower (forb) 3.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
cloaked bulrush Scirpus pallidus Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
common rivergrass Scolochloa festucacea Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
common threesquare Schoenoplectus pungens Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
downy paintedcup Castilleja sessiliflora Wildflower (forb) 1.3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
field horsetail Equisetum arvense Fern 11 in Sun–part shade 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
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
golden tickseed Coreopsis tinctoria Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 12b
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
inland rush Juncus interior Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
Jerusalem artichoke Helianthus tuberosus Wildflower (forb) 9.8 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
kinnikinnick Arctostaphylos uva-ursi Shrub 6 in Sun–part shade Low Zone 4a
knotted rush Juncus nodosus Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
leafy pondweed Potamogeton foliosus Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
Missouri goldenrod Solidago missouriensis Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
narrowleaf water plantain Alisma gramineum Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun High Zone 3a
needle spikerush Eleocharis acicularis Grass or grass-like 8 in Sun Medium Zone 5a
Nuttall's alkaligrass Puccinellia nuttalliana Grass or grass-like 10 in Sun Medium Zone 3b
panicled bulrush Scirpus microcarpus Grass or grass-like 5.5 ft Sun 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 sandreed Calamovilfa longifolia Grass or grass-like 4.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
prairie wedgescale Sphenopholis obtusata Grass or grass-like 3.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
purple locoweed Oxytropis lambertii Wildflower (forb) 1.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
rattlesnake fern Botrychium virginianum Fern 1.4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
redosier dogwood Cornus sericea Tree 12 ft Sun High Zone 3b
roadside agrimony Agrimonia striata Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
Rocky Mountain beeplant Cleome serrulata Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 12b
rough bentgrass Agrostis scabra Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
sago pondweed Stuckenia pectinata Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
saltgrass Distichlis spicata Grass or grass-like 1.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
sandcherry Prunus pumila Shrub 6 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4a
scarlet globemallow Sphaeralcea coccinea Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
sea milkwort Glaux maritima Wildflower (forb) 11 in Sun High Zone 4a
silvery lupine Lupinus argenteus Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
slender wheatgrass Elymus trachycaulus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
smooth horsetail Equisetum laevigatum Fern 5 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
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
spreading yellowcress Rorippa sinuata Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium 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
thrift mock goldenweed Stenotus armerioides Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera Wildflower (forb) 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
water knotweed Polygonum amphibium Wildflower (forb) 1 in Sun High Zone 5a
western wheatgrass Pascopyrum smithii Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
white panicle aster Symphyotrichum lanceolatum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
white sagebrush Artemisia ludoviciana Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
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 evening primrose Oenothera flava Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
yellow owl's-clover Orthocarpus luteus Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 12b

Other native species recorded here 50

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 bird's-foot trefoil Lotus unifoliolatus
  • American bugseed Corispermum americanum
  • American mannagrass Glyceria grandis
  • American sloughgrass Beckmannia syzigachne
  • autumn dwarf gentian Gentianella amarella
  • bald spikerush Eleocharis erythropoda
  • bastard toadflax Comandra umbellata
  • bushy knotweed Polygonum ramosissimum
  • Canadian gooseberry Ribes oxyacanthoides
  • clustered broomrape Orobanche fasciculata
  • curlycup gumweed Grindelia squarrosa
  • curlytop knotweed Polygonum lapathifolium
  • desert goosefoot Chenopodium pratericola
  • Dudley's rush Juncus dudleyi
  • fineleaf hymenopappus Hymenopappus filifolius
  • foothill bladderpod Lesquerella ludoviciana
  • foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
  • greater water dock Rumex orbiculatus
  • groundplum milkvetch Astragalus crassicarpus
  • hedge false bindweed Calystegia sepium
  • lacy tansyaster Machaeranthera pinnatifida
  • large Indian breadroot Pediomelum esculentum
  • Laxmann's milkvetch Astragalus laxmannii
  • lesser spikemoss Selaginella densa
  • Maryland sanicle Sanicula marilandica
  • narrowleaf four o'clock Mirabilis linearis
  • narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
  • narrowleaf stoneseed Lithospermum incisum
  • needleleaf navarretia Navarretia intertexta
  • northern green rush Juncus alpinoarticulatus
  • northern water plantain Alisma triviale
  • palespike lobelia Lobelia spicata
  • pitseed goosefoot Chenopodium berlandieri
  • povertyweed Iva axillaris
  • rayless alkali aster Symphyotrichum ciliatum
  • ribseed sandmat Chamaesyce glyptosperma
  • Richardson's alumroot Heuchera richardsonii
  • scarlet beeblossom Oenothera suffrutescens
  • Scouler's popcornflower Plagiobothrys scouleri
  • shortspike watermilfoil Myriophyllum sibiricum
  • silverleaf Indian breadroot Pediomelum argophyllum
  • smooth cliffbrake Pellaea glabella
  • Standley's goosefoot Chenopodium standleyanum
  • stemless four-nerve daisy Tetraneuris acaulis
  • velvety goldenrod Solidago mollis
  • wavyleaf thistle Cirsium undulatum
  • white prairie aster Symphyotrichum falcatum
  • whorled milkwort Polygala verticillata
  • wild cucumber Echinocystis lobata
  • yellow avens Geum aleppicum
Also listed as native and introduced here 1

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.

  • annual ragweedAmbrosia artemisiifolia

Compared with North Dakota

The typical county is the median of the 53 North Dakota 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, Hettinger County and North Dakota
MeasureHettinger CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 116 287 890
Garden-ready natives 66 143 386
Tree 2 — 50
Shrub 9 — 62
Wildflower (forb) 69 — 513
Grass or grass-like 28 — 203
Vine 3 — 31
Fern 5 — 31

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Hettinger 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
Hettinger County (county FIPS 38041), North Dakota. 116 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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