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Native plants · Nebraska

Native plants of Hitchcock County

143 plant species are recorded as native to Nebraska in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Hitchcock County by USDA PLANTS. 70 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

Hitchcock County, Nebraska

Native species
143 Typical Nebraska county: 169 (median of 93 counties)
Garden-ready natives
70 Typical Nebraska county: 81
Share by type (all 143 native species)
Percent of the 143 native species in each growth type
Tree 1% (2)
Shrub 6% (8)
Wildflower (forb) 54% (77)
Grass or grass-like 38% (54)
Vine 1% (2)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (54%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (38%).

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 5b to 6a (2023 map).

The native plant list

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

Garden-ready natives 70

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

Garden-ready native plants of Hitchcock County, Nebraska
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy 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 water horehound Lycopus americanus Wildflower (forb) 1.8 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
arumleaf arrowhead Sagittaria cuneata Wildflower (forb) 2.6 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
beaked spikerush Eleocharis rostellata Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun High Zone 4b
blue grama Bouteloua gracilis Grass or grass-like 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
broadfruit bur-reed Sparganium eurycarpum Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
broom snakeweed Gutierrezia sarothrae Shrub 1.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides Grass or grass-like 6 in Sun Medium Zone 3b
Canada goldenrod Solidago altissima Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4b
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
cardinalflower Lobelia cardinalis Wildflower (forb) 5.9 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4a
cloaked bulrush Scirpus pallidus Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
common duckweed Lemna minor Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale Wildflower (forb) 4.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
common threesquare Schoenoplectus pungens Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
composite dropseed Sporobolus compositus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
crested pricklypoppy Argemone polyanthemos Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
devil's beggartick Bidens frondosa Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 12a
dotted blazing star Liatris punctata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
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
fragrant flatsedge Cyperus odoratus Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 11b
giant goldenrod Solidago gigantea Wildflower (forb) 8.2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
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
hairy grama Bouteloua hirsuta Grass or grass-like 6 in Sun Low Zone 3b
hardstem bulrush Schoenoplectus acutus Grass or grass-like 9.8 ft Sun High Zone 3b
Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutans Grass or grass-like 6 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
little barley Hordeum pusillum Grass or grass-like 1.2 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
Missouri goldenrod Solidago missouriensis Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
Missouri gourd Cucurbita foetidissima Vine 1 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
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
Pennsylvania smartweed Polygonum pensylvanicum Wildflower (forb) 3.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
plains muhly Muhlenbergia cuspidata Grass or grass-like 1.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
prairie sandreed Calamovilfa longifolia Grass or grass-like 4.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
purple poppymallow Callirhoe involucrata Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium 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
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
sand lovegrass Eragrostis trichodes Grass or grass-like 3.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
scarlet globemallow Sphaeralcea coccinea Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
scratchgrass Muhlenbergia asperifolia Grass or grass-like 2 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5b
sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
skunkbush sumac Rhus trilobata Shrub 4 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 2a
slender flatsedge Cyperus bipartitus Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 10b
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
sweet woodreed Cinna arundinacea Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 4a
switchgrass Panicum virgatum Grass or grass-like 5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
tenpetal blazingstar Mentzelia decapetala Wildflower (forb) 3.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
threelobe beggarticks Bidens tripartita Wildflower (forb) 3.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 12a
Torrey's rush Juncus torreyi Grass or grass-like 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera Wildflower (forb) 3.1 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
Virginia wildrye Elymus virginicus Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
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
white panicle aster Symphyotrichum lanceolatum Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
white prairie clover Dalea candida Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
whitegrass Leersia virginica Grass or grass-like 3.9 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
Woods' rose Rosa woodsii Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
woolly locoweed Astragalus mollissimus Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Low Zone 4b
woolly plantain Plantago patagonica Wildflower (forb) 6 in Sun Low Zone 12b

Other native species recorded here 73

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.

  • annual buckwheat Eriogonum annuum
  • aridland goosefoot Chenopodium desiccatum
  • Aunt Lucy Ellisia nyctelea
  • bald spikerush Eleocharis erythropoda
  • Baldwin's ironweed Vernonia baldwinii
  • bearded flatsedge Cyperus squarrosus
  • bigbract verbena Verbena bracteata
  • bog yellowcress Rorippa palustris
  • bottlebrush sedge Carex hystericina
  • bushy knotweed Polygonum ramosissimum
  • Carolina draba Draba reptans
  • creeping lovegrass Neeragrostis reptans
  • Cuman ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya
  • curlytop knotweed Polygonum lapathifolium
  • diamond-flowers Stenaria nigricans
  • Drummond's false pennyroyal Hedeoma drummondii
  • fetid marigold Dyssodia papposa
  • fineleaf hymenopappus Hymenopappus filifolius
  • flatspine stickseed Lappula occidentalis
  • foxtail barley Hordeum jubatum
  • fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica
  • Great Plains flatsedge Cyperus lupulinus
  • great ragweed Ambrosia trifida
  • green comet milkweed Asclepias viridiflora
  • hairy fimbry Fimbristylis puberula
  • hoary verbena Verbena stricta
  • Hopi tea greenthread Thelesperma megapotamicum
  • horned pondweed Zannichellia palustris
  • lacy tansyaster Machaeranthera pinnatifida
  • longleaf groundcherry Physalis longifolia
  • mat sandbur Cenchrus longispinus
  • narrowleaf four o'clock Mirabilis linearis
  • narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
  • pale dock Rumex altissimus
  • pale spikerush Eleocharis macrostachya
  • Pennsylvania pellitory Parietaria pensylvanica
  • plains bluegrass Poa arida
  • pony beebalm Monarda pectinata
  • prairie sandmat Chamaesyce missurica
  • purple sandgrass Triplasis purpurea
  • Pursh seepweed Suaeda calceoliformis
  • ribseed sandmat Chamaesyce glyptosperma
  • rough barnyardgrass Echinochloa muricata
  • rough false pennyroyal Hedeoma hispida
  • rush skeletonplant Lygodesmia juncea
  • sand sagebrush Artemisia filifolia
  • sandhill amaranth Amaranthus arenicola
  • scarlet beeblossom Oenothera suffrutescens
  • shortbeak sedge Carex brevior
  • silverleaf Indian breadroot Pediomelum argophyllum
  • sixangle spurge Euphorbia hexagona
  • sixweeks fescue Vulpia octoflora
  • slenderleaf false foxglove Agalinis tenuifolia
  • slimflower scurfpea Psoralidium tenuiflorum
  • slimleaf milkweed Asclepias stenophylla
  • snow on the mountain Euphorbia marginata
  • spinystar Escobaria vivipara
  • stemless Townsend daisy Townsendia exscapa
  • stiffstem flax Linum rigidum
  • Texas croton Croton texensis
  • thin paspalum Paspalum setaceum
  • tufted lovegrass Eragrostis pectinacea
  • tumble windmill grass Chloris verticillata
  • tumblegrass Schedonnardus paniculatus
  • velvetweed Oenothera curtiflora
  • Virginia groundcherry Physalis virginiana
  • wavyleaf thistle Cirsium undulatum
  • western poison ivy Toxicodendron rydbergii
  • western tansymustard Descurainia pinnata
  • white heath aster Symphyotrichum ericoides
  • whitest evening primrose Oenothera albicaulis
  • winged pigweed Cycloloma atriplicifolium
  • witchgrass Panicum capillare
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.

Compared with Nebraska

The typical county is the median of the 93 Nebraska 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, Hitchcock County and Nebraska
MeasureHitchcock CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 143 169 1,131
Garden-ready natives 70 81 452
Tree 2 — 68
Shrub 8 — 48
Wildflower (forb) 77 — 687
Grass or grass-like 54 — 253
Vine 2 — 46
Fern 0 — 29

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Hitchcock 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
Hitchcock County (county FIPS 31087), Nebraska. 143 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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