Native plants · Oklahoma

Native plants of Atoka County

175 plant species are recorded as native to Oklahoma in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Atoka County by USDA PLANTS. 86 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Atoka County, Oklahoma

Native species: 175 Typical Oklahoma county: 203 (median of 77 counties)
Garden-ready natives: 86 Typical Oklahoma county: 80
Share by type (all 175 native species): Percent of the 175 native species in each growth type

Tree 26% (46)
Shrub 3% (6)
Wildflower (forb) 57% (99)
Grass or grass-like 6% (11)
Vine 6% (10)
Fern 2% (3)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (57%), followed by trees (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 7b to 8a (2023 map).

The native plant list

Garden-ready natives 86

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

Garden-ready native plants of Atoka County, Oklahoma
Plant	Type	Height	Light	Water use	Hardy to
American elm Ulmus americana	Tree	120 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 2b
American sycamore Platanus occidentalis	Tree	100 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a
bitternut hickory Carya cordiformis	Tree	75 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 2b
black oak Quercus velutina	Tree	80 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
black willow Salix nigra	Tree	100 ft	Sun	High	Zone 1b
blackgum Nyssa sylvatica	Tree	95 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 5b
blackjack oak Quercus marilandica	Tree	25 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 6a
boxelder Acer negundo	Tree	60 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 2b
bur oak Quercus macrocarpa	Tree	100 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Low	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
cedar elm Ulmus crassifolia	Tree	90 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 6a
Chickasaw plum Prunus angustifolia	Tree	12 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4b
chinquapin oak Quercus muehlenbergii	Tree	70 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
clasping coneflower Dracopis amplexicaulis	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	High	Zone 10b
climbing rose Rosa setigera	Vine	16 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 6a
common buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis	Tree	15 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
common goldstar Hypoxis hirsuta	Wildflower (forb)	10 in	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
common hackberry Celtis occidentalis	Tree	60 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 2b
common persimmon Diospyros virginiana	Tree	55 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 5a
common rush Juncus effusus	Grass or grass-like	6.6 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
common selfheal Prunella vulgaris	Wildflower (forb)	1.5 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
dotted blazing star Liatris punctata	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
eastern redbud Cercis canadensis	Tree	30 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 4b
flatstem spikerush Eleocharis compressa	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Sun	High	Zone 4a
flowering dogwood Cornus florida	Tree	30 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 4b
foxglove beardtongue Penstemon digitalis	Wildflower (forb)	4 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 3b
fringeleaf wild petunia Ruellia humilis	Wildflower (forb)	2.6 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 4a
giant cane Arundinaria gigantea	Shrub	25 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
golden tickseed Coreopsis tinctoria	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 12b
grassleaf rush Juncus marginatus	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 5a
graybark grape Vitis cinerea	Vine	50 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 6b
heartleaf peppervine Ampelopsis cordata	Vine	2 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 6b
honeylocust Gleditsia triacanthos	Tree	70 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
Illinois bundleflower Desmanthus illinoensis	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5b
limestone wild petunia Ruellia strepens	Wildflower (forb)	3.6 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 6a
longspike tridens Tridens strictus	Grass or grass-like	4.9 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 2a
Maryland senna Senna marilandica	Wildflower (forb)	6.6 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 5b
mockernut hickory Carya tomentosa	Tree	85 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
narrowleaf blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium angustifolium	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 7a
nodding lady's tresses Spiranthes cernua	Wildflower (forb)	1.5 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
northern maidenhair Adiantum pedatum	Fern	1.3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 3b
northern red oak Quercus rubra	Tree	81 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
Nuttall's povertyweed Monolepis nuttalliana	Wildflower (forb)	10 in	Sun	Medium	Zone 12a
Osage-orange Maclura pomifera	Tree	35 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
overcup oak Quercus lyrata	Tree	80 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 5a
pale purple coneflower Echinacea pallida	Wildflower (forb)	1.2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata	Wildflower (forb)	2.4 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 7a
pecan Carya illinoinensis	Tree	120 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
peppervine Nekemias arborea	Vine	1 in	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 6a
Philadelphia fleabane Erigeron philadelphicus	Wildflower (forb)	2.8 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4b
pin oak Quercus palustris	Tree	100 ft	Sun	High	Zone 4a
post oak Quercus stellata	Tree	60 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
poverty rush Juncus tenuis	Grass or grass-like	1.5 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3b
prairie blazing star Liatris pycnostachya	Wildflower (forb)	3.5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
prairie fleabane Erigeron strigosus	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4b
prairie wedgescale Sphenopholis obtusata	Grass or grass-like	3.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3a
purple prairie clover Dalea purpurea	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
red maple Acer rubrum	Tree	68 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 2b
red mulberry Morus rubra	Tree	70 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
river birch Betula nigra	Tree	70 ft	Sun	High	Zone 4a
roughleaf dogwood Cornus drummondii	Tree	20 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 4b
saw greenbrier Smilax bona-nox	Vine	4 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 5b
scarlet Indian paintbrush Castilleja coccinea	Wildflower (forb)	1.6 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
shortleaf pine Pinus echinata	Tree	100 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5b
Shumard's oak Quercus shumardii	Tree	100 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
silver maple Acer saccharinum	Tree	90 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 2b
slippery elm Ulmus rubra	Tree	85 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 3a
smooth sumac Rhus glabra	Tree	12 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4a
soapweed yucca Yucca glauca	Shrub	1 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4b
southern red oak Quercus falcata	Tree	75 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 6a
spotted St. Johnswort Hypericum punctatum	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
strawcolored flatsedge Cyperus strigosus	Grass or grass-like	3.2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
sugarberry Celtis laevigata	Tree	80 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 5a
summer grape Vitis aestivalis	Vine	30 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 5a
tapertip rush Juncus acuminatus	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a
water hickory Carya aquatica	Tree	85 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 5b
water oak Quercus nigra	Tree	90 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
white avens Geum canadense	Wildflower (forb)	3.9 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
white oak Quercus alba	Tree	100 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3a
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
willow oak Quercus phellos	Tree	100 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
winged elm Ulmus alata	Tree	65 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 5b
winged sumac Rhus copallinum	Tree	8 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4b

Other native species recorded here 89

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 star-thistle Centaurea americana
azure blue sage Salvia azurea
beaked cornsalad Valerianella radiata
bluejacket Tradescantia ohiensis
bluntlobe cliff fern Woodsia obtusa
button eryngo Eryngium yuccifolium
Carolina anemone Anemone caroliniana
Carolina geranium Geranium carolinianum
Carolina larkspur Delphinium carolinianum
Carolina puccoon Lithospermum caroliniense
Carolina woollywhite Hymenopappus scabiosaeus
clasping Venus' looking-glass Triodanis perfoliata
clustered blacksnakeroot Sanicula odorata
common cinquefoil Potentilla simplex
common threeseed mercury Acalypha rhomboidea
compassplant Silphium laciniatum
diamond-flowers Stenaria nigricans
downy phlox Phlox pilosa
dwarf chinquapin oak Quercus prinoides
ebony spleenwort Asplenium platyneuron
Engelmann's daisy Engelmannia peristenia
fewflower nutrush Scleria pauciflora
fiveangled dodder Cuscuta pentagona
fourpoint evening primrose Oenothera rhombipetala
fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica
fringed nutrush Scleria ciliata
garden dewberry Rubus aboriginum
golden zizia Zizia aurea
gravelweed Verbesina helianthoides
Great Plains lady's tresses Spiranthes magnicamporum
grooved flax Linum sulcatum
groovestem Indian plantain Arnoglossum plantagineum
groundplum milkvetch Astragalus crassicarpus
Guadeloupe cucumber Melothria pendula
gum bully Sideroxylon lanuginosum
heartleaf skullcap Scutellaria ovata
heartwing sorrel Rumex hastatulus
hogwort Croton capitatus
lanceleaf blanketflower Gaillardia aestivalis
largeflower tickseed Coreopsis grandiflora
lemon beebalm Monarda citriodora
licorice bedstraw Galium circaezans
light poppymallow Callirhoe alcaeoides
little lady's tresses Spiranthes tuberosa
Louisiana vetch Vicia ludoviciana
lowland rotala Rotala ramosior
mayapple Podophyllum peltatum
Mexican plum Prunus mexicana
Missouri violet Viola missouriensis
narrowleaf mountainmint Pycnanthemum tenuifolium
narrowleaf pinweed Lechea tenuifolia
northern dewberry Rubus flagellaris
northern slender lady's tresses Spiranthes lacera
Nuttall's prairie parsley Polytaenia nuttallii
Nuttall's sensitive-briar Mimosa nuttallii
pale dock Rumex altissimus
palegreen orchid Platanthera flava
Parlin's pussytoes Antennaria parlinii
pinkladies Oenothera speciosa
pitcher's stitchwort Minuartia patula
prairie groundsel Packera plattensis
procession flower Polygala incarnata
queendevil Hieracium gronovii
rose mock vervain Glandularia canadensis
rough false pennyroyal Hedeoma hispida
roundleaf ragwort Packera obovata
rusty blackhaw Viburnum rufidulum
sidebeak pencilflower Stylosanthes biflora
silverleaf nightshade Solanum elaeagnifolium
silvery everlasting Gamochaeta argyrinea
slender lespedeza Lespedeza virginica
slimflower scurfpea Psoralidium tenuiflorum
small skullcap Scutellaria parvula
sneezeweed Helenium amarum
soft goldenaster Chrysopsis pilosa
spoonleaf purple everlasting Gamochaeta purpurea
spotted beebalm Monarda punctata
spreading chervil Chaerophyllum procumbens
spring lady's tresses Spiranthes vernalis
St. Andrew's cross Hypericum hypericoides
swamp dock Rumex verticillatus
tall blazing star Liatris aspera
Texas toadflax Nuttallanthus texanus
threadleaf evening primrose Oenothera linifolia
twining screwstem Bartonia paniculata
violet woodsorrel Oxalis violacea
Virginia plantain Plantago virginica
Virginia tephrosia Tephrosia virginiana
whitehair rosette grass Dichanthelium villosissimum

Compared with Oklahoma

The typical county is the median of the 77 Oklahoma 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, Atoka County and Oklahoma
Measure	Atoka County	Typical county	Statewide
Native species	175	203	1,513
Garden-ready natives	86	80	535
Tree	46	—	130
Shrub	6	—	63
Wildflower (forb)	99	—	849
Grass or grass-like	11	—	341
Vine	10	—	85
Fern	3	—	45

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Atoka County.

Bryan County, OK 228 garden-ready
Choctaw County, OK 96 garden-ready
Coal County, OK 41 garden-ready
Johnston County, OK 134 garden-ready
Pittsburg County, OK 83 garden-ready
Pushmataha County, OK 104 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: Atoka County (county FIPS 40005), Oklahoma. 175 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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