Native Wildflower Strip
An 8×4 prairie-style strip of North American natives — coneflower, monarda, columbine, and grasses — that runs on rainfall.
About This Template
Native wildflowers feed native insects in a way imported bedding plants simply can't — many pollinators can only use the plants they evolved alongside. This strip condenses a tallgrass-prairie edge into a garden bed. Ironweed and switchgrass give vertical structure at the back, with Queen Anne's lace and wild bergamot filling the mid-heights. The heart of the strip is the prairie A-list: purple coneflower, black-eyed Susan, blanket flower, and butterfly weed, backed by evening primrose that opens for the night shift of moths. Wild columbine and meadow sage edge the front for spring color before the prairie heavyweights wake up. After establishment it wants no fertilizer, no irrigation, and only one spring cutback.
Benefits
- 1Native plants support specialist bees and butterflies that ignore exotics
- 2Runs entirely on rainfall after the first establishment season
- 3Butterfly weed hosts monarch caterpillars, not just visiting adults
- 4Evening primrose feeds the night shift — moths and their pursuing bats
- 5Deep prairie roots break compacted soil and never need dividing
Growing Tips
- 1Plant small plugs rather than large pots — natives establish faster young
- 2Be patient: prairie plants sleep, creep, then leap over three seasons
- 3Leave everything standing over winter; the stems are insect nurseries
- 4Cut the whole strip to 10 cm in early spring, then do nothing until next year
Included Plants (12)
Ironweed×2
Vernonia noveboracensis
Spacing: 60 cm · 24 in
Flowering Switchgrass×2
Panicum virgatum
Spacing: 60 cm · 24 in
Queen Anne's Lace
Daucus carota
Spacing: 30 cm · 12 in
Wild Bergamot×3
Monarda fistulosa
Spacing: 45 cm · 18 in
Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Spacing: 45 cm · 18 in
Black-eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta
Spacing: 45 cm · 18 in
Wild Blanket Flower×3
Gaillardia pulchella
Spacing: 30 cm · 12 in
Butterfly Weed×3
Asclepias tuberosa
Spacing: 45 cm · 18 in
Common Evening Primrose×3
Oenothera biennis
Spacing: 45 cm · 18 in
Indian Blanket×3
Gaillardia aristata
Spacing: 35 cm · 14 in
Wild Columbine×3
Aquilegia canadensis
Spacing: 30 cm · 12 in
Meadow Sage×3
Salvia pratensis
Spacing: 35 cm · 14 in
Ready to Start Growing?
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