Question:
What are some good native perennials for a full sun location?Answer:
Many of the best perennials for full sun are native to the prairie. Some Iowa native prairie plants that make good additions to the home landscape include:
- yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- leadplant (Amorpha canescens)
- big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi)
- prairie sage (Artemisia ludoviciana)
- butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
- New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus)
- prairie tickseed (Coreopsis palmata)
- purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea)
- pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida)
- purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
- closed bottle gentian (Gentiana andrewsii)
- sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)
- false sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides)
- prairie blazing star (Liatris pycnostachya)
- great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
- fringed loosestrife (Lysimachia ciliata)
- false Solomon's seal (Maianthemum racemosa)
- wild bergamont (Monarda fistulosa)
- spotted beebalm (Monarda punctata)
- eastern prickly pear (Opuntia compressa)
- switchgrass (Panicum virgatum )
- wild quinine (Parthenium integrifolium)
- foxglove beardtongue (Penstemon digitalis)
- large-flowered beardtongue (Penstemon grandiflorus)
- self-heal (Prunella vulgaris)
- longhead coneflower (Ratibida columnifera)
- prairie coneflower (Ratibida pinnata)
- black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
- sweet coneflower (Rudbeckia subtomentosa)
- little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)
- small skullcap (Scutellaria parvula)
- compass plant (Silphium laciniatum)
- Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans)
- giant goldenrod (Solidago gigantea)
- Missouri goldenrod (Solidago missouriensis)
- stiff goldenrod (Solidago rigida)
- showy goldenrod (Solidago speciosa)
- prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis)
- smooth blue aster (Symphyotrichum laeve)
- New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae)
- aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)
- willowleaf aster (Symphyotrichum praealtum)
- hoary vervain (Verbena stricta)
- ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata)
- Culver's root (Veronicastrum virginicum)
- soapweed (Yucca glauca)
Last updated on
March 6, 2026