Native plants for Henry County, Iowa

21 native plants recorded in Henry County, Iowa

USDA has only 30 plant records of any kind for Henry County, against 1,728 natives statewide. That is a gap in who has collected here, not a shortage of plants, so treat the 21 below as a floor.

By type: 12 wildflowers and herbs, 9 grasses and sedges. USDA has rated sun, soil and water needs for 6 of them (29%), and only those can be matched to a spot below.

What fits each kind of spot in Henry County

Sun all day in Henry County: 6 rated natives

5 wildflowers and herbs, 1 grasses and sedges. The first 6, ranked by how easy a start they make:

1. Northern maidenhair (Adiantum pedatum) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 1.3 ft mature · moderate growth · perennial
2. Rattlesnake fern (Botrychium virginianum) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 1.4 ft mature · moderate growth · perennial
3. Nodding beggartick (Bidens cernua) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
4. Purplestem beggarticks (Bidens connata) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
5. Threelobe beggarticks (Bidens tripartita) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.5 ft mature · rapid growth
6. Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) grasses and sedges
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 5 ft mature · rapid growth · perennial · toxicity: slight

Half shade in Henry County: 4 rated natives

3 wildflowers and herbs, 1 grasses and sedges. The first 4, ranked by how easy a start they make:

1. Nodding beggartick (Bidens cernua) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
2. Purplestem beggarticks (Bidens connata) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
3. Threelobe beggarticks (Bidens tripartita) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.5 ft mature · rapid growth
4. Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) grasses and sedges
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 5 ft mature · rapid growth · perennial · high shade tolerance · toxicity: slight

Under trees in Henry County: 1 rated natives

1 grasses and sedges. The first 1, ranked by how easy a start they make:

1. Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) grasses and sedges
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 5 ft mature · rapid growth · perennial · toxicity: slight

Heavy clay in Henry County: 4 rated natives

3 wildflowers and herbs, 1 grasses and sedges. The first 4, ranked by how easy a start they make:

1. Nodding beggartick (Bidens cernua) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
2. Purplestem beggarticks (Bidens connata) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
3. Threelobe beggarticks (Bidens tripartita) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.5 ft mature · rapid growth
4. Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) grasses and sedges
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 5 ft mature · rapid growth · perennial · toxicity: slight

Sandy, drains fast in Henry County: 4 rated natives

4 wildflowers and herbs. The first 4, ranked by how easy a start they make:

1. Northern maidenhair (Adiantum pedatum) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 1.3 ft mature · moderate growth · perennial
2. Nodding beggartick (Bidens cernua) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
3. Purplestem beggarticks (Bidens connata) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
4. Threelobe beggarticks (Bidens tripartita) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.5 ft mature · rapid growth

Never watered: nothing rated yet

None of the 6 rated natives in Henry County is rated for dry / no watering. 15 plants have no rating either way.

Stays soggy in Henry County: 4 rated natives

3 wildflowers and herbs, 1 grasses and sedges. The first 4, ranked by how easy a start they make:

1. Nodding beggartick (Bidens cernua) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
2. Purplestem beggarticks (Bidens connata) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.2 ft mature · rapid growth
3. Threelobe beggarticks (Bidens tripartita) wildflowers and herbs
   USDA growing data on file · conspicuous flowers · photo available · about 3.5 ft mature · rapid growth
4. Reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea) grasses and sedges
   USDA growing data on file · photo available · about 5 ft mature · rapid growth · perennial · takes saturated soil · toxicity: slight

Natives Henry County has that most of Iowa does not

1 natives here are on file in no more than 5 of Iowa's 99 counties. A few of them:

• Rough dropseed (Sporobolus clandestinus): 2 counties

Where to start in Henry County

If you have only one spot to fill, sun all day is where Henry County gives you the most rated choice (6 plants), and Northern maidenhair (Adiantum pedatum) is the easiest start on that list. Under trees is the hard one here: 1 rated plant, so for that spot it is worth asking a local native-plant society about the 15 unrated natives too.