Fact Sheets And Publications
Native Plants for Delaware Landscapes
Reviewed in February 2025 | Written by: John Frett
What is a native plant?
Native plants are indigenous to a particular region and provide an essential foundation to support wildlife habitats for native insects and birds. Well-adapted to the local habitat, native plants grow using less water and fewer pesticide applications growing with minimum maintenance. Planting native species in your landscape protects their species, preserving them and the wildlife that depends on them, creating a healthier ecosystem.
Why landscape with native plants?
Since native plants are indigenous in an area, they are well-adapted to the habitat and will grow using less water and fewer pesticide applications. When used in a landscape environment similar to their native habitat, these plants will grow with minimum maintenance. Planting native species in your landscape protects them from extinction and preserves them for all to appreciate.
OAK TREES
Example Foliage of Species Native to Delaware
Trees | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Names | Fall Color | Major Feature | |
| 20 - 40’ Tall | * particularly showy | ||
| Persimmon | Diospyros virginiana | Yellow | Fruit |
| Hophornbeam | Ostrya virginiana | Golden | Bark |
| Ironwood | Carpinus caroliniana | Golden | Bark |
| Sassafrass | Sassafras albidum | *Orange/red | Fall color |
| 40 - 60’ Tall | |||
| Red Maple | Acer rubrum | *Red/orange | Bark |
| Sweet Birch | Betula lenta | Yellow | Bark |
| River Birch | Betula nigra | Golden | Bark |
| Scarlet Oak | Quercus coccinea | *Red | Fall color |
| Pin Oak | Quercus palustris | *Red/bronze | Shade tree |
| Willow Oak | Quercus phellos | Golden brown | Shade tree |
| Red Oak | Quercus rubra | Red brown | Shade tree |
| Sweetgum | Liquidambar styraciflua | *Red/orange | Fall color |
| Bitternut | Carya codiformis | Golden | Wildlife |
| Pignut | Carya glabra | Golden | Wildlife |
| Yellowwood | Cladrastis kentukea | Yellow | Flowers |
| Honeylocust | Gledistis triacanthos | Yellow | Light shade |
| Kentucky Coffee Tree | Gymnocladus dioicus | Light shade | |
| Black Locust | Robinia pseudoacacia | Flowers | |
| White Ash | Fraxinus americana | *Maroon/purple | Fall color |
| Green Ash | Fraxinus pennsylvanica | Yellow | Wet soil |
| Bald Cypress | Taxodium distichum | Golden brown | Wet soil |
| Greater than 60’ | |||
| Tuliptree | Liriodendron tulipifera | Golden | Flowers |
| Sycamore | Platanus occidentalis | Bark | |
| Basswood | Tilia americana | Yellow | Shade tree |
| Bur Oak | Quercus macrocarpa | Shade tree | |
| White Oak | Quercus alba | Purple/maroon | Shade tree |
| Sugar Maple | Acer saccharum | *Yellow/orange | Fall color |
| American Beech | Fagus grandifolia | Golden | Bark |
Shrubs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Names | Fall Color | Fruit Color | |
| Less than 10' | *particularly showy | ||
| Bottlebrush Buckeye | Aesculus parviflora | *White | |
| Chokecherry | Aronia arbutifolia | *White | *Red |
| Beautyberry | Callicarpa americana | Purple | *Purple |
| Pinxternbloom Azalea | Rhododendron periclymenoides | Pink | |
| Coast Azalea | Rhododendron atlanticum | White | |
| Sweetshrub | Calycanthus floridus | Red | |
| Cinnamon Clertha | Clertha acuminata | *White | |
| Summersweet Clertha | Clertha alnifolia | *White | |
| Redtwig Dogwood | Cornus sericea | White | White |
| Oakleaf Hydrangea | Hydrangea quercifolia | *White | |
| Virginia Sweetspire | Itea virginica | *White | |
| Bayberry | Myrica pensylvanica | *Gray | |
| Mapleleaf Viburnum | Viburnum acerifolium | *White | Black |
| Arrowwood Viburnum | Viburnum dentatum | *White | Black |
| Smooth Viburnum | Viburnum nudum | *White | Red |
| 10 - 20’ | |||
| Red Buckeye | Aesculus pavia | *Red | |
| Shadowblow | Amelanchier canadensis | *White | Purple |
| Redbud | Cercis canadensis | *Pink | |
| Fringetree | Chionanthus virginicus | *White | Purple |
| Silky Dogwood | Cornus amomum | *White | Blue |
| Strawberry-bush | Euonymus americanus | *Red | |
| Witchhazel | Hamamelis virginiana | *Yellow | |
| Winterberry | Ilex verticillata | *Red | |
| Spicebush | Lindera benzoin | Yellow | *Red |
| Silky Stewartia | Stewartia malachodendron | *White | |
| Piedmont Azalea | Rhododendron canescens | Pink | |
| Nannyberry Viburnum | Viburnum lentago | *White | Black |
| Blackhaw Viburnum | Viburnum prunifloium | *White | Pink/black |
| 20 - 30’ | |||
| Downy Serviceberry | Amelanchier arborea | *White | Purple |
| Pagoda Dogwood | Cornus alternifolia | *White | Purple |
| Flowering Dogwood | Cornus florida | *White | Red |
| Franklin Tree | Franklinia alatamaha | *White | |
| Silverbells | Halesia tetraptera | *White | |
| Bigleaf Magnolia | Magnolia macrophylla | White | Red |
| Umbrella Magnolia | Magnolia tripetala | White | Red |
| Sweetbay | Magnolia viginiana | *White | Red |
| American Snowbell | Styrax americanus | *White | |
Evergreen Trees | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Names | Fall Color | Major Feature | |
| 20 - 40’ Tall | * particularly showy | ||
| Virginia Pine | Pinus virginiana | Poor soil | |
| Eastern Redcedar | Juniperus virginiana | Blue/gray | Poor soil |
| Eastern Arborvitae | Thuja occidentalis | Moist soil | |
| American Holly | Ilex opaca | *Red | Fruit |
| 40 - 60’ Tall | |||
| Canadian Hemlock | Tsuga canadensis | Shade tolerant | |
| Atlantic Whitecedar | Chamaecyparis thyoides | Wet soil | |
| Southern Magnolia | Magnolia grandiflora | Red | |
| Greater than 60’ | |||
| White Pine | Pinus strobus | Form | |
Evergreen Shrubs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Names | Fall Color | Fruit Color | |
| Less than 10’ | * particularly showy | ||
| Inkberry | Ilex glabra | Black | |
| Creeping Juniper | Juniperus horizontalis | ||
| Mountain Laurel | Kalmia latifolia | *White/pink | |
| Drooping Leucothoe | Leucothoe fontanesiana | White | |
| Piedmont Rhodendron | Rhododendron minus | *Pink | |
| Mountain Pieris | Pieris floribunda | White | |
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