Rain Garden Plants

These plants work well for creating beautiful and functional rain gardens. They can also be planted to help absorb excess moisture in low-lying areas, or included in moist borders.

Select Plant Type: View All Types Fern Grass, sedge, carex Perennial Rain Garden Plants Shrub Shrub: deciduous Shrub: evergreen Tree Tree: deciduous Tree: evergreen Vine Xeriscape Plants

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Panicum virgatum Common Name: Switchgrass A clump-forming grass that grows 4-5' tall with flower heads rising another 1' above the foliage. Flower heads turn beige in fall with the seed plumes persisting well into winter. This bunch grass provides excellent cover and food for ducks, upland g... [ More Info ]

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Penstemon digitalis Common Name: Tall White Beardtongue Beautiful, lettuce-like, leaves give rise to thick spikes of white flowers. Butterflies visit the flowers for nectar and songbirds such as cardinals and goldfinch eat ripe seed from the flower stems in fall and winter. Benefits: Easy-to-gr... [ More Info ]

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Phlox divaricata Common Name: Woodland Phlox Loose clusters violet-blue, sweetly fragrant flowers appear on compact plants in spring, providing nectar for butterflies early in the season. Plants will spread and can form large colonies over time. Mingles well with other shade plants such as foa... [ More Info ]

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Phlox maculata Common Name: Meadow Phlox Dark pink flower heads top of sturdy stems with thick, glossy leaves. Meadow phlox blooms earlier than tall phlox (Phlox paniculata), has darker green leaves and better mildew resistance. Fragrant flowers attract butterflies and hummingbirds. Bene... [ More Info ]

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Phlox paniculata Common Name: Summer Phlox Summer Phlox has heads of pink flowers accented by darker pink centers. The individual flowers are packed into 6-12" long pyramidal clusters atop stiff, upright stems that seldom need staking. Long mid- to late summer bloom sometimes extends into ear... [ More Info ]

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Physostegia virginiana Common Name: Obedient Plant Stiff, square stems end in dense spikes of pure white, snapdragon-like flowers, which bloom throughout the summer. Benefits: Good nectar source for butterflies and other pollinators Stem clumps make good ground cover for wildlife<... [ More Info ]

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Polemonium reptans Common Name: Jacob's Ladder Pale lavender blue, bell-shaped flowers bloom for many weeks in late spring. Foliage provides good contrast to other shade plants and combines well with purple Heucheras and deep green ferns.... [ More Info ]

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Polygonatum biflorum Common Name: Solomon's Seal Bell-shaped green-white flowers dangle down from knee-high arching stems in May. The flowers give way to blue-black berries later in summer and the foliage turns gold in fall. Plants spread slowly by creeping rhizomes, forming handsome stands. Ben... [ More Info ]