There’s no denying the benefits of native plants. They provide food for wildlife, are well-suited to their native environments, and rarely require heavy maintenance or fertilizer. Plus, they’re gorgeous!

However, many native flowers grow multiple feet tall. While these plants work great for creating a pocket prairie or adding color to garden beds, they aren’t always the best option if you’re looking for a plant to line the edges of a walkway or brighten the front of a garden bed.

After the pasque flowers are pollinated, they produce attractive spherical seed heads with wispy, silvery styles. Deeply serrated leaves are on display throughout the summer. Since the pasque flower doesn’t handle competition well, plant it in a well-draining area away from taller plants.

Pussytoes

These short native plants spread with velvety green leaves and showy flowers called “cat’s toes.”

This low-growing, spreading plant is native to much of the eastern half of the United States. It’s known for its velvety green leaves, which carpet the ground throughout the year. However, the plants also send up stems topped with rounded white flowers in the spring. The soft blossoms resemble cats’ toes, inspiring the common name.

Pussytoes can grow in most locations that receive some sun and have well-draining soil. Since they spread via horizontal stems known as stolons, they often form dense mats that help suppress weeds.

Green and Gold

This perennial features bright yellow summer blooms and creeping foliage that thrives in wooded spaces.

Aptly named, this perennial features green leaves and bright yellow flowers that bloom profusely in the summer and moderately in the fall. This short, showy native plant remains just a few inches above the ground, making it an excellent option for filling empty areas between pavers or along wooded edges.

Green and gold prefers well-drained soil that remains moderately moist. The plants grow at a moderate rate when they’re healthy, so expect them to spread over time. You can easily remove the plants if they start to outgrow your desired area.

Butterfly Weed

Butterfly weed feeds monarch caterpillars and thrives in sunny, dry conditions.

Although butterfly weed can grow up to two feet tall, it’s one of the best options if you’re looking for a low-growing, native milkweed. The perennials produce arching stems covered with elongated green leaves and topped with clusters of bright orange blossoms. The foliage is an important food source for monarch caterpillars, and the flowers feed many pollinators.

Butterfly weed prefers well-draining soil that remains on the drier side, so don’t plant it in a moist area. Planting it in a spot prone to drought is okay since its long taproot helps it reach water deep in the ground. However, you should water seedlings regularly in the first few months following transplanting. 

This milkweed is easy to grow from seed. You can either start seeds indoors in containers after cold stratifying or directly sow the seeds in your raised bed or garden in fall.

Harebell

This bellflower relative produces graceful, purple, bell-shaped blooms on slender stems throughout summer.

This member of the bellflower family produces adorable purple, bell-shaped flowers throughout the summer and fall. These flowers appear atop slender stems, creating a delicate and graceful look.

The plants often bloom sporadically, so don’t expect a continuous display. Planting a large patch of harebells will increase the odds that at least a few flowers will bloom at every point throughout the summer. These perennials don’t require much maintenance, but removing old flowers with pruning shears will help encourage them to produce new blooms.

Harebell can grow well in various conditions, so it’s a good choice if an area is dry at some points and wet at others. In the wild, you can find it growing in partially shaded woods, exposed rocky cliffs, and coarse beaches. 

Prairie Smoke

Prairie smoke blooms in late spring with pink, hibiscus-like blossoms that develop feathery, silvery seed heads.

When late spring arrives, prairie smoke bursts into bloom with bright pink flowers. They appear in groups of three and feature fused sepals that make them look like hibiscus fruits. After they are pollinated, they produce fluffy, silvery pink fruits that inspire the smoky name.

Prairie smoke is native to much of the western United States and parts of the upper Midwest. The showy, short native plants prefer drier soil and lots of sun, so they’re good candidates for rock gardens and open areas. You can plant the perennials in partial shade, but expect fewer flowers.

Dwarf Blazing Star

The shortest blazing star, this species has slender leaves and thrives in sunny, well-drained soils.

As the shortest blazing star, this species works well if you want to enjoy these plants’ unique flowers but don’t want a tall plant. It produces long, slender leaves and thrives in sunny areas with well-draining soil. It can tolerate moderate drought once it’s well-established

The plants produce long flower stalks topped with elongated flower heads. Each head holds numerous light purple blooms that appear feathery or hairy. They bloom from midsummer into fall.

You may also hear people refer to this species as cylindrical blazing star, Ontario blazing star, or barrelhead blazing star. 

Wild Blue Phlox

Blue phlox has clumped stems, lance-shaped leaves, and five-petaled spring blooms.

Also known as blue phlox or woodland phlox, this showy, short native plant grows in shaded forest floors throughout the eastern U.S. The low-growing, clumped stems have oppositely arranged lanceolate leaves. In the spring, the plants produce clusters of five-petaled flowers on long stems. Although most of these flowers are periwinkle, you can find varieties with white and pink blooms.

Wild blue phlox can grow well in most shady spots as long as the soil is well-draining and not overly moist. Try planting it in the shade of large shrubs or near the edge of a woodland.

Common Blue-Eyed Grass

Common blue-eyed grass has long, slender leaves and star-shaped blue blossoms that open in the morning.

Despite its common name and slender leaves, this flowering perennial isn’t a grass. Instead, it’s closely related to irises. The long leaves are topped with blue, star-shaped flowers with bright yellow centers. They open in the morning and close later in the day.

The showy plants are native to parts of the Midwest and Southeast, where they grow short and low in sunny, well-drained areas with moderately moist soil. They grow from rhizomes and can form large patches over time. Although they’re short, they can compete well with other plants.

Common Blue Violet

Blue violets are native flowering perennials often mistaken for weeds but valued for their beauty.

Some gardeners dismiss blue violets as a common lawn weed, but these flowering perennials are beautiful native plants that are worth keeping around. You can find hundreds of violet species, but the common blue violet is one of the most widespread and common species. It’s also known as the purple violet, wood violet, and hooded violet.

The plants can adapt to different light conditions and soil types, so they grow well in many settings and gardens. Planting a patch of common blue violets will result in a spattering of purple blooms in the spring. Not only will these add beauty to your garden, but they’ll also provide an early nectar source for hungry insects.

Dwarf Crested Iris

Dwarf crested iris grows under a foot tall, featuring pointed leaves and large purple, yellow-accented flowers.

Native to much of the East Coast and Midwest, the dwarf crested iris remains under a foot tall. The plants produce elongated, pointed leaves and large flowers, which are characteristics of irises. The flowers feature purple petals and sepals with touches of cream and yellow.

These irises grow best in rich, moist soil, often found in wooded areas, but can also grow well in drier areas. However, they’ll require more water if they’re growing in areas with more light. The plants spread via rhizomes and can form dense colonies. Therefore, the plants make excellent groundcovers for woodland gardens and shady, rocky 

Big-Leaved Aster

Big-leaved aster stays short, blooming in fall with star-shaped flowers ideal for compact spaces.

Many native asters easily grow waist-high, making them perfect for meadows but less than ideal for spaces where you want a short plant. That’s where the big-leaved aster comes in. This species typically grows up to three feet tall and produces star-shaped blooms in the fall, making it one of the taller short plants on this list.

As its common name suggests, this aster has notably large leaves that often grow over six inches wide. The plants begin sending up flower stalks in late summer and bloom throughout September and October. They spread via rhizomes and can act as flowering ground covers.

The big-leaved aster is native to most of the Northeast and Upper Midwest, where it often grows in woodland clearings and edges. Since it tolerates various light and soil moisture levels, it grows well in many garden areas.

Prairie Onion

Nodding onion has slender leaves and spherical clusters of tiny, light purple flowers on arching stems.

This allium is grown for its beautiful flowers rather than its flavorful bulbs. The plants produce long, slender leaves and bloom in the summer. The spherical flower clusters are made up of small, light purple flowers on nodding stems known as peduncles.

Prairie onions grow best in dry and well-draining soil but can tolerate moderate moisture. They’re great plants for rock gardens and sandy areas.

Although the plant is native to the upper Midwest and central US, it’s listed as a noxious species in some nearby states. This status refers to its ability to harm grazing livestock rather than negatively impact native vegetation. It’s generally safe to plant in the garden as long as you’re aware of its tendency to self-seed.

Downy Wood Mint

Downy wood mint, a spreading perennial, has square stems and fuzzy lavender flowers like wild bergamot.

If you’re looking for a low-growing, showy member of the mint family, downy wood mint is an excellent option. These perennials showcase square stems and beautiful lobed flowers found on plants like narrowleaf mountain mint and wild bergamot, but they remain around a foot tall. Downy wood mint grows by slowly spreading rhizomes; it forms clumps but rarely takes over other plants.

The plants are pretty versatile in the garden—they’ll grow well in dry to semi-moist areas that receive at least a few hours of daily sun. They’re native to zones 4-8 in the eastern US and grow well in sunny butterfly gardens and partially shaded front-yard gardens. Stalks covered with clusters of small purple flowers appear in the summer.

Purple Poppy Mallow

Purple poppy mallow has vibrant magenta flowers, blooming from late spring through summer, also called winecup.

Although these flowering perennials are members of the mallow family (Malvaceae), their delicate, cup-shaped flowers resemble poppies. The bright magenta flowers appear in late spring and continue to bloom throughout the summer. The blooms’ shape and color have inspired the common name winecup.

This perennial is native to the central United States, where it thrives in dry, sunny areas. It doesn’t like wet soil but can happily grow in rocky or poor ground. In the right environment, the deeply lobed leaves will sprawl a few feet across the soil, and grouping multiple plants can create a beautiful, native ground cover.