6 Native Perennials that Will Thrive in Your Rain Garden

By Jordan Thomas

​Photo from Tom Potterfield

In a rapidly growing city like Durham, development without environmental sustainability in mind can quickly exacerbate stormwater management problems. But, incorporating green infrastructure into your planning is a great way that you can use natural solutions to manage stormwater runoff without halting development altogether. You may think that green infrastructure  is only implemented at the city level, but there are smaller-scale options that individual homeowners can implement like rain gardens.

Rain gardens are shallow depressions in the ground filled with filtering soil and plants that work to reduce stormwater pollution. Usually, stormwater runoff flows along impervious surfaces like driveways and sidewalks, picking up ​pollutants and contaminants, and eventually flowing into stormwater pipes that lead directly to our local streams. A properly installed rain garden can capture redirected stormwater runoff, then filter and absorb the water into the ground before it reaches our local waterways. A major issue that many Durham residents have in their yards is flooding. Installing a rain garden is a great, natural way to remove standing water, which assists in flood prevention. Using native plants in your rain garden makes it even more beneficial because they encourage local pollinators and promote biodiversity that is natural to the area. Since native plants are perfectly suited to the local environment, they are also lower maintenance and don’t need to be fertilized. However, with so many native plant options, it can be difficult to know where to start. There’s a wide variety of plants you can include: shrubs, grasses, ferns, and flowers. Let’s start with the flowers. Here are some common perennials native to our region that you can use in your rain garden.

1. Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata)
Including creeping phlox in your rain garden is a colorful and attractive way to get ground coverage. It has five heart-shaped petals that come together to look like a star with variants in lavender, pink, white, blue, or red.

• Benefits: Creeping phlox does well in almost any environment, and it’s also mildew resistant. Known for being a vigorous grower, creeping phlox can easily be propagated once the flowers bloom through division, or stem cuttings.
• Wildlife: Creeping phlox attracts many pollinators including honey bees, bumblebees, butterflies, and even hummingbirds.

2. Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
Cardinal flower has a bold red color and distinct appearance that brings a whimsical element to your garden. This flower is believed to get its common name from the red robes worn by cardinals of the Catholic Church!

• Benefits: Cardinal flower is an easy-to-maintain perennial that will adapt to many different environments including periods of brief flooding and an urban Durham setting. It also readily self seeds and produces lobiline which is a deterrent to herbivores like deer and rabbits. 
• Wildlife: Cardinal flower is considered a hummingbird magnet. It’s a bird-friendly plant option that attracts many different pollinating insects that birds like to eat. 

3. Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Butterfly Weed is a bushy perennial that has bright orange-yellow flowers. Despite its name, it’s not a weed. It’s a milkweed, also known as Pleurisy Root, that Native American tribes used to treat wounds and pulmonary infections like ​​Pleurisy. The root can also be dried, chopped and used to make a tea.

• Benefits: Butterfly weed can be used in home remedies to treat many ailments and pains like coughs and congestion. It has deep tap roots which aid in soil fertility while not letting it get too compact. 
• Wildlife: It’s the larval host plant for Monarch butterflies. Due to its large nectar production and bright color, Butterfly Weed attracts many other butterflies including the Gray Hairstreak and Queen butterfly. 

4. Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris)
Marsh Marigold is a bright yellow flower that loves water. Despite its name, Marsh Marigolds are part of the buttercup family. Though it resembles the invasive species Lesser Celandine, which is also a part of the buttercup family, the Marsh Marigold has shorter and wider petals than its invasive cousin.

• Benefits: Marsh Marigold requires little maintenance and likes wet, muddy soil. This perennial grows in many light conditions from full sun to full shade. As long as it’s moist, marsh marigold doesn't need much maintenance.
• Wildlife: Marsh Marigold attracts many pollinators, specifically the Syrphid Fly, which looks very similar to bees.

5. Foxglove Beardtongue (Penstemon digitalis) 
A hardier flower to consider in your rain garden is Foxglove Beardtongue.  These white, bell-shaped flowers branch from a strong stem, giving them a clustered appearance. The flower also has tiny white hairs on it, which explain the “beard” part of its name.

• Benefits: This perennial is pest resistant and tolerant of deer. Foxglove also is fine with dry, moist, and wet conditions.
• Wildlife: Foxglove Beardtongue attracts long-tongued pollinators like honeybees and Miner bees due to its long, tubular flowers. Their white color contrasts with the purple nectar guides on the inside of the flower, which helps to attract even more pollinators. 

6. Swamp Sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius) 
Unlike most sunflowers, the Swamp sunflower is a perennial sunflower because it’s in the aster family. It looks very similar to the traditional sunflower with a smaller seed head and branching stems. 

• Benefits: Swamp Sunflower can grow up to 8 feet tall, which will add height variation to your rain garden, making it more interesting to look at! It’s also generally resistant to most pests. 
• Wildlife: This plant is a larval host for the Silvery Checkerspot butterfly. Swamp Sunflowers also attract a variety of songbirds.

Maintaining your rain garden takes minimal work once it’s set up. Then you can sit back and just enjoy its beauty. Incorporating more green infrastructure wherever we can into our watershed is a great way to solve stormwater issues and rain gardens are one of the simplest ways to do just that.  

This is the first part of a three-part series on plants that can be used in a rain garden so stay tuned for part two on shrubs!

Photos of flowers from NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox