In last week’s post, I wrote about changes that we’re making to our garden for 2026, which are largely the result of the chameleon plant spreading in one of our garden beds. The chameleon plant is an invasive species that is native to Southeast Asia, and once it gets established in an area, it’s very difficult to kill. Learning about this plant led me to become more curious about other invasive species and, more importantly, Pennsylvania’s native plants.
Native plants are important to an area’s ecosystem because they keep the natural environment in a delicate balance. Native plants are adapted to the local soil and growing conditions. In the case of Pennsylvania, they’re also frost-resistant and can handle periods of drought and excess moisture. Native plants also provide food for birds and pollinators. They require little maintenance once they are established and are vital to the region’s biodiversity.
Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) website says that there are roughly 2,100 native plants species in the Commonwealth. By the year 2000, five percent of the state’s native plant species had been eliminated and another 25 percent were at risk of going extinct. Meanwhile, at the turn of the century, there were 1,300 non-native plant species, which represented 37 percent of the state’s total plant species. And the sad part is that this number has only grown since 2000 as more invasive species are added to people’s gardens.
I have been interested in native plant species without realizing it for a long time. I spent a lot of time outside and in the woods growing up, and I also did a lot of hiking and mountain biking from middle school through college. Spending that much time in nature allows you to recognize plants that you regularly see even if you aren’t looking for them. Plants like Mountain Laurel and Elderberry bushes stand out. Trees also begin to be recognizable as bark and leaf characteristics start to become familiar.
In middle school, two things happened that began to increase my interest in nature and native plants. The first was a middle school science project that required finding Pennsylvania tree species and documenting their leaves. The second was borrowing a book on edible plant species. This came after going on a week-long backpacking trip and seeing Wild Carrot and berry bushes along the trail. It sparked my interest and I began foraging for wild edibles around my dad’s house.
I’ve written about this in previous posts, but I’m passionate about stopping the destruction of nature and the environment. We’ve made a lot of decisions over the past few centuries that have destroyed thousands of acres of forests and native grassland in the name of progress. We’ve stripped the soil of its nutrients, cut down millions of trees, and polluted our waterways. Some have been working hard to reverse this trend, but there will always be “leaders” who are willing to sacrifice the environment for financial growth.
Long-Term Project
This is the start of a long-term research project where I learn about our state’s native plants and how we can have more of them on our property. Our goal is to have our yard become a Certified Wildlife Habitat, which requires having native plants that create safe and beneficial environments for local wildlife. By learning about Pennsylvania’s native plants, we can identify any that are already on our property and learn about others that would thrive so that we can introduce them in the future. I was hoping that my research would lead to me learning about native vegetables that the Native Americans grew, but I only found the well-known Three Sisters of squash, corn, and beans.
Many of the other vegetables we grow were introduced after Europeans arrived. Because of that, a follow-up article will be coming that researches what people groups introduced specific vegetables and if the vegetables that are typically grown in Pennsylvania originally came from the most common immigrant groups who came to the state. For now, though, here are the commonwealth’s native plants.
Pennsylvania’s Native Plants
| Trees | Shrubs | Ferns | Perennials/Vines |
| Alternate-Leaved Pagoda | American Hazlenut | Bloodroot | Alumroot |
| Black Birch | Arrowwood | Christmas Fern | Beardtongue |
| Black Gum | Beaked Hazlenut | Cinnamon Fern | Bee Balm |
| Chestnut Oak | Big Bluestem | False Solomon’s Seal | Black Cohosh |
| Eastern Hemlock | Black Chokeberry | Lady Fern | Black-Eyed Susan |
| Eastern Red Cedar | Black Willow | May Apple | Blue Cohosh |
| Eastern White Pine | Blackhawk | Ostrich Fern | Boneset |
| Green Ash | Buttonbush | Partridge Berry | Butterfly Weed |
| Hackberry | Chokeberry | Riverbank Wild Rye | Cardinal Flower |
| Hop Hornbeam | Highbush Blueberry | Royal Fern | Dutchman’s Breeches |
| Hornbeam | Indian Grass | Stonecrop | Foam Flower |
| Mockernut Hickory | Little Bluestem | Virginia Wild Rye | Garden Phlox |
| Pin Oak | Lowbush Blueberry | White Goldenrod | Golden Ragwort |
| Quaking Aspen | Maple-Leaved Viburnum | Zigzag Goldenrod | Goldenrod |
| Red Bud | Mountain Laurel | Great Blue Labelia | |
| Red Maple | New Jersey Tea | Great Solomon’s Seal | |
| Red Oak | Ninebark | Jacob’s Ladder | |
| River Birch | Pinxter Flower | Joe Pye Weed | |
| Sassafras | Purple Lovegrass | Marsh Marigold | |
| Service Berry | Red Elderberry | Milkweed | |
| Sugar Maple | Red Osier Dogwood | Monkey Flower | |
| Sycamore | Rose Bay | New England Aster | |
| Tulip Poplar | Silky Dogwood | New York Ironweed | |
| White Ash | Silky Willow | Oxeye Sunflower | |
| White Oak | Smooth Alder | Sneezeweed | |
| Wild Plum | Spice Bush | Sundrops | |
| Sweetfern | Tall Meadow Rue | ||
| Switch Grass | Trumpet Creeper Vine | ||
| Wild Hydrangea | Turtlehead | ||
| Winterberry | Virginia Bluebells | ||
| Witch Hazel | Virginia Creeper Vine | ||
| White Snakeroot | |||
| White Wood Aster | |||
| Wild Blue Phlox | |||
| Wild Columbine | |||
| Wild Geranium | |||
| Wild Ginger | |||
| Wild Sweet William |
When I walk around our property and look at the plants and trees, we have few, if any, native plants. It’s clear that the previous owner(s) were not focused on native plants and healthy biodiversity. In addition to the chameleon plants, we have Snowberry bushes, some type of dwarf Holly Bush, and an ornamental tree. While the Snowberry is native to the United States, it is not native to Pennsylvania. Holly is another plant that can be native to the U.S., but because there are a bunch of varieties, including dwarf ones that have been bred to restrict size, most aren’t native. That’s the case with the one in front of our house. Finally, we have one tree on our property at this time. It’s a short, ornamental tree that is certainly not native.
When we bought our house, there were woody shrubs on one side of the house as well as one crab apple tree and an out-of-control lilac bush in the strip of land between the sidewalk and road. They were planted by the borough years ago, but they were partially dead and hadn’t been pruned or maintained in years. We took those down earlier this year.
We have no other trees or plants on the property other than the ones we planted in the spring and what we had in the garden. Our neighbors have done an excellent job of planting beautiful trees and flowers, with the majority of the trees and perennial plants being native. When I look out our windows, I see a couple of poplar trees, several hazelnut trees, and multiple berry bushes. Elsewhere around us, we can see a lot of evergreen trees and many oak and maple trees. Pennsylvania has a lot of trees, and it’s easy to see a variety of native species by keeping your eyes open as you walk or drive around.
Are any of Pennsylvania’s native plants native to where you’re from? What are your thoughts on native vs. invasive species?
One Rabbit Riot 