List of Ohio Prairie Plants
(This Page Is Under Continuing Revision)
This first draft is an incomplete list of plants known to grow on Ohio prairies. Not all of these species are confined to prairies. Weeds and non-native plants that sometimes invade prairies have not been included.
If you have additions or corrections, please email John Blakeman (jablakeman@aol.com).
In the future, the list will attempt to indicate characteristics such as Ohio prairie regions occupied by the species, type of prairie (wet to dry), season of flowering, and other information. For now, the list provides only Latin names in red, and a common names in black.
Species in bold face are generally regarded as Ohio prairie "biggies," species that are very commonly encountered on Ohio prairies, and some rarer ones of general prairie interest. These selections are entirely arbitrary and without ecological significance. The list is intended primarily to help acquaint non-prairie people with many of the common prairie plant species of Ohio. Again, some of the selections are arbitrary as many of the species are found in both prairie and non-prairie habitats in Ohio.
A number of genera have been revised, such as Gerardia being changed to Agalinis. Other genera, such as Aster and others, are undergoing major revisions. When completed, the revisions will make current botanical manual and field guide lists no longer valid. We will try to stay current. Those with expertise are invited to keep us updated.
1 Agalinis auriculata (Gerardia sp.) Auricled Agalinis
2 Agalinis purpureus (Gerardia sp.) Purple False Foxglove
3 Agalinis skinneriana (Gerardia sp.) Skinner's Agilinis
4 Agalinis tenuifolia (Gerardia sp.) Slender False Foxglove
5 Agave virginicus American Aloe
6 Alestris farinosa Colic-root
7 Allium cernuum Nodding Onion
8 Amphicarpa bracteata Hog-peanut
9 Andropogon gerardii Big Bluestem Grass
10 Anemone canadensis Canada Anemone
11 Anemone cylindrica Prairie Thimbleweed
12 Anemone virginiana Thimbleweed
13 Antennaria plantaginifolia Plantain-leaved Pussytoes
14 Apios americana Groundnut
15 Arabis glabra Tower Mustard
16 Arenaria stricta Rock Sandwort
17 Asclepias amplexicaulis Blunt-leaved Milkweed
18 Asclepias hirtella Tall Green Milkweed
19 Asclepias incarnata Marsh Milkweed
20 Asclepias purpurascens Purple Milkweed
21 Asclepias sullivantii Sullivant's Milkweed
22 Asclepias tuberosa Butterflyweed
23 Asclepias verticillata Whorled Milkweed
24 Asclepias viridiflora Short Green Milkweed
25 Asclepias viridis Spider Milkweed
26 Aster azureus Azure Aster
27 Aster ericoides White Heath Aster
28 Aster laevis Smooth Aster
29 Aster novae-angliae New England Aster
30 Aster oblongifolius Aromatic Aster
31 Aster praealtus Willow Aster
32 Aster ptarmicoides White Upland Aster
33 Aster umbellatus Flat-topped Aster
34 Astragalus canadensis Canada Milkvetch
35 Baptisia leucantha White Wild Indigo
36 Baptisia tinctoria Yellow Wild Indigo
37 Bidens coronata Tickseed-Sunflower
38 Blephilia ciliata Downy Wood Mint
39 Bouteloua curtipendula Sideoats Gramma Grass
40 Brickellia eupatoroides False Boneset
41 Bromus kalmii Prairie Brome Grass
42 Buchnera americana Blue-hearts
43 Cacalia atriplicifolia Pale Indian-plantain
44 Cacalia tuberosa Tuberous Indian-plantain
45 Calamagrostis canadensis Bluejoint Reed Grass
46 Camassia scilloides Wild Hyacinth
47 Carex bicknellii Bicknell's Sedge
48 Carex crawei Crawe's Sedge
49 Carex gravida Heavy Sedge
50 Carex meadii Mead's Sedge
51 Carex pensylvanica Pennsylvania Sedge
52 Carex suberecta Prairie Straw Sedge
53 Cassia fasciculata (now Chamaechrista sp.) Partridge Pea
54 Cassia marilandica Wild Senna
55 Castilleja coccinea Indian Paintbrush
56 Ceanothus americana New Jersey Tea
57 Chelone glabra White Turtlehead
58 Chenopodium leptophyllum Narrow-leaved Goosefoot
59 Cicuta maculata Water Hemlock
60 Cirsium discolor Oldfield Thiste
61 Cirsium muticum Swamp or Marsh Thistle
62 Comandra umbellata Bastard-toadflax
63 Convolvulus spithamaeus Low Bindweed
64 Coreopsis tripteris Tall Coreopsis
65 Cornus amomum Silky Dogwood
66 Cornus racemosa Gray Dogwood
67 Corylus americana Hazelnut
68 Cypripedium candidum Small White Lady's-slipper Orchid
69 Dalea ?
70 Delphinium ?
71 Desmodium canadense Showy Tick-trefoil
72 Desmodium illinoense Illinois Tick-trefoil
73 Dodecatheon meadia Mead's Shooting-star
74 Echinacea purpurea Purple Coneflower
75 Eleocharis compressa Flat-stemmed Spike-rush
76 Eleocharis rostellata Beaked Spike-rush
77 Elymus canadensis Canada Wild Rye Grass
78 Equisetum laevigatum Smooth Scouring-rush
79 Eryngium yuccifolium Rattlesnake-master
80 Erythronium albidum White Trout-lily
81 Eupatorium altissimum Tall Boneset
82 Eupatorium perfoliatum Boneset
83 Euphorbia corollata Flowering Spurge
84 Euthamia graminifolia (formerly Solidago sp.) Grass-leaved Goldenrod
85 Euthamia remota (formerly Solidago sp.) Great Lakes Goldenrod
86 Filipendula rubra Queen of the Prairie
87 Galium boreale Northern Bedstraw
88 Galium pilosum Hairy Bedstraw
89 Gaura biennis Biennial Gaura
90 Gentiana andrewsii Closed Gentian
91 Gentiana flavida Yellow Gentian
92 Gentiana procera Fringed Gentian
93 Gentiana puberulenta (G. puberula) Downy Gentian
94 Gentiana quinquefolia Stiff Gentian
95 Gnaphalium obtusifolium Cudweed
96 Helenium autumnale Autum Sneezeweed
97 Helianthemum bicknelli Frostweed
98 Helianthemum canadense Canada Frostweed
99 Helianthus giganteus Tall Sunflower
100 Helianthus grosseserratus Saw-tooth Sunflower
101 Helianthus hirsutus Stiff-haired Sunflower
102 Helianthus maximilliani Maximillian's Sunflower
103 Helianthus mollis Downy Sunflower
104 Helianthus occidentalis Western Sunflower
105 Helianthus strumosus Pale-leaved Wood Sunflower
106 Heliopsis helianthoides False Sunflower
107 Hieracium canadense Canada Frostweed
108 Hierochloa odorata Sweetgrass
109 Houstonia longifolia Longleaf Bluets
110 Houstonia nigricans
111 Hymenoxys acaulis Lakeside Daisy
112 Hypericum gymnanthemum Naked St. John's Wort
113 Hypericum sphaerocarpum Round-podded St. John's Wort
114 Hypoxis hirsuta Yellow Stargrass
115 Ipomoea pandurata Wild Potato-vine
116 Iris shrevei Southern Blue Flag
117 Iris versicolor Wild Blue Flag
118 Juncus interior Inland Rush
119 Koeleria macrantha (K. cristata) June Grass
120 Krigia biflora False Dandelion
121 Krigia dandelion Potato Dandelion
122 Lactuca canadensis Tall Wild Lettuce
123 Lathyrus palustris March Vetchling
124 Lathyrus venosus Vetchling
125 Lechea stricta Prairie Pinweed
126 Lespedeza capitata Roundheaded Bushclover
127 Liatris aspera Rough Blazingstar
128 Liatris cylindracea Cylindric Blazingstar
129 Liatris novae-angliae (L. borealis) New England Blazingstar
130 Liatris scabra
131 Liatris scariosa Savanna Blazingstar
132 Liatris spicata Dense Blazingstar
133 Liatris squarrosa Scaly Blazingstar
134 Lilium canadense Canada lily
135 Lilium michiganense Michigan Lily
136 Lilium philadelphicum Wood Lily
137 Linum sulcatum Grooved Yellow Flax
138 Lithospermum canescens Hoary Puccoon
139 Lithospermum croceum Hairy Puccoon
140 Lobelia siphilitica Great Blue Lobelia
141 Lobelia spicata Pale-spike Lobelia
142 Ludwigia polycarpa Many-fruited Ludwigia
143 Lupine perennis Wild Lupine
144 Lycopus americana Water Hoarhound
145 Lysimachia lanceolata Lance-leaved Loosestrife
146 Lysimachia quadriflora Prairie Loosestrife
147 Lythrum alatum Winged Loosestrife
148 Melica nitens Tall Mellic Grass
149 Mimulus ringens Monkeyflower
150 Mirabilis nyctaginea Wild Four-o'clock
151 Monarda fistulosa Wild Burgamot
152 Monarda punctata Dotted Horsemint
153 Muhlenburgia cuspidata Prairie Muhly Grass
154 Muhlenburgia glomerata Green Muhly Grass
155 Oenothera perennis Small Sundrops
156 Oenothera pilosella Prairie Sundrops
157 Onosmodium hispidissimum False Cromwell
158 Opuntia compressa Spreading Prickly-pear
159 Oxalis violacea Violet Wood Sorel
160 Oxypolis rigidior Cowbane
161 Panicum lanuginosum Wooly Panic Grass
162 Panicum oligosanthes Scribner's Panic Grass
163 Panicum virgatum Switchgrass
164 Parnassia glauca Grass of Parnassus
165 Pedicularis canadensis Wood Betony
166 Penstemon digitalis Foxglove Beardtongue
167 Penstemon hirsutus Hairy Beardtongue
168 Phlox glaberrima Smooth Phlox
169 Phlox pilosa Prairie Phlox
170 Physotegia virginiana Obedient Plant
171 Platanthera leucophaea (formerly Habenaria sp.) Eastern Prairie Fringed Orchid
172 Polygala incarnata Pink Milkwort
173 Polygala polygama Purple Milkwort
174 Polygala sanguinea Field Milkwort
175 Polygala senega Seneca Milkwort
176 Polygala verticillata Whorled Milkwort
177 Polygonatum commutatum Giant Soloman's-seal
178 Polygonum coccineum Swamp Smartweed
179 Potentilla argutata Tall Cinquefoil
180 Potentilla paradoxa Bushy Cinquefoil
181 Prenanthes aspera Rough White Lettuce
182 Prenanthes racemosa Smooth White Lettuce
183 Psoralea onobrychis Sainfoin
184 Psoralea psoralicoides Sampson's Snakeroot
185 Pycnanthemum tenuifolium Slender-leaved Mountain-mint
186 Pycnanthemum virginianum Virginia Mountain-mint
187 Quercus macrocarpa Bur Oak
188 Quercus velutina Black Oak
189 Ratibida pinnata Prairie (Yellow) Coneflower
190 Rhexia virginica Meadow Beauty
191 Rosa blanda Smooth Rose
192 Rosa carolina Pasture Rose
193 Rudbeckia hirta Black-eyed Susan
194 Rudbeckia serotina Black-eyed Susan
195 Ruellia humilis Hairy Ruellia (Wild Petunia)
196 Sabatia angularis Rose-pink
197 Salix humilis Gray (Prairie) Willow
198 Sanquisorba canadensis Canadian Burnet
199 Saxifraga pensylvanica Swamp Saxifrage
200 Schizachyrium scoparium(formerly Andropogon scoparius) Little Bluestem Grass
201 Scutellaria parvula Small Skullcap
202 Senecio aureus Golden Ragwort
203 Senecio pauperculus Balsam Groundsel
204 Senecio plattensis Prairie Ragwort
205 Silene regia Royal Catchfly
206 Silphium laciniatum Compass-plant
207 Silphium terebinthinaceum Prairie Dock
208 Silphium trifoliatum Whorled Rosinweed
209 Sisyrinchium albidum White Blue-eyed Grass
210 Smilacina stellata Starry False Soloman's-seal
211 Solidago nemoralis Grey Goldenrod
212 Solidago ohioensis Ohio Goldenrod
213 Solidago riddellii Riddell's Goldenrod
214 Solidago rigida Stiff (Prairie) Goldenrod
215 Solidago speciosa Showy Goldenrod
216 Sorghastrum nutans Indiangrass
217 Spartina pectinata Prairie Cordgrass
218 Sphenopholis intermedia (no common name)
219 Spiranthes cernua Nodding Ladies' Tresses Orchid
220 Spiranthes gracilis Slender Ladies' Tresses Orchid
221 Spiranthes tuberosa Little Ladies' Tresses Orchid
222 Spiranthes vernalis Narrow-leaved Ladies' Tresses Orchid
223 Sporobolus asper Rough Dropseed
224 Sporobolus heterolepis Prairie (Northern) Dropseed
225 Stipa spartea Porcupine Grass
226 Taenidia integerrima Yellow Pimpernel
227 Tephrosia virginiana Goat's-rue
228 Teucrium canadense Germander
229 Thalictrum dasycarpum Purple Meadow-rue
230 Thalictrum revolutum Hairy-jointed Meadow-rue
231 Thaspium barbinode Purple Meadow Parsnip
232 Thaspium trifoliatum False Asphodel
233 Tradescantia ohiensis Ohio Spiderwort
234 Trifoliatum reflexum Buffalo Clover
235 Valeriana ciliata Valerian
236 Verbena bracteata Large-bracted Vervain
237 Verbena hastata Blue Vervain
238 Verbena simplex Narrow-leaved Vervain
239 Verbena stricta Hoary Vervain
240 Verbesina helianthoides Sunflower Crownbeard
241 Vernonia altissima Tall Ironweed
242 Vernonia fasciculata Western Ironweed
243 Veronicastrum virginicum Culver's-root
244 Viola lanceolata Lance-leaved Violet
245 Viola pedata Bird's-foot Violet
246 Viola sagittata Arrow-leaved Violet
247 Zizia aptera Heart-leaved Golden Alexanders
248 Zizia aureus Golden Alexanders