Plant Lists for Lake Wissota Buffer Zones
I. Plants for naturalizing open woodland or woodland edges with partial sun to partial shade
Groundcover * esp. tolerant of dry, sandy soils
Wild ginger Asarum canadense spreads w. rhizomes
*Calico aster Aster lateriflorus fast growing groundcover
* Big leaf aster A. macrophyllus fast growing groundcover
*Wild columbine Aquilegia canadensis
Purple Joe-Pye Weed Eupatorium purpureum
*White snakeroot Eupatorium rugosum adapts to disturbed woods
*Woodland strawberry Fragaria virginiana
*Wild strawberry F. vesca
*Northern bedstraw Galium boreale
Wild geranium Geranium maculatum
Woodland sunflower Helianthus strumosus
Pale-leaved sunflower H. divarcatus
*Poverty oat grass Danthonia spicata 12” regenerates degraded soil
*Pennsylvania sedge Carex pennsylvanica 6” clumps forest restorations
*Bracken fern Pteridium aquilinium
Shrubs- Understory Trees
Mountain maple Acer spicatum 6’-24’
Serviceberry
Juneberry Amelanchier laevis 25’-30’
Roundleaf Amelanchier sanguinea 3’-15’ good for tough sites
Running A. stolonifera 2’-5’ low growing, spreading
*Downy A. arborea 10’-30’ good shade tolerance
Pagoda dogwood Cornus alternifolia 20’-25’
Gray dogwood Cornus racemosa 8’-12’ starchy berries for birds
American hazelnut Corylus americana 6’-8’
*Dwarf bush honeysuckle Diervilla lonicera 2’-3’ forest restoration
*Red-berried elderberry Sambucus pubens 4”-8” very tough
Snowberry Symphoricarpos elba 3”-4”
Trees
White spruce Picea glauca
*White pine Pinus strobus
Red (Norway) pine P. resinosa
White oak Quercus alba
Northern red oak Q. borealis long lived, dry and moist soil
*Northern pin oak Q. ellipsoidalis
II. Plants to replace turf grass in dry, sunny areas
(Plants are adaptive from riprap throughout buffer)
Groundcover
Pearly everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea attracts butterflies
Butterfly weed Asclepias tuberose host plant for Monarchs
Heath aster Aster ericoides
Smooth blue aster Aster laevis
Sand coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata reseeds prolifically
Purple prairie clover Dalea purpurea
Rattlesnake master Eryngium yuccafolium
Prairie smoke Geum triflorum
Western sunflower Helianthus occidentalis
Rough blazing star Liatris aspera
Wild lupine Lupinus perennis
Bergamot Monarda fistulosa
Large flowered beard-tongue Penstemon grandiflorus
Yellow coneflower Ratibida pinnata
Prairie coneflower R. columnifera
Showy goldenrod Solidago speciosa
Stiff goldenrod S. rigida
Ohio spiderwort Transcantia ohioensis
Hoary vervain Verbena stricta
Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii
Side-oats grama Bouteloua curtipendula
Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium
Prairie dropseed Sporobolus heterolepsis
Shrubs and small trees
*Green Alder Alnus crispa 6’-24’
Roundleaf Juneberry Amelancher sanguinea 3’-15’
Red-Osier dogwood Cornus stolonifera 10-12’ mesic soils
Creeping juniper J. horizontalis ‘Bar Harbor’ spreads 10’ wide
Ninebark Physocarpus opulifolius 6’-9’ ‘Diablo’ deer resistant
Dwarf sandcherry Prunus pumila 1’-3’
Fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica ‘Gro-low’ 1’-2’ spreads 10’
Staghorn sumac Rhus typhina ‘8-30’
Trees
*White and Red pine Pinus strobus and P. resinosa
White oak Quercus alba
Northern red oak Q. borealis long lived, dry and moist soil
*Northern pin oak Q. ellipsoidalis
III. Plants for buffer zones with medium to moist soil conditions in sun to partial sun
Groundcover
Giant Hyssop Agastache scrophulariaefolia good butterfly plant
Swamp milkweed Asclepias incarnate butterflies
New England aster Aster novae-angliae
Turtlehead Chelone glabra
Spotted Joe-pye weed Eupatorium maculatum
Boneset Eupatorium perfoliatum
Autumn sneezeweed Helenium autumnale (Won’t make you sneeze)
Northern blue flag Iris versicolor
Great blazing star Liatris pychnostachya
Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis
Mountain mint Pycnanthemum virginianum
Sweet Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia subtomentosa
Brown eyed Susan R. triloba
Blue vervain Verbena hastata
Fringed brome Bromus ciliatus
Fox sedge Carex vulpinoidea
Switch grass Panicum virgatum
Shrubs, small trees
Black chokeberry Aronia melanocarpa 4’-6’
Silky dogwood Cornus ammomum to 8’
Red-Osier dogwood C. stolonifera to 6’
American hazelnut Corylus americana 6’-8’
Winterberry holly Ilex verticulata to 6’
Wild raisin Vibernum cassoides 2’-8’ good lake edge shrub
Arrowwood vibernum V. dentatum 10’-12’
Nannyberry V. lentago 10’-15’
Highbush cranberry V. trilobium 10’-12’
Trees
Balsam fir Abies balsamifera
River birch Betula nigra
Eastern White Pine Pinus strobus
Wild black cherry Prunus serotina
American mountain ash Sorbus americana 15’-30’
Showy mountain ash S. decora 15’-40’ more shade-tolerant
Basswood Tilia americana
Plant Outlets
Gordy’s Greenhouse Chippewa Falls,WI
Circle M Nursery Chippewa Falls, WI
Helpful Sources
Landscaping for Wildlife and Water Quality, Minnesota Department of
Resources, Minnesota’s Bookstore 1-800-657-2757
