Perfect for woodlands, edges, and naturalized spaces

If you’re looking to fill in a shady or semi-shaded area, reduce weeding, and support pollinators all at once, native plants that naturalize can be your best allies. These plants gently spread over time, helping to cover ground, outcompete invasive weeds, and create thriving habitats for birds, bees, and butterflies.

Naturalizers are especially helpful in woodland gardens, along property edges, or in areas you’d like to return to a more natural, low-maintenance state. Native species are already adapted to Minnesota’s soil, seasons, and wildlife—so once they’re established, they’re tough, resilient, and often stunning.

Here are five native favorites from our nursery that offer beauty, function, and a soft, natural look:

1. Ostrich Fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris)

A true woodland classic. With tall, upright fronds that resemble ostrich plumes, this fern brings lush texture to shade gardens and moist, rich soils. Spreads by underground rhizomes to form graceful colonies—excellent for stabilizing slopes or filling woodland beds. Edible fiddleheads are a bonus in spring.

2. Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum)

Charming lavender-pink flowers bloom in late spring above deeply lobed foliage. Wild geranium forms soft mounds that slowly spread, making it a great native groundcover. A favorite of native bees and butterflies. It thrives in part sun to shade and tolerates a variety of soils.

3. Canada Anemone (Anemone canadensis)

Fast-spreading and tough, this native anemone shines in naturalized areas with its cheerful white flowers and glossy green foliage. A strong performer for controlling erosion or outcompeting weeds. Give it room—this one can cover ground quickly in moist to average soils.

4. Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica)

A spring ephemeral that steals the show. Virginia bluebells burst into bloom in early spring with nodding pink buds that open into clusters of sky-blue flowers. Perfect under deciduous trees where they can shine before the canopy leafs out. They’ll go dormant in summer, but the display is worth the wait.

5. Large-Leaved Aster (Eurybia macrophylla)

A late-season bloomer that thrives in shade. This aster’s bold foliage acts like a groundcover through summer, then sends up soft purple flowers in fall that attract migrating pollinators. Spreads steadily to form dense colonies in part to full shade. A wonderful choice for woodland edges and naturalized borders.