Best Native Plants for USDA Zone 6

Native plants you can actually buy that suit USDA hardiness zone 6 — ordered by how closely each one is matched to this zone rather than alphabetically.

40 plants, every one native to North America, routinely available from nurseries, and photographed. Ranked by cold limit, so the plants nearest the top are the ones zone 6 lets you grow and colder gardens do not. Traits are quoted from USDA PLANTS, never estimated — how we source this. The Plant Finder searches the full catalogue, including plants that miss this bar.

1. 
   Arizona sycamore Platanus wrightiiZone 6+ · full sun · 80 ft · native
2. 
   Atlantic mannagrass Glyceria obtusaZone 6+ · shade · 3.3 ft · native
3. 
   beach plum Prunus maritimaZone 6+ · full sun · 12 ft · native
4. 
   big bluestem Andropogon gerardiiZone 6+ · full sun · 7 ft · native
5. 
   cedar elm Ulmus crassifoliaZone 6+ · part shade · 90 ft · native
6. 
   cherrybark oak Quercus pagodaZone 6+ · full sun · 120 ft · native
7. 
   coral greenbrier Smilax walteriZone 6+ · shade · 1 ft · native
8. 
   dwarf witchalder Fothergilla gardeniiZone 6+ · part shade · 4 ft · native
9. 
   Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutansZone 6+ · full sun · 6.5 ft · native
10. 
    lanceleaf tickseed Coreopsis lanceolataZone 6+ · full sun · 2 ft · native
11. 
    loblolly pine Pinus taedaZone 6+ · full sun · 100 ft · native
12. 
    may hawthorn Crataegus aestivalisZone 6+ · full sun · 26 ft · native
13. 
    nutmeg hickory Carya myristiciformisZone 6+ · full sun · 95 ft · native
14. 
    Ogeechee tupelo Nyssa ogecheZone 6+ · full sun · 50 ft · native
15. 
    Oregon ash Fraxinus latifoliaZone 6+ · part shade · 70 ft · native
16. 
    Palmer's penstemon Penstemon palmeriZone 6+ · full sun · 3.5 ft · native
17. 
    southern redcedar Juniperus virginianaZone 6+ · full sun · 65 ft · native
18. 
    tenangle pipewort Eriocaulon decangulareZone 6+ · full sun · 2.6 ft · native
19. 
    Texas redbud Cercis canadensisZone 6+ · shade · 12 ft · native
20. 
    thinfruit sedge Carex flaccospermaZone 6+ · shade · 1 ft · native
21. 
    arrowleaf tearthumb Polygonum sagittatumZone 5+ · full sun · 1 ft · native
22. 
    basin big sagebrush Artemisia tridentataZone 5+ · full sun · 9 ft · native
23. 
    bigcone Douglas-fir Pseudotsuga macrocarpaZone 5+ · full sun · 75 ft · native
24. 
    blackjack oak Quercus marilandicaZone 5+ · full sun · 25 ft · native
25. 
    blue mistflower Conoclinium coelestinumZone 5+ · shade · 3.2 ft · native
26. 
    boraxweed Nitrophila occidentalisZone 5+ · full sun · 1 ft · native
27. 
    California laurel Umbellularia californicaZone 5+ · shade · 80 ft · native
28. 
    catbird grape Vitis palmataZone 5+ · part shade · 30 ft · native
29. 
    crimsoneyed rosemallow Hibiscus moscheutosZone 5+ · full sun · 6.6 ft · native
30. 
    desert bitterbrush Purshia glandulosaZone 5+ · full sun · 5 ft · native
31. 
    fragrant sumac Rhus aromaticaZone 5+ · full sun · 5 ft · native
32. 
    Fremont cottonwood Populus fremontiiZone 5+ · full sun · 90 ft · native
33. 
    great laurel Rhododendron maximumZone 5+ · shade · 25 ft · native
34. 
    green sprangletop Leptochloa dubiaZone 5+ · full sun · 3 ft · native
35. 
    halberdleaf rosemallow Hibiscus laevisZone 5+ · part shade · 8 ft · native
36. 
    highland doghobble Leucothoe fontanesianaZone 5+ · shade · 4 ft · native
37. 
    inkberry Ilex glabraZone 5+ · full sun · 8 ft · native
38. 
    knotgrass Paspalum distichumZone 5+ · full sun · 0.9 ft · native
39. 
    littleleaf sumac Rhus microphyllaZone 5+ · full sun · 10 ft · native
40. 
    mountain azalea Rhododendron canescensZone 5+ · shade · 14 ft · native

Every plant here is drawn from the USDA PLANTS database; the traits behind this list are quoted from it, not estimated. See data & sources.

Want plants matched to your exact zone and conditions? Use the Plant Finder.