Green Ribbon Native Plants

Administered by the staff at Jenkins Arboretum and Gardens in Devon, Pennsylvania, this program focuses on singling out some of our region’s best native plants for home landscapes.

2015 Green Ribbon awards include:

Chokeberry (Aronia arbutifolia). A multi-stemmed flowering shrub that gets white flowers in April, then glossy red berry-sized fruits in fall that last into winter. Fall foliage is bright red as well. Grows 6 to 1Butterfly weed0 feet tall and 3 to 6 feet wide. Full sun to part shade.

Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa). A perennial flower in the milkweed family that blooms orange from June through August and is attractive to monarch and queen butterflies as well as various bees. Grows 18 to 24 inches tall. Full sun to light shade.

Eastern purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea). A meadow-native perennial with pinkish-lavender flower petals that droop from around a central brown cone. Grows 3 to 4 feet tall. Full sun to light shade.

For more information, call Buncombe County Cooperative Extension at 255-5522.