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Landscape Plugs™

Our best low-maintenance native perennials and grasses are available in plugs designed to be planted directly in the ground. We offer a wide selection of Eastern US natives and their cultivars selected for beauty and durability. Two sizes are available for direct planting, LP50 and LP32. LP50 items are generally forb and grass species with taproots or deep fibrous root systems. Our LP50 plugs are 5.00" deep by 2.00" square and come 50 to a standard nursery liner. The LP32 plant palette contains species with lateral root systems and are generally more fibrous and shallowly rooted species. Our LP32 plugs are 4.00" deep by 2.22" square and come 32 per to a standard nursery liner. Landscape Plugs™ offer an exciting alternative for quick establishment of plants in landscapes and containers.

Plant Selection
We are very selective in our choices for the Landscape Plugs™ program so that your planting gets off to a great start. All plants in our plug program are native to the midatlantic states, well suited to this climate and tolerant of drought and extreme temperature fluctuations. Robust root systems make for quick establishment and less initial watering. Plants purchased in spring are vernalized and ready to grow.

Why Use Landscape Plugs™?

  • Plants usually reach flowering size in first season and have a high transplant success rate.
  • Quicker and more reliable than seed, with erosion control starting in weeks rather than months.
  • LP50 plugs have deep (5") roots that establish quickly.
  • Compact size is easy to transport - a real cost saver.
  • Plants are chosen for wide adaptability and ease of transplanting and establishment.
  • Excellent choices for wildlife habitat development, providing food & shelter for many species.
  • Plugs come in flats made of 100% recycled plastic and are #6 recyclable.

Many thanks to the Biota of North America Program (BONAP) for the use of their North American Plant Atlas species distribution maps, which can be found on each native Landscape Plug™ species page. Click the map image to enlarge and view the plant's distribution status by county via link to the BONAP site. All map images are courtesy: Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2013. Taxonomic Data Center. (http://www.bonap.net/tdc). Chapel Hill, N.C. [maps generated from Kartesz, J.T. 2013. Floristic Synthesis of North America, Version 1.0. Biota of North America Program (BONAP). (in press)] 

Botanical Name     Common Name
A B C D E F-G H I J-L M-O P Q R S T U-Z ALL

Deschampsia cespitosa

tufted hairgrass

An ornamental grass that does well in moderately shady locations.  Airy masses of finely branched, light green inflorescences rise above the neatly rounded tufts of narrow, dark green foliage in early summer, and remain intact long enough to provide some early winter interest.

Deschampsia cespitosa '' tufted hairgrass from North Creek Nurseries

Deschampsia cespitosa 'Goldtau'

tufted hairgrass

Selected for deep, dark-green foliage, late blooming period, clump-forming habit and airy, golden-yellow flowers that emerge in June and last through to September. Attractive seed heads persist through winter. An eye catching cool season, semi-evergreen ornamental grass perfectly suited for part sun to shade.

Deschampsia cespitosa 'Goldtau' tufted hairgrass from North Creek Nurseries

Deschampsia flexuosa

wavy hairgrass

A delightful and elegant native, this diminutive grass thrives in dry shade. Fine-textured and delicate in appearance, it is tough and drought tolerant, ideal for planting in any well-drained shady location as a groundcover. In spring it is topped with graceful feathery flowers that are lovely as they move quietly in the breeze.

Deschampsia flexuosa '' wavy hairgrass from North Creek Nurseries

Dryopteris erythrosora 'Brilliance'

autumn fern

Autumn fern is a colorful groundcover with pink fiddleheads that turn coppery orange as they unfurl. Fronds age to a lustrous dark green and remain well into winter. New growth continues through the season, giving a colorful tapestry effect of copper and green from spring to late fall.

Dryopteris erythrosora 'Brilliance' autumn fern from North Creek Nurseries

Dryopteris goldiana

Goldie's woodfern

This is the largest of the native wood ferns, reaching 4' in ideal conditions. It is a stately and slowly spreading groundcover, forming large clusters of graceful arching fronds. Named for Scottish botanist John Goldie, its fronds are green without a hint of gold. Dryopteris goldiana is native to seepage slopes and moist woods from Newfoundland to Georgia, west to Minnesota and Arkansas.

Dryopteris goldiana '' Goldie's woodfern from North Creek Nurseries

Dryopteris marginalis

Dryopteris marginalis

eastern woodfern

The leathery leaves of Dryopteris marginalis are a beautiful addition to the woodland garden and can form a lovely and easy to maintain groundcover. A sturdy east coast native, it forms a tidy clump that will not spread and is very tolerant of dry shade conditions once it has established. Marginal wood fern is often found in shaded crevices of rocky ledges and bluffs from Newfoundland to Georgia, west to Oklahoma and Minnesota.

Dryopteris marginalis '' eastern woodfern from North Creek Nurseries

Dryopteris × australis

southern woodfern

Dryopteris x australis is a natural hybrid (D. celsa x ludoviciana) found in wild populations from Louisiana to Virginia, but is a superb garden plant as far north as Zone 5. It is taller than either parent and a formidable addition to the garden.

Dryopteris × australis '' southern woodfern from North Creek Nurseries