The Case for Native Plants in NYC
Native plants — species that evolved naturally in the northeastern United States before European settlement — offer extraordinary advantages for NYC landscapes. They are adapted to local soil, climate, and rainfall patterns, which means they require less supplemental water, less fertilizer, and fewer pesticides than exotic species. They support local wildlife including birds, butterflies, native bees, and beneficial insects that non-native plants often do not. And they are inherently resistant to the pests and diseases that plague many ornamental exotics, because they evolved alongside those pressures.
The ecological argument for native plants has become increasingly compelling as pollinator populations decline and urban habitat fragmentation accelerates. A single native oak tree supports over 500 species of caterpillars — the primary food source for baby birds. A non-native ginkgo, beautiful as it is, supports near zero. By incorporating native plants into NYC landscapes, property owners can create functional habitat corridors that connect parks, greenways, and natural areas across the urban landscape.
Top Native Perennials for NYC Gardens
Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is perhaps the most iconic native garden plant — tough, beautiful, long-blooming from July through September, and a magnet for butterflies and goldfinches. Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida) provides cheerful golden flowers from mid-summer through fall and self-seeds gently to fill gaps naturally. Bee balm (Monarda didyma) attracts hummingbirds with its tubular red, pink, or purple flowers and adds a wonderful fragrance to the garden.
For fall color, New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) and New York aster (Symphyotrichum novi-belgii) provide clouds of purple, pink, or blue flowers from September through October when most other perennials have finished. Joe-Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum) reaches 5 to 7 feet with massive mauve flower heads that draw butterflies from blocks away. Goldenrod (Solidago) — unfairly blamed for hay fever (ragweed is the real culprit) — provides late-season gold that combines beautifully with asters.
Native Shrubs and Trees
Serviceberry (Amelanchier) is the perfect native small tree for NYC gardens: white spring flowers, edible summer berries, spectacular orange-red fall color, and attractive gray bark for winter interest. Flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) provides iconic spring bloom (white or pink bracts) and brilliant red fall foliage. Redbud (Cercis canadensis) covers its bare branches with magenta-pink flowers in early spring before the leaves emerge, creating one of the most stunning displays of the season.
For shrubs, winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata) produces spectacular red berries on bare branches in winter — one of the most striking native plants for the cold season. Inkberry holly (Ilex glabra) provides evergreen screening with none of the pest problems of exotic privet. Virginia sweetspire (Itea virginica) offers fragrant white flower racemes in June and garnet-red fall color. Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica) is salt-tolerant, deer-resistant, and thrives in poor soil — perfect for challenging NYC conditions.
Designing with Natives
Incorporating native plants does not mean creating a wild meadow in your backyard (unless that is what you want). Native plants can be designed into formal borders, contemporary container gardens, and structured planting schemes that look polished and intentional. The trick is combining native species with design principles — repetition, layering, color harmony, and seasonal succession — that create order within the natural abundance that native plantings bring.
We recommend starting with a foundation of native species (60 to 70 percent of the planting plan) supplemented by compatible non-invasive ornamentals that provide specific attributes natives may lack in a given design context. This blended approach delivers the ecological benefits of native planting with the design flexibility that residential and commercial clients expect. Over time, as native varieties improve and the palette expands, the proportion of natives in our designs continues to increase.