Plant Finder

User Guidelines

The Plant Finder is a multi-faceted tool to assist designers, contractors, maintenance personnel, community groups and the general public in selecting plants that perform well within the public right-of-way. It expands on the lists included in previous versions of the Manual and should be used in conjunction with the guidance provided in the Landscape Chapter.

The Plant Finder database is not comprehensive and there is no guarantee that these plants will survive at a specific site. All plants within the public right-of-way must be selected based on site-specific conditions and approved by the appropriate agency or agencies with jurisdiction. Download the Plant Finder User Guide for instructions on how to use the tool.

The information in this database was generated by DOT, Parks, other agency staff, and local horticulture professionals based on their first-hand knowledge as well as from existing resources. Download the Plant Finder References page for a full list of sources.

Plant Basics

Characteristics

Tolerances

An image of an Aesculus octandra tree, centered above its trunk, with green leaves and yellow flowers.

Collections:

Common:

Yellow Buckeye

Scientific:

Aesculus octandra

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

50-75 ft

Spread:

30-50 ft

Shape:

Oval Spreading Upright

Bloom:

Showy 0.5"-1" long yellow flowers appear on erect panicles (to 6" long). Generally blooms mid-spring

Blooming period:

Apr - May

Fruit:

Not necessarily ornamental, but a defining feature of the species. Capsule; 1-2 buckeye(s) encased in leathery light brown husk; smooth unlike Ohio Buckeye. When ripe the buckeye turns red-brown with a light eye

Foliage:

Palmate compound leaves; five spreading, toothed, ovate-oblong leaflets to 4"-7" long; leaves mature to dark green in summer

Fall:

Has better color than other Aesculus; can be nice yellow or pale orange

Bark:

Interesting gray and brown; old trunks exhibit bark with large flat scales and plates

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms, Fall Color, Distinctive Bark

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Low

pH:

Requires Acid (5.0-7.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

4a - 8a

Other:

ALB Host

Formerly known as Aesculus flava.

Less susceptible to foliar diseases compared to other buckeyes.

Fort McNair Red Horse Chestnut

Collections:

Common:

Fort McNair Red Horsechestnut

Scientific:

Aesculus x carnea

'Fort McNair'

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

30-40 ft

Spread:

30-40 ft

Shape:

Rounded

Bloom:

Very showy rose-red to pink flowers with yellow eyes appear in upright terminal panicles (to 6"-8" long) in mid-spring

Blooming period:

May

Fruit:

Not necessarily ornamental, but a defining feature of the species. Capsules (1.5" diameter); typically contains 2-3 nuts. Nuts are poisonous

Foliage:

Leaves emerge bright green and mature to a dark green. Seven (occasionally five) palmate compound leaves with spreading ovate-oblong leaflets 4"-10" long; leaflets have doubly-toothed margins

Fall:

Turns a golden yellow, but may still struggle with foliar diseases

Bark:

Exfoliates in plates on older branches and trunk; most of bark is gray and brown

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

5a - 8a

Other:

ALB Host

'Fort McNair' has a smaller, rounder habit than the species and is known for its bold spikes of pink flowers with yellow eyes that rise above the foliage in mid-spring.

An image of a young, flowering, Aesculus x carnea tree, showcasing it's red/pink bloom clusters.

Collections:

Common:

Red Horsechestnut

Scientific:

Aesculus x carnea

Plant type:

Trees

Height:

30-40 ft

Spread:

25-35 ft

Shape:

Rounded

Bloom:

Very showy red to rose-red flowers appear in upright terminal panicles 6"-8" long

Blooming period:

May

Fruit:

Not necessarily ornamental, but a defining feature of the species. Capsules (1.5" diameter); typically contains 2-3 nuts. Nuts are poisonous

Foliage:

Leaves emerge bright green and mature to a dark green. Seven (occasionally five) palmate compound leaves with spreading ovate-oblong leaflets 4"-10" long; leaflets have doubly-toothed margins

Fall:

Ornamentally insignificant

Bark:

Exfoliates in plates on older branches and trunk; most of bark is gray and brown

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

5a - 8a

Other:

ALB Host

A hybrid of A. hippocastanum and A. pavia. Most noted for its showy red flowers.

Agastache foeniculum

Common:

Anise Hyssop

Scientific:

Agastache foeniculum

Plant type:

Perennial

Height:

2-4 ft

Spread:

1.5-3 ft

Shape:

Upright Clumping

Bloom:

Lavender to purple flowers appear in dense, many-flowered verticillasters on showy, cylindrical, terminal flower spikes (3-6" long). Deadhead spent flowers to promote additional blooms

Blooming period:

Jun - Sep

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Dull green ovate to broad-lanceolate leaves with tooth margins. Fragrant; noted for their anise-scent

Fall:

Ornamentally insignificant

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Summer

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Not available

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Sand, Loam

Moisture:

Dry to Med

Hardiness:

4a - 8a

Other:

Pollinator

Typically found in prairies. Drought tolerant; needs good soil drainage.

Flowers may attract bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies.

Giant Hyssop

Common:

Giant Hyssop

Scientific:

Agastache rugosa

'Honey Bee Blue'

Plant type:

Perennial

Height:

2-3 ft

Spread:

1.5-2 ft

Shape:

Upright Clumping

Bloom:

Intense blue to blue-violet tubular flowers in whorls bloom on erect, salvia-like spikes growing 24-26" tall. Long-lasting. Deadhead spent flowers to promote additional blooms

Blooming period:

Jul - Sep

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Dull grey/blue to green toothed, lance-shaped to ovate leaves grow up to 3" long. Fragrant

Fall:

Ornamentally insignificant. Cut back dead flower and leaf stems in late winter to early spring

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Not available

pH:

Not available

Soil:

Sand, Loam

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

5a - 8a

Other:

Pollinator

'Honey Bee Blue' has intense blue flowers and aromatic gray-green foliage. Drought tolerant.

Flowers may attract bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies.

Black Adder Anise Hyssop

Common:

Black Adder Hyssop

Scientific:

Agastache rugosum x foeniculum

'Black Adder'

Plant type:

Perennial

Height:

2-3 ft

Spread:

1.5-2 ft

Shape:

Upright

Bloom:

Long-blooming smoky red-violet flowers bloom in bottle-brush, terminal spikes 6-8" long. Flowers emerge from nearly black buds. Deadhead spent flowers to promote additional blooms

Blooming period:

Jun - Sep

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Lance-shaped to ovate blue-green leaves. Fragrant; anise-scented

Fall:

Blooms can last into fall up to the first frost. Cut back dead flower and leaf stems in late winter to early spring

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Low

pH:

Not available

Soil:

Sand

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

6a - 9a

Other:

Pollinator

'Black Adder' is an upright, clump-forming giant hyssop that is a hybrid of A. rugosum and A. foeniculum. It is noted for its long summer-to-frost floral display of smoky red-violet flowers that bloom in showy terminal spikes. Hardy and drought tolerant.

Flowers may attract bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies.

Bugleweed

Collections:

Common:

Caitlins Giant Bugleweed

Scientific:

Ajuga Reptans

'Catlin's Giant'

Plant type:

Perennial

Height:

0.25-0.75 ft

Spread:

1-2 ft

Shape:

Upright

Bloom:

Whorls of tiny, blue-violet flowers appear in mid to late spring on spikes rising above the foliage to 8"

Blooming period:

Apr - May

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Bronze-green foliage that creates a dense mat. Plants may be cut-back to the ground following flowering, if necessary, to rejuvenate the foliage

Fall:

Ornamentally insignificant

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med

Hardiness:

4a - 8a

Other:

Regionally Invasive

'Catlin's Giant' features bronze-green foliage and whorls of blue flowers on spikes up to 8" tall.

Reported as invasive in NY, NJ, PA, and CT. Caution must be exercised when planting these near a Forever Wild or other natural area.

Best foliage occurs in partly-sunny locations, but plant can grow in full shade.

DEP Especially Shady Plan.

Lady's Mantle

Collections:

Common:

Lady's Mantle

Scientific:

Alchemilla mollis

Plant type:

Perennial

Height:

1-1.5 ft

Spread:

1.5-2.5 ft

Shape:

Mounded Clumping

Bloom:

Clusters of star-shaped greenish-yellow flowers appear on stems rising 12-18" above the foliage. Will readily self-seed in optimum growing conditions unless spent flowers are removed

Blooming period:

Jun - Jul

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Scallop-edged, toothed, densely hairy, light green leaves are known for their ability to retain beads of moisture following rain

Fall:

Plant will turn brown and overwinters better if the leaves are left on. Remove any brown or crispy leaves come early spring prior to new growth

Special Qualities:

Distinctive Foliage

Level of Maintenance:

Medium

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer, Fall

Light:

Full Sun to Part Shade

Salt:

Medium

pH:

Acid to Alkaline (5.0-8.0)

Soil:

Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Med to Wet

Hardiness:

3a - 7a

Can be difficult to maintain in urban settings. After bloom, cut back flowers and foliage to allow new fresh growth to appear.

May attract butterflies.

DEP Especially Wet Plan.

Ornamental Onion

Common:

Gladiator Allium

Scientific:

Allium

'Gladiator'

Plant type:

Bulb

Height:

2.5-3 ft

Spread:

0.5-1.5 ft

Shape:

Clumping

Bloom:

Stems, 3'-4' tall, topped with large globular lavender-purple flower heads (6"). Flower heads dry, remaining ornamentally attractive, and persist well into summer.

Blooming period:

May

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Strap-shaped gray-green basal leaves. Smells oniony. Cut-back foliage after it has faded

Fall:

Plant or divide bulbs in fall

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Low

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Sand, Loam, Clay

Moisture:

Dry to Med

Hardiness:

4a - 10a

'Gladiator' is known for its particularly large blooms that are up to 6" in diameter on 3-4' flower stems.

Tolerant of rodents and squirrels. May attract butterflies.

A full-length, eye-level image of the Allium 'Globemaster' plant, centered on it's purple, globe-shaped flowers, and green stalks.

Common:

Globemaster Ornamental Onion

Scientific:

Allium

'Globemaster'

Plant type:

Bulb

Height:

1.5-2.5 ft

Spread:

1-1.5 ft

Shape:

Clumping

Bloom:

Large, globular deep lavendar to silver-purple flower heads rise 20-30" tall and are packed with individual star-shaped florets. Flower heads dry, remaining ornamentally attractive, and persist well into summer

Blooming period:

May - Jun

Fruit:

Ornamentally insignificant

Foliage:

Strap-shaped gray-green basal leaves. Smells oniony. Cut-back foliage after it has faded

Fall:

Plant or divide bulbs in fall

Special Qualities:

Showy Blooms

Level of Maintenance:

Low

Season of Interest:

Spring, Summer

Light:

Full Sun Only

Salt:

Medium

pH:

Acid to Neutral (5.0-7.4)

Soil:

Urban (rubble/fill), Sand, Loam

Moisture:

Dry to Med

Hardiness:

5a - 8a

Other:

Pollinator

'Globemaster' is a sterile hybrid (A. cristophii x  A. macleanii) that does not produce seed. It gets its size from its A. cristophii parent, but the florets are packed more densely, creating an imposing and brilliantly colored globe.

Tolerant of rodents and squirrels. May attract butterflies.

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