Plants and Trees

Plants used at Durbin Estate

Trees used at Durbin Estate

Plants

Native flowering plants were planted to enhance the beauty and contrast of the newly developed vernal pond. The plants will also help provide food and habitat for amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds. The plants will need to tolerant long periods of having wet roots, and be able to tolerant dry soil for when the pond goes dry.

Hibiscus coccinea (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Scarlet hibiscus Scarlet rose mallow Swamp hibiscus	Crimson star-shaped, red flower 4"-8" 4' to 7" tall Fruits are 1", tan, dry, hard capsules, with hairy seeds.	June - September	Nectar for hummingbirds Blooms attract butterflies, and Mallow Bee Leaves, flower buds, and seeds are food source for caterpillars Foliage is food for the Pearly Wood Nymph moth Deer will browse the foliage

Solidago patula (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Roundleaf goldenrods	golden yellow flower head	late summer	Indigo Bunting bird (seeds) Eastern Goldfinch bird (seeds) Swamp Sparrow bird (seeds) Ruffed Grouse (leaves) Greater Prairie Chicken (leaves) White-Tailed Deer Cottontail Rabbits (young foliage) Insects: including small bees, wasps, flies, small butterflies, skippers, and beetles. Insectivorous birds benefit indirectly from goldenrods because of the numerous insects that they attract. Meadow Voles eat both the seeds and foliage.

Caltha palustris (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Yellow marsh marigold Kingcup Cowslip water dragon	Buttercup-like yellow flowers 1"-2" 1'-2' tall thick stems	April - July	shelter for frogs nectar for insects, flies, honey bees attract hummingbirds attract butterflies

Helianthus angustifolius (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Swamp sunflower Narrowleaf sunflower	Golden, daisy-like 3" flowerhead with dark brown cone	early autumn - first freeze	Nectar for butterflies and native bees Seeds for song birds and game birds such as doves, quail, cardinals, and goldfinches

Cephalanthus occidentalis (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Common Buttonbush	5' - 12' up to 20' tall Spreads 4' - 8' Showy fragrant flowers Ball-like inflorescence containing tiny, tubular, 5-lobed, white flowers Flowers turn into a hard spherical ball-like fruit Glossy green leaves	June to early autumn	Seeds for waterfowl and birds Nest protection for Wood Ducks Foliage for deer Nectar for insects, hummingbirds insects and birds Attracts bees and butterflies

Iris fulva (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Copper Iris	2' - 3" tall 1' - 2' spread Terr-cotta colored flowers Long dark green, sword-like leaves Quick growing Beardless Crestless	Mid spring to early summer	Nectar for hummingbirds Blooms attract butterflies, and Mallow Bee Leaves, flower buds, and seeds are food source for caterpillars Foliage is food for the Pearly Wood Nymph moth Deer will browse the foliage

Iris versicolor L. (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Blue flag iris Harlequin Blueflag Northern Blue Flag	Flowers are light blue to deep violet on a stem up to 2' tall Blue-green sword-like leaves that iris fulvacan be 2' -3' tall and burgundy at base	Late May - early June	Nectar for hummingbirds Blooms attract mason bees and flies

Lobelia cardinalis (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Cardinal flower	Scarlet-red blooms Long blooming period Dark green foliage Stems are up to 4' tall Spread 1' - 2' Flowers are vibrant red, deeply five-lobed, up to 2" long	July - September	Nectar for hummingbirds Attracts butterflies Foliage feed deer and rabbits

Ludwigia alternifolia L. (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Bushy seedbox Rattlebox False loosestrife	2' - 3' tall 1' - 1.5" spread Yellow blooms Box-like fruit Reddish stems Leaves are 2"- 4", deep green, short, pointed and lance-shaped	June - September	Seed heads add texture to winter landscape Foliage feed deer Stems feed muskrats Leaves provide food for caterpillars

Trees

Forty Bald cypress trees were planted in the bio-retention basin to help adsorb the storm-water run-off and to help prevent standing water.

Taxodium distichum (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Bald cypress Swamp cypress	Grow in wetlands Develop pneumatophores known as knees Develop buttressing, a swelling at the base to help stabilize themselves Absorbs a tremendous amount of water each day Act as a filter for runoff Absorbs harmful chemicals Bark is thin and fibrous	Buds appear in late December early January and bloom in March and April Pollen is release when the flowers bloom A fertilized female conlet turns from green to brownish-purple as it matures from October to December	Seeds for squirrels, wild turkey, wood ducks, evening grosbeak, waterfowl, wading birds and migrating geese Cypress domes provide breeding sites for frogs, toads, salamanders and other reptiles.

Fifty white pine trees were planted along the walking trail to separate property boundries and to be used for the natural walking-trail fence.

Pinus strobus (to view image, click here)

Common Name	Features	Blooming Season	Benefit to Wildlife
Eastern white pine Soft pine	Evergreen tree Large, straight-stemmed with pyramidal crown Leaves are clustered, soft blue-green needles that stay on the tree year round Produces cones Luxuriant appearance Longevity 150-200 yrs. or longer	Male cones bloom in late winter and release a yellow pollen in the spring to fertilize the female cone	Decomposed needles enrich soil Provides food and shelter Seeds from the cones are nutritional for squirrels, birds, rabbitsand racoons Provides shelter and nesting area for birds in the winter

Plants and Trees of Durbin Estate Project