Learn more about Michigan’s Plant Life!

Websites

Michigan Native Plant Producers Association – nursery and grower sources for Michigan native plants and seeds. 

Michigan Flora Website – a searchable database of all Michigan plants, including pictures and identification keys.

Michigan Botanical Club – the native plant society for the State of Michigan, and the home of the Michigan Big Tree Program.

Wildflower Association of Michigan – Encourages the preservation and restoration of Michigan's native plants and native plant communities.

Wild Ones: Native Plants, Natural Landscapes – promotes environmentally sound landscaping practices to preserve biodiversity through the preservation, restoration and establishment of native plant communities. There are several chapters throughout Michigan.

American Beauties – Native Plants – information about easy-to-grow native plants and landscape plans available at local nurseries.

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center – supports the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants and landscapes. Host of the Native Plant Information Network, which is a searchable database of native plants across the country, includes over 20,000 images.

North American Native Plant Society – NANPS is a volunteer-operated registered charitable organization concerned with preserving native plant habitat in wild areas and restoring indigenous flora to developed areas.

National Wildlife Federation Garden for Wildlife – NWF's Certified Wildlife Habitat program shows people the benefits of gardening for wildlife.

SOCWA – Healthy Lawns and Gardens – Resources on healthy lawn care, composting, naturescaping, rain gardens and invasive plants.

The Springfield Township Michigan Native Vegetation Enhancement Project - Native plant database and homeowner’s facts sheets.

U.S. EPA Green Landscaping Green Acres – The U.S. EPA’s Great Lakes page on Native Landscaping, with links and resources.

Books – Identification & Flora

Wildflowers of the Western Great Lakes Region, James Wells, Cranbrook Institute of Science, 1999

Michigan Flora: Vol. 1 Gymnosperms & Dicots, Edward G. Voss, Cranbrook Institute of Science, 1972

Michigan Flora: Vol. II Dicots, Edward G. Voss, Cranbrook Institute of Science, 1985

Michigan Flora: Vol. III Dicots Concluded, Edward G. Voss, Cranbrook Institute of Science, 2004 2nd Edition

Michigan Trees, Revised and Updated: A Guide to the Trees of the Great Lakes Region, Burton V. Barnes & Warren H. Barnes Jr., University of Michigan Press, 2004

Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide, Lawrence Newcomb, Little Brown and Company, 1989

A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants Eastern and Central North America – Peterson Field Guides, Lee Allen Peterson, Houghton/Mifflin Company, 1977

Books – Gardening with Native Plants

Bringing Nature Home – How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in Our Gardens, Douglas W. Tallamy, Timber Press, 2007

Lawn Wars: The struggle for a New Lawn Ethic Paperback, Lois Robbins, iUniverse 2009

Noah’s Garden, Sara B. Stein, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1995

Planting Noah's Garden: Further Adventures in Backyard Ecology, Sara B. Stein, Houghton Mifflin, 1997

Landscaping with Native Plants of Michigan, Lynn M. Steiner, Voyageur Press, 2006

The Tallgrass Restoration Handbook, Cornelia F. Mutel & Stephen Packard, Island Press, 2005

Your Landscape and our Natural Areas; Native Vines, Ferns, Grasses, Rushes, and Sedges; Native Trees; Native Shrubs; Native Wildflowers; A series of five brochures are available from the City of Ann Arbor’s Natural Area Preservation Division, 1997 City of Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation Division.