Missouri Botanical Gardens Plants of Merit Winners
Plants of Merit are plants selected by the Missouri Botanical Gardens for their outstanding qualities and dependable performance for the lower Midwest. We have found Missouri Botanical Gardens Plants of Merit to be outstanding choices, guaranteeing you success in your garden. Missouri Botanical Gardens Plants of Merit selection criteria:
- Easy to grow and maintain
- Not known to be invasive in our area
- Resistant or tolerant to diseases and insects
- Has outstanding ornamental value
- Reasonably available to purchase
IMPORTANT NOTE: All of the Missouri Botanical Gardens Plants of Merit listed here are available in the nursery, subject to availability. Some of these plants may be ordered online for pick up at the nursery.
We do not ship.
FILTER THE ITEMS ON THIS PAGE BY:
Plant Type
Genus
Common Name
Light Requirements
Bloom Color
Bloom Time
Height
Uses
Resistances
Type
Genus
Common Name
Light Requirement
Flower Color
Bloom Time
Height
Uses
Resistance
Asclepias incarnata – Swamp Milkweed
Missouri and Illinois native with clouds of pink blossoms.
Asclepias syriaca – Common Milkweed
Essential host plant for Monarch caterpillars. Mo Bot Garden's Plant of Merit winner.
Asclepias tuberosa – Butterfly Milkweed
#1 best selling Missouri native perennial.
Cercis – Ruby Falls Redbud
Weeping dwarf with elegant purple heart-shaped leaves and vibrant flowers.
Thuja – Green Giant Arborvitae
Award-winning, fast growing evergreen. Perfect for living walls.
Colocasia – Pharaohs Mask Elephant Ears
Create your own exotic world with this enchanter.
Echinacea pallida – Pale Purple Coneflower
Missouri Botanical Gardens Plant of Merit Winner.
Magnolia Butterflies
Lemon-yellow blossoms on an award-winning tree.
Allium – Millenium Ornamental Onion
2018 Perennial Plant of the Year.
Amelanchier – Autumn Brilliance Apple Serviceberry
Award-winning small tree with multi-season interest.
Amsonia tabermontana – Willowleaf Blue Star
Top award-winning native with starry blue flowers.
Aristolochia tomentosa – Dutchman’s Pipe
Pipe shaped blossoms on rapidly growing native vine.
Astilbe – Pumila False Spirea
Makes a fantastic ground cover for shade.
Bignonia capreolata – Cross Vine
2" trumpet shaped blossoms, Missouri and Illinois native vine.
Callirhoe involucrata – Purple Poppy Mallow
2019 Native of the Year. Long-blooming native Illinois and Missouri ground cover.
Carpinus betula Fastigiata, European Hornbeam
Award winning regal tree.
Carpinus caroliniana – American Hornbeam
Award-winning native tree for understory plantings.
Cercis – Forest Pansy Redbud
Glossy purple heart shaped leaves and vibrant flowers.
Chionanthus virginicus – Fringe Tree
Missouri native tree with elaborate blooms.
Clethra Ruby Spice – Summersweet
Award-winning fragrant pink flowers.
Cotinus obovatus – Smoke Tree
Showy foliage and airy flowers on a small tree.
Frangula (Rhamnus) caroliniana – Carolina Buckthorn
Showy foliage and airy flowers on small Mo native tree.
Geranium – Rozanne Hardy Geranium
Winner of multiple top awards.
Gymnocladus dioicus – Kentucky Coffee Tree
Award-winning tree to create shade.
Halesia carolina – Carolina Silverbells
Hard to find tree with showy white bells
Hamamelis vernalis – Ozark Witch Hazel
Award winning native shrub.
Hibiscus – Holy Grail Rose Mallow
Only a gift from heaven could be named Holy Grail.
Hydrangea – Incrediball Smooth Hydrangea
Huge flowers the size of basketballs on sturdy stems.
Hydrangea – Limelight Panicle Hydrangea
Huge fluffy flowers reliably bloom in abundance every year. Comes in shrub or tree form.
Itea – Henry’s Garnet Sweetspire
Beautiful scented flowers on a rugged, adaptable shrub.
Leucanthemum – Becky Shasta Daisy
Top award winner.
Lobelia cardinalis – Cardinal Flower
Choice Missouri and Illinois native perennial with brilliant cardinal red blossoms.
Magnolia Bracken’s Brown Beauty Southern Magnolia
Gorgeous tree with glossy evergreen foliage and showy flowers.
Malus – Royal Raindrops Crabapple Tree
Award-winning, easy-care tree with multi-seasonal interest.
Monarda bradburiana – Bee Balm
Important Missouri native pollinator plant.
Nyssa sylvatica – Black Gum
Missouri native tree with brilliant fall color.
Picea – Little Gem Norway Spruce
Perfect evergreen to frame the front door in pots or in the ground.
Pycnanthemum muticum – Blunt Mountain Mint
Top choice to attract butterflies and more, multiple award winner.
Quercus bicolor – Swamp White Oak Tree
Bring the gift of nature home with this beauty, MO and IL native.
Quercus coccinea – Scarlet Oak
Vibrant red leaves in fall.
Quercus lyrata – Overcup Oak
Award-winning Missouri native tree.
Quercus macrocarpa – Bur Oak
Showy acorns and leaves on a statuesque tree.
Quercus rubra – Red Oak Tree
Statuesque MO and IL native tree.
Rhus Gro Low Fragrant Sumac
Rugged ground cover shrub with beautiful leaves. Perfect for fixing erosion issues.
Spirea Gold Thread
Gold ferny leaves add great color and texture.
Sporobolus heterolepis – Prairie Dropseed
Popular Missouri native grass that smells like popcorn.
Viburnum – Blue Muffin Arrowwood Viburnum
Award winner. Showy blue berries follow large white flowers.
Acer griseum – Paperbark Maple
Showy red leaves create a pretty understory or focal point tree.
Aesculus parviflora, Bottlebrush Buckeye
Large showy hard to find shrub.
Aesculus Pavia, Red Buckeye
2023 Tree of the Year. Award-winning Missouri Native.
Amelanchier arborea Downy Serviceberry
Colorful year round with flowers, berries, foliage and bark.
Amelanchier laevis, Allegheny Serviceberry
Native plant with showy multi-seasonal interest.
Aronia – Autumn Magic Chokeberry
Multi seasonal nativar perfect for most locations.
Aruncus dioicus – Goat’s Beard
Top Missouri native perennial for shade.
Aster oblongifolium – Aromatic Aster
Important Missouri native pollinator plant.
Astilbe – Look At Me False Spirea
Huge pink plumes with dramatic red stems.
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FILTER THE ITEMS ON THIS PAGE BY:
Plant Type
Genus
Common Name
Light Requirements
Bloom Color
Bloom Time
Height
Uses
Resistances
Type
Genus
Common Name
Light Requirement
Flower Color
Bloom Time
Height
Uses
Resistance
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