Native plants are those that naturally occur in a region, ecosystem, or habitat. These plants are often best suited to handle the specific environmental conditions of their native range and support the native wildlife that they have formed symbiotic relationships with over thousands of years.

• 2015 Native Vascular Flora of the City of Alexandria, Virginia report
• 2010 Report for native plants and natural land restorations: Keeping it Natural 
• 2008 Noteworthy Collections article in Castanea: Noteworthy Collections Update 

Spring ephemerals only bloom briefly in the early to mid-spring before the tree canopy leafs out and blocks light.

These short-bloomed plants are beautiful harbingers of spring, including Virginia spring beauty (Claytona virginica) and Bluebells (Mertensia virginica).

Read more about these special plants in Flora Spring Flowering Native Plants of Washington D.C. and Vicinity.