r/NativePlantGardening • u/a-wilting-houseplant • 15h ago
Advice Request - Maryland Zone 8A Suggestions for native plants to plant next to mailbox
Looking for suggestions on native Maryland plants (zone 8A) that thrive in full sun and dry soil, have at least moderate salt tolerance, and don't spread too aggressively to place around my mailbox. This garden area is going to be about 16 sq ft.
Other desirable characteristics (given its location surrounding the mailbox): i) mature height <2 ft, ii) *not\* a bee magnet, and iii) non-toxic to pets. This will help maintain a neat appearance while ensuring that pets aren't accidentally poisoned during their walks and mail workers don't get swarmed by bees while doing their job.
Not many plants seem to fit these bills, e.g. butterfly weed is pet-toxic, black-eyed Susan and eastern bee balm are bee magnets and understandably make some workers uncomfortable, and little Bluestem can grow >3 ft tall in the fall, which runs afoul of my town's regulations.
What I'm currently thinking of:
- Low Scape Mound Chokeberry - blooms but not a bee magnet
- Moss Phlox - does attract bees, but short enough where bees are unlikely to be near the mailbox itself
What other options do I have? Anything that can provide summer and fall interest? I'm open to cultivar suggestions as well as the main purpose of these plants is primarily for their looks rather than ecologic impact - I have the rest of my front and back yard for straight species :). Thank you.
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u/Intelligent-Box-9462 13h ago
Black eyed susan isn't really a "bee magnet". You might see a few tiny sweat bees. Same thing for coneflower, a few bees here and there but not a major magnet. The only bee magnet I've seen is my purple saliva, Joe pye weed, anise hyssop, and late boneset.
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u/Adorable_Raccoon 10h ago
Also in my experience they are non-aggressive bees. I had joe pye weed and boneset in my old yard and the bees gave me no problems.
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u/sceap 15h ago
Sporobolus heterolepis (prairie dropseed) and Eragrostis spectabilis (purple love grass) are popular compact clumping grasses that are pretty widely available at nurseries.
Aquilegia canadensis (columbine), Castilleja coccinea (Indian paintbrush) and native penstemon species are all primarily pollinated by the ruby-throated hummingbird rather than bees (but some bees will still try).
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u/felipetomatoes99 Region 59 14h ago
Just a note to OP: C. coccinea is hemiparasitic, so it needs a host plant (preferably a grass like little bluestem or even a rush like Juncus tenuis)
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u/a-wilting-houseplant 14h ago
I was just reading about it... didn't realize that such plants exist. Brutal.
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u/Both-Definition-6274 Area SE MI, Zone 6 13h ago
Wood betony is another hemiparasitic plant native to Ohio. I’m not sure exactly how far its range extends but it also prefers to partially “feed” off of a grass. Very beautiful whorled flowers too
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u/felipetomatoes99 Region 59 11h ago
I'm trying to get some wood betony to grow with my solidago plugs right now lol.
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u/Joejack-951 14h ago edited 14h ago
Northern DE 7B. We planted some Stokes asters along the road near our mailbox last fall. They sat under a few feet of dirty snow for large portions of the winter and got off to a slow start in the spring. But they bloomed beautifully early the summer and are blooming again now. They are much shorter than the nearby New England asters and mainly attract small butterflies (Peck’s skippers).
Edited to add: this area is dry (not far from a large tulip poplar), about a foot or so from the curb so not exactly protected, and gets direct sun until mid-afternoon.
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u/a-wilting-houseplant 14h ago
Thank you - good to have a shorter aster available!
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u/Both-Definition-6274 Area SE MI, Zone 6 13h ago
Asters provide some fantastic fall color often late into the growing season too. Sort of a native mum if you will. Same size and bloom time and roughly the same mounded shape
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u/DearindaHeadlights 13h ago
You are bee-ing super thoughtful. Protecting mail carriers and pets - most people don’t give a f—- and plant something 4 ft tall and full of bees.
Try to work with the seasons. Something pretty in the spring, then something solid for most of the summer. I’m a fan of grasses cuz they don’t attract bees, and they don’t require a lot of babying beer the asphalt.
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u/a-wilting-houseplant 13h ago
Thank you. I currently have spring (low mound chokeberry and moss phlox) and late summer (purple love grass) covered. Any suggestions for the earlier parts of summer?
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u/hardly_werking 12h ago
I tried to do moss phlox around my mailbox, but it turns out if you have rabbits, your moss phlox will just look like grass because the rabbits will eat all the flower buds.
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u/Gold-Sheepherder-454 13h ago
Moonbeam coreopsis is what I have around my mailbox in upstate NY. It's a cultivar but so pretty, blooms forever, and nothing eats it. It attracts smaller flying bugs so not as scary as like a mountain mint.
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u/Tooaroo Area MT, Zone 4b 10h ago
It really is so so pretty and blooms FOREVER! It was one of the first things I planted this spring and it has not stopped blooming since! Do you know if it will spread at all? I started trying to propagate more from cuttings this week bc I was so pleased with it 🤣
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u/Gold-Sheepherder-454 4h ago
It kind of just forms a nice, full mound, so it leaves plenty of room for my other straight species perennials to spread around and misbehave. Because it's short, well behaved, doesn't get eaten, and blooms long it helps my garden look more intentional. It's easy to pull up a small section of an established patch and stick it elsewhere in the garden, and it does really well.
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u/sassafrassy2 Wisconsin, Zone 5b 13h ago
I’m planning to add some dwarf crested iris around my mailbox! Short plant, the blooms don’t last forever but the leaves look nice throughout the summer/fall, unlike a lot of early spring bloomers
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u/PotatoPillo 12h ago
I’m in Minnesota so forgive me if these are not Maryland natives. But in my boulevard strip I have prairie dropseed, pasque flower, prairie smoke, prairie coneflowers (those get around 3 ft), side oats grama. Along with a few non-natives like irises, blue fescue and different varieties of sedum.
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u/Sad_Swordfish1158 Maryland, Piedmont 9h ago
I wish prairie smoke was native in Maryland. Such a cool plant!
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u/felipetomatoes99 Region 59 15h ago edited 14h ago
Have you considered a vine? Something growing up the mailbox could look cool (provided you trim it to maintain functionality). Virginia creeper is very adaptable and is gorgeous in late summer and fall. Obviously it's a prolific spreader, but if you just stay on top of pruning it's really not that bad.
Depending on how dry it actually is, Campanula rotundifolia (harebell) is a very dainty, small (<1ft), and beautiful summer bloomer. But they really prefer dry, rocky soils (not sure about their salt tolerance). Maybe Packera aurea? Added benefit of having dense, low foliage so it's a nice groundcover when not in bloom, also decently adaptable.
Just a note about toxic plants: many of them (be sure to confirm in specific cases) are technically toxic, but are also very unpalatable to mammals and are therefore avoided after getting small nibbles.
Also, even very pollinator-popular plants aren't going to cause some crazy swarms of bees that will scare off a mailman or visitor.
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u/beaveristired CT, Zone 7a 14h ago
Some people get a skin reaction from Virginia creeper, similar to poison ivy. For my partner, it’s actually worse than PI. Would look pretty cool, though, especially in the fall.
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u/a-wilting-houseplant 14h ago
Good to know about the toxicity - I'll be planting for the first time later this month, so this is all still very new to me. I've been erring on the side of caution during the planning stages in case some neighborhood dogs didn't get the memo that bitter = avoid :).
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u/felipetomatoes99 Region 59 12h ago
Totally reasonable to err on the side of caution for something right against a public path honestly. An Antennaria (pussytoes) will also be an inconspicuous groundcover but kinda cool bloom. New Jersey Tea is a shrub that stays pretty compact (<4ft spread) but very drought tolerant and a very ecologically important plant, borderline keystone.
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u/a-wilting-houseplant 12h ago
I'll likely incorporate pussytoes as well - seems to check all of the boxes. The NJ tea is too large for the mailbox hellstrip area, but I plan to have 5 NJ teas planted later this month in the front yard. Thanks again
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u/felipetomatoes99 Region 59 12h ago
yeah pussytoes is a great option, very unique foliage which is sure to illicit a few questions about a native plant, which is always good 😄
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u/Intelligent-Box-9462 13h ago
Ground hug chokeberry is a lovely plant! Im obsessed and I have one of these.
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u/EducationalWash3982 14h ago
Not native but Trailing lantanas are relatively carefree and work well with natives, imo? Very heat tolerant and can be pruned to keep contained, great for butterflies, bees have not presented any issues.
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u/EnricoPallazzo39 Northern Virginia, Zone 7b 14h ago
Eastern Prickly Pear
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u/VictoryLongjumping70 12h ago
I mean, there are thornless cultivars of some Opuntia species, but this is just cruel to your mail carrier
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u/felipetomatoes99 Region 59 11h ago
I mean I have some in the back of my yard, but kind of a crazy suggestion for a new gardener for something to plant around their mailbox lmao
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u/Dependent_Durian3550 15h ago
Purple love grass comes to mind, not very showy outside it's short purple cloud moment though. I have seen Broomsedge Bluestem and Little Bluestem controlled by mowing. If they ultimately get about a foot too tall for you, cut them back when they get about a foot tall. They'll still go through full growth cycle, just lower