Plants for Damp or Wet Areas

Prepared by
Karen Russ, HGIC Information Specialist, Clemson University
Images Courtesy
Images By BA

Plants marked with an * are more tolerant of very wet or periodically flooded conditions. When selecting plants using this list, remember that a number of factors determine the suitability of a plant for a particular location. In addition to adaptability to moisture, also consider light requirements, soil type, hardiness and heat tolerance, and other factors.

TREES

Tall Deciduous Trees
50 Feet or More In Height at maturity

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Acer rubrum	Red Maple
*Carya illinoinensis	Pecan
*Fraxinus pennsylvanica	Green Ash
*Liquidambar styraciflua	Sweet Gum
*Platanus occidentalis	Sycamore
*Quercus bicolor	Swamp White Oak
*Quercus nigra	Water Oak
*Quercus phellos	Willow Oak
*Salix species	Willows
*Taxodium ascendens	Pond Cypress
*Taxodium distichum	Bald Cypress
Catalpa species	Catalpa
Metasequoia glyptostroboides	Dawn Redwood
Quercus palustris	Pin Oak

Medium Deciduous Trees
30 to 50 feet in height at maturity

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Betula nigra	River Birch
*Carpinus caroliniana	Ironwood
*Diospyros virginiana	Persimmon
*Nyssa aquatica	Water Tupelo
*Nyssa sylvatica	Black Gum
*Quercus laurifolia	Laurel Oak
Asimina triloba	Pawpaw
Gleditsia triacanthos	Honey Locust
Magnolia macrophylla	Bigleaf Magnolia

Small Deciduous Trees
Under 30 feet in height at maturity

Botanical Name	Common Name
Amelanchier arborea	Juneberry
Chionanthus virginicus	Fringetree
Cornus alternifolia	Pagoda Dogwood
Halesia carolina	Carolina Silverbell
Hamamelis virginiana	Witch Hazel
Magnolia tripetala	Umbrella Magnolia
Ostrya virginiana	Hop Hornbeam
Styrax americanus	American Snowbell

Evergreen Trees

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Chamaecyparis thyoides	White Cedar
*Gordonia lasianthus	Loblolly Bay
*Magnolia virginiana	Sweet Bay
*Pinus elliotti	Slash Pine
*Pinus taeda	Loblolly Pine
Ilex cassine	Dahoon
Ilex opaca	American Holly
Magnolia grandiflora	Southern Magnolia
Sabal palmetto	Cabbage Palm

SHRUBS

Evergreen Shrubs

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Ilex glabra	Inkberry
Agarista populifolia	Florida Leucothoe
Cyrilla racemiflora	Leatherwood
Fatsia japonica	Japanese Fatsia
Ilex verticillata	Winterberry
Ilex vomitoria	Yaupon Holly
Illicium floridanum	Florida Anise
Leucothoe axillaris	Coastal Leucothoe
Myrica cerifera	Wax Myrtle
Osmanthus americanus	Devilwood
Sabal minor	Dwarf Palmetto

Deciduous Shrubs

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Cephalanthus occidentalis	Buttonbush
*Clethra alnifolia	Summersweet
*Cornus sericea	Redtwig Dogwood
*Ilex decidua	Possumhaw
*Itea virginica	Virginia Sweetspire
*Lindera species	Spicebush
Aesculus parviflora	Bottlebrush Buckeye
Aronia arbutifolia	Red Chokeberry
Baccharis halimifolis	Groundsel Tree
Callicarpa americana	American Beautyberry
Calycanthus floridus	Sweetshrub
Chimonanthus praecox	Wintersweet
Forsythia species	Forsythia

Fothergilla species	Fothergilla
Rhododendron atlanticum	Coast Azalea
Rhododendron viscosum	Swamp Azalea
Rhodotypos scandens	Jetbead
Rosa carolina	Carolina Rose
Rosa palustris	Swamp Rose
Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis	American Elderberry
Spiraea x vanhouttei	Bridal Wreath Spiraea
Thuja occidentalis	American Arborvitae
Vaccinium arboreum	Farkleberry
Viburnum opulus	Cranberry Viburnum
Xanthorhiza simplicissima	Yellowroot
Zenobia pulverulenta	Dusty Zenobia

GROUNDCOVERS AND VINES

Botanical Name	Common Name
Ajuga species	Carpet Bugle
Aspidistra elatior	Cast Iron Plant
Bignonia capreolata	Cross Vine
Campsis radicans	Trumpet Creeper
Convallaria majalis	Lily of the Valley
Decumaria barbara	Wild Climbing Hydrangea
Gelsemium sempervirens	Carolina Jessamine
Hydrangea anomola petiolaris	Climbing Hydrangea
Liriope spicata	Liriope
Lonicera sempervirens	Trumpet Honeysuckle
Smilax smallii	Jackson Vine
Wisteria frutescens	American Wisteria

FERNS

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Osmunda regalis	Royal Fern
Athyrium filix-femina	Lady Fern
Athyrium nipponicum	Painted Fern
Cyrtomium falcatum		Holly Fern
Dryopteris erythrosora	Autumn Fern
Dryopteris filix-mas	Male Fern
Matteuccia pennsylvanica	Ostrich Fern
Onoclea sensibilis	Sensitive Fern
Osmunda cinnamonea	Cinnamon Fern
Thelypteris palustris	Marsh Fern

ORNAMENTAL GRASSES

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Arundo donax	Giant Reed
*Carex species	Sedges
Chasmanthium latifolium	Northern Sea Oats
Schizachyrium scoparium	Little Bluestem
Sorghastrum nutans	Indian Grass
Spartina pectinata	Cordgrass

PERENNIALS AND BULBS

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Acorus calamus	Sweet Flag
*Acorus gramineus	Dwarf Sweet Flag
*Alocasia macrorrhiza	Giant Alocasia
*Asclepias incarnata	Swamp Milkweed
*Canna species	Canna
*Colocasia esculenta	Elephants Ear
*Crinum americanum	Swamp Lily
*Filipendula species	Meadow Sweet
*Helianthus angustifolius	Swamp Sunflower
*Hibiscus coccineus	Scarlet Swamp Hibiscus
*Hymenocallis	Spider Lily
*Iris ensata	Japanese Iris
*Iris hybrids	Louisiana Iris
*Iris laevigata	Rabbitear Iris
*Iris pseudacorus	Yellow Flag
*Iris virginica	Southern Blue Flag
*Leucojum aestivum	Summer Snowflake
*Lobelia cardinalis	Cardinal Flower
*Lobelia siphilitica	Blue Cardinal Flower
*Lysimachia clethroides	Gooseneck Loosestrife
*Lysimachia punctata	Yellow Loosestrife
*Rhexia virginica	Meadow Beauty
*Xanthosoma atrovirens	Taro
*Zantedeschia aethopica	Calla Lily
Arisaema triphyllum	Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Aspidistra elatior	Cast Iron Plant
Aster novae-angliae	New England Aster
Astilbe x arendsii	Astilbe
Chelone species	Turtlehead
Cimicifuga species	Bugbane
Convallaria majalis	Lily Of The Valley
Crinum species	Crinum
Eupatorium purpureum	Joe-Pye Weed
Galium odoratum	Sweet Woodruff
Hedychium species	Ginger Lily
Hemerocallis hybrids and species	Daylily
Hibiscus species	Rose Mallow
Houttuynia cordata	Houttuynia
Iris sibirica	Siberian Iris
Ligularia species	Ligularia
Malvaviscus arboreus	Turks Cap
Mentha species	Mints
Mertensia virginica	Virginia Bluebell
Monarda species	Bee Balm
Myosotis scorpioides	Forget-Me-Not
Physostegia virginiana	Obedient Plant
Smilacina racemosa	False Solomon’s Seal
Tiarella cordifolia	Foam Flower
Tradescantia virginiana	Spiderwort
Tricyrtis formosana	Toad Lily
Vernonia noveboracensis	Ironweed
Zephyranthes atamasca	Atamasco Lily
Zephyranthes candida	Rain Lily

ANNUALS

Botanical Name	Common Name
*Mimulus alatus	Monkey Flower
Asperula orientalis	Blue Woodruff
Solenostemon cultivars	Coleus
Impatiens varieties	Impatiens
Viola cultivars	Pansy

The South Carolina Nursery and Landscape Association has many experts who can assist you with choosing the right plant for the right spot. A list of these individuals who reside nearest to you can be found in the membership section on this web site. You may also view past articles here. For an extensive list of consumer related gardening topics visit the: Clemson Extension Service Home and Garden Information Center.

This information is supplied with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by the Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service is implied. All recommendations are for South Carolina conditions and may not apply to other areas. All recommendations for pesticide use are for South Carolina only and were legal at the time of publication, but the status of registration and use patterns are subject to change by action of state and federal regulatory agencies. Follow all directions, precautions and restrictions that are listed. (New 11/04)

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