Guidebook to Maryland native plants in the Piedmont Region

The Maryland Native Plants Program has produced this 180-page guide of Maryland native plants that are specifically native to the Piedmont Region that covers most of Montgomery County, including almost the entirety of Takoma Park. The preceding hyperlink takes you to the free version that can be downloaded. By mid-February 2026, it should be possible to purchase a print copy for $10 from the Maryland Native Plant Society.

Guides for the Coastal Plains and Mountain Regions of Maryland are coming soon.

The Fish and Wildlife Service guide to native plants in the Chesapeake watershed remains an excellent guide. However, it is not quite as focused on suburban yard landscaping as the Piedmont guide.

Takoma Park Native Tree Selection Guide

FONTT’s native tree selection guide begins with a five-page explanation of why native trees are important to Nature, followed by a four-page section on how to select a native tree for your situation, and finishing with simple spreadsheet-style tables giving basic information on the native trees listed in the City of Takoma Park’s Approved Tree Species List. The online version of the guide provides a hyperlink to a trusted source of information for each species listed.

We at FONTT think that you should read the whole guide. It is the best brief introduction you can have to why and how you should add native trees to your yard. However, if you only want the spreadsheets of tree species characteristics, together with hyperlinks to more information, click here.

Searchable database of regional native plants

This is by far the easiest online tool on this page for finding a list of native plants that meet the particular conditions in a specific yard. The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay’s online database allows users to search by multiple filters to find, for example, tall shrubs that grow in dry shade. The plants are regionally native but therefore not all are locally native to ecosystems that include Takoma Park and Montgomery County.

Spreadsheet-style guide to Maryland native plants

The Maryland Native Plants Program has produced this spreadsheet guide to Maryland native plants for commercial growers. Since the guide is aimed primarily at a specialized and knowledgeable audience, other users may find it awkward. That is the trade-off for having such a complete list of characteristics for so many Maryland plant species.

Bona Terra Nursery Native Plant Catalog

The Bona Terra catalog provides descriptions for the almost five hundred species that the nursery sells. Note that most but not all species are native to Maryland. People who buy Bona Terra plants from FONTT in our biannual sales will find this catalog a useful complement to our order form.

Summary of links

Maryland Native Plants Program guide of Maryland plants native to the Piedmont Region

Fish and Wildlife Service guide to native plants in the Chesapeake watershed

FONTT’s native tree selection guide

From FONTT guide, the tables of tree species characteristics with hyperlinks to more information

Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay’s online database

Maryland Native Plants Program spreadsheet guide to Maryland native plants

Bona Terra catalog provides descriptions for the almost five hundred species that the nursery sells