Top Twelve Perennial Seed*– available to buy, easy to start and grow 
Swamp milkweed  (Asclepias incarnata)
Butterfly milkweed  (Asclepias tuberosa)
Black-eyed Susan  (Rudbeckia hirta)
Sneezeweed (Helen’s flower) (Helenium autumnale)
Blue vervain (Verbena hastada)
Dense blazing star  (Liatris spicata)
New England aster  (Symphyotrichum novi-belgii)
Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
Spotted Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium maculatum)
Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
Common yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea)
Red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)
Heartleaf aster (blue wood aster) (Symphyotrichum cordifolium)

* For more information and a longer plant list see “Native Plants” section.

Starting Native Plants from Seed
Starting native plants from seed has many advantages, giving you the ability to start more plants at low cost and more choice in what to grow. However, starting native seeds can be challenging, so follow instructions carefully. (For seed starting options and detailed germination information, see the links below.) Be aware that your seedlings may not flower until the second year.

Carefully research direct seeding into the garden with prepared seed mixes, since this requires special preparation of the ground to eliminate weeds. Be aware that the pollinator mixes of many mainstream seed companies do not have a high percentage of native plants. Our recommended regional seed companies (see below) contain good percentages of native plants in their seed mixes.

 Here are two links that offer seed-starting options and give detailed instructions for starting seeds, both on the web sites of seed companies:

An Ontario Company, Northern Wildflowers (also a source for native plant seeds.
An American company, Blooms to Bees: 

Recommended Seed Companies
The best native seed is seed that has been gathered in your own region (because it’s from a plant that is acclimatized to your area), such as from a local friend’s native plant garden, or at least from a regional seed company. Nova Scotia does not yet have a “native plant only” seed company, but we can recommend two Nova Scotia companies which designate native seeds in their catalogues and also a number of “native plant only” seed companies in Eastern Canadian provinces:

Nova Scotia Companies
Annapolis Seeds, Nictaux, N.S.
Seafoam Lavender, River John, N.S.  

Eastern Canada Seed Companies
Northern Wildflowers, Lively, Ontario 
Akene, Montreal, Quebec
Wildflower Farm, Coldwater, Ontario
Ottawa Seed Library: Offers free native seeds every fall