This research program was initiated in 1999 as part of an SDSU Agricultural Experiment Station funded program in the laboratory of Dr. R. Neil Reese. This project is designed to provide research and educational opportunities to students interested in conservation and utilization of native plant species, as well as encourage the use of native plants by small family farmers as alternative crops in South Dakota.
This site is dedicated to Mrs. Dorothy Gill, a Dakota Elder, a mentor and friend.
- To locate a plant by the Native American name, or common name use the search box in the left side-bar.
- A glossary of terms used in this collection can be found here.
- Some items contain supplemental images documenting the life cycle of the plant.
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Acer negundo
R. Neil Reese
Acer negundo is a perennial short-lived tree growing to about 25 to 35 meters. Leaves are opposite compound pinnate with three to seven leaflets. Leaflets are 5 to 10 centimeters long and three to seven centimeters wide. Flowers appear in the spring with staminate flowers that have 3-5 stamens, hang in clusters at the tips of branches and are often maroon in color. Pistillate flowers on drooping clusters of 6-12 flowers having 3-5 sepals and a 2-parted style. The fruit is a winged double samara. The trees are dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate trees.
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Achillea millefolium
R. Neil Reese
Achillea millefolium is a rhizomatous perennial herbaceous forb, which grows 30 cm to 100 cm in height. This species is commonly found on all northern continents in mildly disturbed areas, meadows, woods, and prairies. The leaves are alternate, compound bipinnately dissected, 5-20 cm long and feathery in appearance. Flowers are arranged in heads that are usually collected into flat-topped clusters. Heads are surrounded by imbricate bracts in several series and contain 10 or less ray flowers and 10-25 disk florets. Petals are white to cream-colored or rarely pinkish and bloom from May to June (later in higher locations). Fruit are flattened achenes that lack a pappus. Yarrow attracts native butterflies, bees and other insects, making it a nice addition to ant garden.
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Acorus americanus
R. Neil Reese
Acorus americanus is a grass-like perennial forb, which grows 3ft to 5ft in height. This species is commonly found in swamps and marshes. The plant is strongly rhizomatous. The leaves are ensiform, erect and linear. Acorus calamus has a space that is 4-9 cm long with light brown greenish-brown perfect flowers that are enclosed by a leaf-like spathe. Flowering occurs from May to July. The perianth has 6 short segments, there are 6 stamens, and the pistil contains 2-3 locules. The fruit is a small capsule containing 2-3 seeds. The rhizomes are quite fragrant and are used both as medicines and food by several of the Northern Great Plains tribal peoples.
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Agastache foeniculum
R. Neil Reese
Agastache foeniculum is a(n) perenial herb rhizomatous, which grows 0.6 m to 1 m in height. This species is commonly found upland woods and prairies(Kindscher). The leaves are opposite, egg-shaped, greenish above, and whitish. Agastache foeniculum has lavender purple bluish purple flowers that bloom from July to August.
Additional Notes: Flowers are five toothed, and appear in whorls, in a simple terminal spikelike arrangement. -
Allium cernuum
R. Neil Reese
Allium cernuum is a(n) perennial herb, which grows 30 cm to 45 cm in height. This species is commonly found in Northern America, mountainous an cool regions, ledges, gravels, rocky or wooded slopes and crests. The leaves are keeled grass-like, 2-4 mm wide. Allium cernuum has white, pink or rose colored flowers that bloom from July to August.
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Allium stellatum
R. Neil Reese
Allium stellatum is a(n) herb perennial, which grows 2dm to 6dm in height. This species is commonly found prairies and hillsides. The leaves are Slender lanceolate basal. Allium stellatum has pink deep pink flowers that bloom from July to September.
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Allium textile
R. Neil Reese
Allium textile is a(n) perennial herb, which grows 1 dm to 3 dm in height. This species is commonly found throughout the Hills area; mixed grass prairies, sagebrush steppes, meadows, open pine forests, and clearings. The leaves are (2) 1-3 mm wide. Allium textile has white and rarely pink colors for the flowers that bloom from May to June.
Additional Notes: Textile onion is the most common wild onion on the prairie. It emerges early in spring when other forage is limited and then is readily grazed off by livestock. Production is very low. Milk cows eating textile onion will give onion-tainted milk. -
Amelanchier alnifolia
R. Neil Reese
Achillea alnifolia is a(n) perennial shrub or small tree. It is a, which grows 1 m to 5 m in height. This species is commonly found open slopes and along streams from the Yukon south to Oregon and east into Iowa. The leaves are deciduous, alternate. Amelanchier alnifolia has white pink flowers that bloom from April to May.
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Amorpha canescens
R. Neil Reese
Amorpha canescens is a(n) perennial shrub, which grows 3 dm to 12 dm in height. This species is commonly found land in Michigan, Saslatchewan, Indiana, Arkansas, New Mexico. The leaves are alternate odd-pinnate. Amorpha canescens has blue violet flowers that bloom from May to August.
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Amorpha fruticosa
R. Neil Reese
Amorpha fruticosa is a(n) perennial shrub, which grows 1 m to 3.5 m in height. This species is commonly found on the eastern and southern edges of the Black Hills along moist stream banks, in the open or in open woods. The leaves are mainly at branch tips, alternating, pinnately compunded, composed of many small leaflets rather then dark green leaflets. Amorpha fruticosa has slender racemes, purple with yellow stamens flowers that bloom from June to August.
Additional Notes: False indigo is not generally browsed. Northern Plains Indians used its straight branches for arrow shafts. -
Amorpha nana
R. Neil Reese
Amorpha nana is a(n) perennial shrub, which grows 3 dm to 6 dm in height. This species is commonly found on dry prairies and rocky or sandy hillsides. The leaves are branched above, sometimes rhizomatose; stems moderately stigulose but become glabrate. Amorpha nana has dark purple colored flowers that bloom from May to June.
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Andropogon gerardii
R. Neil Reese
Andropogon gerardii is a(n) perennial non rhizomatous to shortly-rhizomatous, which grows 5 dm to 20 dm in height. This species is commonly found prairie, pastures, roadsides, open priaire, and rocky soil in the nothern latitudes. The leaves are soft-textured, flat (3-9 mm wide). Andropogon gerardii has green rust-red flowers that bloom from July to October.
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Anemone canadensis
R. Neil Reese
Anemone canadensis is a(n) perennial herb, which grows 10 cm to 60 cm in height. This species is commonly found in moist meadows int the Limestone Plateau and rarely at mid to high elevations in the northern and central Black Hills. The leaves are basal and long-petioled except for 2-3 sessiles and have 3 to 5 lobes which are sharply toothed. Anemone canadensis has 1-3 white petals, 2-5 cm across, flowers that bloom from June to July.
Additional Notes: Meadow anemone, or Canada anemone, is much more common in the glaciated part of the northern Great Plains (mostly east of the Missouri River), where it forms patchs in moist prairies, wet meadows, and roadside ditches. -
Aralia nudicaulis
R. Neil Reese
Aralia nudicaulis is a(n) perennial herb, which grows O.4 m to 0.5m in height. This species is commonly found in low to mid elevations of the central and northern Black Hills and Bear Lodge Mts. In moist understory of coniferous forests and deciduous woodlands. The leaves are usually solitary, erect, and ternately compounded with each divison 3-5 foliate. Aralia nudicaulis has greenish to white with 5-petaled flowers that bloom from June to July.Additional Notes: The aromatic rootstock of wild sarsaparilla has been used as a substiture for the true sarsaparilla, a tropical plant, in the flavoring of root beer and teas. This plant has no known value to grasing animals, although the fuits are undoubtedly taken by birds.
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Aralia racemosa
R. Neil Reese
Aralia racemosa is a(n) perennial herbaceous, which grows 1m to 2m high in height. This species is commonly found on wooded hilsides in e SD; e NE; ne KS; MN,SD, south to GA, TX, AZ, and n Mex. The leaves are spreading pinnately compound or ternately decompou. Aralia racemosa has an inflorescence of panicles of many umbels, white cream colored flowers that bloom from late June to July.
Additional Notes: Often somewhat woody at the base of the stems; stem purplish or spotted. Fruit a blackish drupe, persistaant to late fall. -
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
R. Neil Reese
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi is a(n) perennial low shrub, which grows to in height. This species is commonly found soils in Labrador, Alaska, Virginia, Illinois, Nebraska, Indiana, Montana, New Mexico, Northern California. The leaves are alternate. Arctostaphylos uva-ursi has pink red flowers that bloom from May to July.
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Arisaema triphyllum
R. Neil Reese
Arisaema triphyllum is a(n) perennial herb, which grows 5 dm to 6 dm in height. This species is commonly found in moist to intermittently dry deciduous woods. The leaves are palmately deivided into 3 leaflets, each ovate to elliptic and are 6-22 cm long, 5-15 cm wide. The undersides of the leaves are lighter then the upersides. Arisaema triphyllum has a purple to brownish-red on the inner surface fo t flowers that bloom from May to June.
