Lakeplain Oak Openings Plant List

Graminoids

  • big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)
  • blue-joint (Calamagrostis canadensis)
  • sedges (Carex aquatilis, C. pensylvanica, C. stricta, and others)
  • twig-rush (Cladium mariscoides)
  • panic grasses (Dichanthelium spp.)
  • switch grass (Panicum virgatum)
  • little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)
  • Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans)
  • cordgrass (Spartina pectinata)

Forbs

  • purple false foxglove (Agalinis purpurea)
  • common false foxglove (Agalinis tenuifolia)
  • colic root (Aletris farinosa)
  • hog-peanut (Amphicarpaea bracteata)
  • Canada anemone (Anemone canadensis)
  • thimbleweed (Anemone virginiana)
  • milkweeds (Asclepias incarnata, A. purpurascens, A. syriaca, A. tuberosa, A. verticillata, and others)
  • false foxgloves (Aureolaria flava, a. pedicularia, and A. virginica)
  • wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria)
  • bastard-toadflax (Comandra umbellata)
  • sand coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata)
  • tall coreopsis (Coreopsis tripteris)
  • tick-trefoils (Desmodium spp.)
  • flowering spurge (Euphorbia corollata)
  • wild strawberry (Fragaria virginiana)
  • northern bedstraw (Galium boreale)
  • woodland sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
  • tall sunflower (Helianthus giganteus)
  • hairy bush-clover (Lespedeza hirta)
  • rough blazing-star (Liatris aspera)
  • cylindrical blazing-star (Liatris cylindracea)
  • marsh blazing-star (Liatris spicata)
  • Michigan lily (Lilium michiganense)
  • wood lily (Lilium philadelphicum)
  • hairy puccoon (Lithospermum caroliniense)
  • wild lupine (Lupinus perennis)
  • false spikenard (Maianthemum racemosum)
  • wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
  • common mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum)
  • goldenrods (Solidago altissima, S. ohioensis, S. riddellii, S. rugosa, and others)
  • prairie heart-leaved aster (Symphyotrichum oolentangiense)
  • yellow-pimpernel (Taenidia integerrima)
  • Culver’s root (Veronicastrum virginicum)

Ferns

  • bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum)

Woody Vines

  • Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia)
  • greenbriers (Smilax hispida and S. rotundifolia)
  • poison-ivy (Toxicodendron radicans)
  • summer grape (Vitis aestivalis)
  • riverbank grape (Vitis riparia)

Shrubs

  • serviceberries (Amelanchier spp.)
  • bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi)
  • black chokeberry (Aronia prunifolia)
  • New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus)
  • buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)
  • sweetfern (Comptonia peregrina)
  • dogwoods (Cornus amomum, C. foemina, and C. sericea)
  • American hazelnut (Corylus americana)
  • shrubby cinquefoil (Dasiphora fruticosa)
  • wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens)
  • huckleberry (Gaylussacia baccata)
  • winterberry (Ilex verticillata)
  • cherries and plums (Prunus americana, P. pumila, and P. virginiana)
  • sumacs (Rhus copallina and Rhus typhina)
  • pasture rose (Rosa carolina)
  • prairie rose (Rosa setigera)
  • northern dewberry (Rubus flagellaris)
  • swamp dewberry (Rubus hispidus)
  • willows (Salix eriocephala, S. humilis, and S. myricoides)
  • blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium and V. myrtilloides)
  • maple-leaved arrow-wood (Viburnum acerifolium)

Trees

  • red maple (Acer rubrum)
  • silver maple (Acer saccharinum)
  • juneberry (Amelanchier arborea)
  • bitternut hickory (Carya cordiformis)
  • pignut hickory (Carya glabra)
  • shagbark hickory (Carya ovata)
  • hawthorns (Crataegus spp.)
  • green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica)
  • cottonwood (Populus deltoides)
  • black cherry (Prunus serotina)
  • white oak (Quercus alba)
  • swamp white oak (Quercus bicolor)
  • bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa)
  • pin oak (Quercus palustris)
  • black oak (Quercus velutina)
  • sassafras (Sassafras albidum)

Citation

Cohen, J.G., M.A. Kost, B.S. Slaughter, D.A. Albert, J.M. Lincoln, A.P. Kortenhoven, C.M. Wilton, H.D. Enander, M.E. Anderson, M.R. Parr, T.J. Bassett, and K.M. Korroch. 2025. Michigan Natural Community Classification [web application]. Michigan Natural Features Inventory, Michigan State University Extension, Lansing, MI. Available https://mnfi.anr.msu.edu/communities/classification. (Accessed: April 17, 2026).