It’s a strange common name, but once you see the shape of their individual flowers—you can’t unsee the tiny turtle head blooms. Turtleheads bloom for a very long time—4-6 weeks!—giving pollinators lots to snack on. They get 1-3 feet tall and thrive in areas that are consistently moist. Because they happily grow in a wide range of light—full sun to part shade—turtleheads are a perfect flower for beginner gardeners. Learn more and explore different colors below.
- Part Sun, Full Shade
- Medium (3-5')
- Summer flowers, Fall flowers
- Host Plant
Dig Deeper
Explore the history, types, and where to plant native turtleheads
Table of Contents
What are the benefits of planting turtlehead flowers?
Planting native plants makes our yards and spaces gorgeous while helping the birds, butterflies, and animals (and helping save us time!) Here are three reasons why planting native is worth it:
- Without native plants, iconic animals like Monarch butterflies and songbirds won’t have the food or homes needed to survive
- Native plants save time and money: after the first year of getting established, native plants are happy with rain
- Native plants are gorgeous! Turtleheads are a perfect example of how beautiful and resilient native plants are—they are always the best choice for our gardens.
Turtleheads are host plants for Baltimore Checkerspot butterflies
If you need one more reason to plant turtleheads, here you go—turtleheads are also the host plant for the iconic Baltimore Checkerspot butterfly.
The name ‘host plant’ describes a plant that a butterfly or insect lays its eggs on. Some of our most treasured butterflies—like Baltimore Checkerspots and monarchs—only lay their eggs on one plant. Said another way, without turtleheads, there would be no Baltimore Checkerspot butterflies.
Types of native turtlehead flowers
There are a handful of native species of turtlehead found in North America, each with different flower colors and slightly different native ranges.
White Turtlehead
Chelone glabra
White Turtleheads have a huge native range, from the eastern Canadian provinces all the way south to Georgia and west to Illinois. They can sometimes have slight pink coloring on the edges of their flowers.
Pink Turtlehead
Chelone lyonii
Pink Turtlehead is made for the eastern seaboard. Its native range extends from the east coast of the US, from Maine south to Mississippi.
Red Turtlehead
Chelone obliqua
The Red Turtlehead is the turtlehead for the Midwest. Its flowers are more pink than red, but it’s a different species based on its different name range from Pink Turtlehead.
Where are turtleheads native?
The turtlehead with the largest native range is White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra). You can see from the map, that it is happily planted in eastern Canada and south through America’s Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and Southern states.
Each of the three native turtlehead species above has different native ranges (click on their Latin names to see their range).
Where can I find Turtleheads for my garden?
First, the bad news: finding specific native plants can sometimes be challenging, especially at conventional nurseries. Although we hope this changes, most traditional plant stores mainly sell non-native plants.
And now, the good news. You can find native plants if you know where to look! Here are four ideas to help you find Turtleheads in your area:
Where can I find seeds and plants?
Finding native plants can be challenging (we partly blame Marie Antoinette.) To make it easier, we’ve assembled four sourcing ideas.
Native Nursery List
100+ native nurseries makes finding one a breeze
Online Native Plant Sellers
We've included 100+ online resources to help
Society Plant Sales
Every state has a native plant society; find yours
Online Communities
Local Facebook groups are a great plant source
What are good pairings for Turtleheads?
Great pairings for turtleheads include other native plants that thrive in consistently wet areas. Some great ideas include:
Now you’ve met the native turtleheads of North America! You can see from their wide native ranges that there is a native turtlehead flower for any Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, or Southern garden. Do you have a spot that consistently gets water? Plant a patch of turtleheads and watch the pollinators go crazy.
Sources
- Nelson, Gil. Best Native Plants for Southern Gardens: A Handbook for Gardeners, Homeowners, and Professionals, (2010).
- Harstad, Carolyn. Go Native! Gardening with Native Plants and Wildflowers in the Lower Midwest. (1999), 209-210.
- Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center, White Turtlehead
- Wisconsin Horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Turtlehead, Chelone species
