Demonstration Garden layout showing plots with numbers (see table below)

Demonstration Garden

The Demonstration Garden is a product of the Prairie Acre Restoration Project which began in 2014. Constructed in September of 2017, the garden was planted by volunteers from the KU and Lawrence communities.

Containing a wide range of native plant species, the Demonstration Garden provides visitors with the chance to get a closer look at many of the native plants that can be found in prairie acre and other remnant tallgrass prairies. The garden’s most active bloom period is during the summer months, but contains some species that bloom during the spring and fall.

The KU Center for Sustainability, Kansas Biological Survey, and Environmental Studies Program invite you to take a moment to walk through the garden, using the informational signs to become familiar with the vegetation that once completely covered Mount Oread.

The construction of the demonstration garden was supported by donations from Douglas May and Catherine Schwoerer.

Plant Locations

Numbers in table correspond with image above.

Planting Location Chart
NumberScientific NameCommon NameMature HeightFlower ColorBloom Period
1Silphium laciniatumCompass Plant8.0YellowLate summer
2Thalictrum dasycarpumPurple Meadow Rue6.0CreamLate spring
3Echinacea pallidaPale Purple Coneflower3.0PinkSummer
4Oenothera macrocarpaMissouri Evening-Primrose1.0YellowSummer
5Monarda fistulosaWild Bergamot4.9PurpleSummer
6Pseudognaphalium obtusifoliumFragrant Everlasting3.0PurpleLate summer
7Amorpha canescensLeadplant4.0PurpleEarly spring
8Penstemon digitalisSmooth Beardtongue4.0WhiteLate spring
9Andropogon gerardiiBig Bluestem7.0YellowSummer
10Teucrium canadenseCanada Germander3.0PurpleSummer
11Veronicastrum virginicumCulver's Root5.0WhiteSummer
12Salvia azureaBlue Sage5.0BlueLate summer
13Dalea purpureaPurple Prairie Clover3.0PurpleSummer
14Panicum virgatumSwitchgrass5.0YellowSummer
15Delphinium carolinianumCarolina Larkspur4.0PurpleSummer
16Rosa arkansanaArkansas Rose2.0PinkSummer
17Helianthus maximilianiMaximilian Sunflower6.0YellowLate summer
18Symphyotrichum oblongifoliumAromatic Aster2.0PurpleFall
19Asclepias sullivantiiPrairie Milkweed3.0PinkSummer
20Hesperostipa sparteaPorcupine Grass4.0YellowLate summer
21Coreopsis palmataPrairie Coreopsis2.0YellowSummer
22Eryngium yuccifoliumRattlesnake Master4.0WhiteLate summer
23Linum sulcatumGrooved Flax2.0YellowSummer
24Ratibida columniferaUpright Prairie Coneflower3.0YellowMid-summer
25Baptisia australisBlue Wild Indigo4.0BlueSummer
26Schizachyrium scopariumLittle Bluestem3.0YellowSummer
27Asclepias syriacaCommon Milkweed3.0PinkSummer
28Asclepias tuberosaButterfly Milkweed2.0OrangeMid-summer
29Vernonia baldwiniiBaldwin's Ironweed3.0PurpleLate summer
30Liatris asperaButton Blazing Star3.0PurpleLate summer
31Lobelia spicataPale-Spike Lobelia2.0WhiteSummer
32Bouteloua curtipendulaSideoats Grama3.0YellowMid-spring
33Artemisia ludovicianaWhite Sage3.0WhiteEarly spring
34Glandularia canadensisRose Vervain1.5PinkSummer
35Sporobolus heterolepisPrairie Dropseed3.0BrownFall