What makes you LOVE a certain plant? Do you look for COLOR? Texture? The shape? Do certain plants have special meaning for you? Or maybe you have memories of plants that your grandparents had in their yard growing up?

All of us here at Natural Plus love helping you find the perfect plants for your yard that you will love for years to come. And, after being in business for 42 years, we here at Natural Plus have figured out what plants do well and are our favorites!

If you’re in the market for some new trees, shrubs, or perennials, you’re going to want to follow along with these blog posts, I’ll be sharing each of our top 5 favorite plants with all of you!

We are starting with owner Dave’s top picks. A little history lesson, Dave is second generation owner at Natural Plus; his parents, Dave and Linda Hopper started the nursery the year before he was born. Dave grew up at the nursery and after college spent 9 years working at the DNR before deciding to buy the nursery from his parents.

Dave’s Top 5 Plant Picks:

Red Oak Tree: It’s a hardy, moderate grower and a native tree . This oak tree reaches mature heights of 60 to 75 feet, with a spread of 45 to 50 feet. The tree is valued for its deep root system, which makes it useful for planting near urban streets and sidewalks.

2. Eastern Red Cedar: The red cedar may not be perfect, especially as it ages, but it is a resilient tree that grows in many conditions. Dave loves it for it’s versatility.

3. Northern Catalpa: In northern Iowa, the blooms on this tree are a welcome site, giving a sort of tropical feel. The big green heart shaped leaves add an extra interest to any yard.

4. Serviceberry: This is a 3 season shrub, blooms in the spring, green in the summer, and then has a beautiful fall color. The serviceberry is also functional, producing edible berries. Dave likes the story behind how the serviceberry got its name: it’s one of the first things to show life in the spring, which indicated that the ground would be ready to resume funeral services after hard winters.

5. Any hosta. Shade areas can be difficult to find something to plant, and hostas give texture, color and variety to those areas. There are so many different kinds of hostas: small, large, variegated, etc, that the sky is the limit when using them in your landscape.

A Catalpa Tree in our backyard

Next week, we will learn about Mike’s Top 5 Plant Picks!