Blue Stem Natives

09/02/2026

🌱 FALL SEED MIXES ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER! With pickup or shipping roughly October 1🌱 Individual species will begin to be available mid September.

We nerd out on these blends every single year, and this fall's lineup is ready for pre-order. Five native seed mixes, each hand curated for a different spot in your yard. Pick up in person or select shipping at checkout.

🌳 Shady Characters, a Woodland Mix: for part shade to full shade, average soils. 17 species including Golden Alexanders, Hairy Beardtongue, Great Blue Lobelia and spring ephemerals like Spring Beauty and Dutchman's Breeches.

☀️ New England Native Meadow Mix (average to dry soil): for sun to part sun, dry ground. 25 species anchored by Little Bluestem, Black Eyed Susan, Wild Bergamot and Butterflyweed, plus nitrogen fixers to build your soil.

🦋 Monarchs and Amigos: 21 species selected to support at risk pollinators including the globally vulnerable and Dion Skipper, declining bumble bees, and Monarch butterflies. Loaded with milkweed, Bee Balm and Blue Skullcap. See this page for links to research from Dr. Robert Gegear.

💧 New England Native Meadow Mix: for sun to part sun, average to moist soil. 24 species featuring Cardinal Flower, Blue Flag Iris, Spotted Joe Pye W**d and Switchgrass.

🌿 The Friendly Lawn: A Lawn Enrichment: inspired by Cornell University's native lawn research. 13 low growing species like Path Rush, Blue Eyed Grass and Field Pussytoes that supplement an existing lawn while welcoming pollinators.

Each packet covers 100 square feet. Order 10 or more seed mixes and get an automatic 15% discount at checkout. Remember, native seeds need winter's cold to unlock germination, so plan to sow before the ground freezes or store in the fridge to sow next fall.

Pre order now and get ready to grow something wild this spring 🐝



https://www.bluestemnatives.com/seeds

08/30/2026

Not to encourage F.O.M.O....

BUT...

Trees and shrubs: 30-50% off. Now through September 8. Things are moving fast, yesterday was bonkers (I'm still recovering today).

Fall is coming, and that's exactly when you want to plant native. Cooler soil. Cooler temps. A little more rain. Roots get time to settle in before winter, so everything wakes up in spring like it's been there for years.

30% off all trees and shrubs, in-person or online with in-person pickup. Select species are 50% off, in person only: buttonbush, some willows, some dogwoods.

And while you're here, don't sleep on the perennials. Thousands of them. Like a deal? (Who doesn't?) Hit the "discount" areas in sun and shade.

Open hours:
Sat + Sun: 10am-5pm
Tues-Fri: 10am-6pm
Closed Mondays

376 Washington St., Norwell, MA

08/27/2026

Did you catch the note on our shrub and tree sale? Grab ‘em while you can, they are moving fast. 30% off all shrubs and trees in person and online (w/ in person pickup) and 50% off select shrubs and trees in person.

The 50% applies to shrubs we’ve just had too long, we want to find them a good home. And/or they are a little rough around the edges and ready to get out of their pots.

NOW through September 8!

08/26/2026

Not only free but we highly recommend any event, online or in person, with New Directions in the American Landscape!

🌿 Meet the Presenter: Sara Weaner Cooper

Educator. Ecological gardener. Native meadow advocate.

As owner and principal of New Directions in the American Landscape (NDAL), Sara Weaner Cooper helps advance ecologically informed approaches to landscape design and stewardship. Her own landscape has become part of that work: Sara and her husband’s experimental transition from conventional lawn to native meadow has been featured in The New York Times and BBC.

In this free Wild Ones webinar, presented in partnership with NDAL, Sara will share a candid look at their ongoing lawn-to-meadow project, including the decisions, successes, surprises, and challenges that have shaped it over multiple growing seasons. 🌱

📅 Wednesday, September 16

Register today: https://wildones.org/from-lawn-to-meadow/

08/26/2026

Calling all birders!
We’ve got a whole section right now of native plants with berries (or berry-like in the case of Juniperus virginiana cones) for birds. Bring the birds to you with perennials, shrubs, and trees that provide fruit.

Bonus, really if you are planting native you are providing food for birds because something like 95% of terrestrial birds feed their young insects/caterpillars…and nearly all native insects need native plants.

Extra bonus: all trees and shrubs are 30-50% right now. We are dedicated to getting these out into your yards!

08/26/2026

We have so many wonderful SHRUBS AND TREES in stock and we'd really love to get them out into your yards so NOW through September 8th, take 30% OFF ALL SHRUBS AND TREES, in person and online (w/ in person pick-up). Some species (namely buttonbush, willows, and silky dogwood) are 50% off in person.

We've got tall shrubs, short shrubs, wide shrubs, tasty shrubs, and fanciful shrubs, shrubs for every need.

The link below takes you to a great resource we created with detailed information about all of our available shrubs, including site needs, height, deer resistance, fall color, and much more.

https://tinyurl.com/bluestemnatives

08/20/2026

Lots in bloom today at Blue Stem!
Pictured: Liatris novae-angliae, New England blazing star, and Lobelia siphilitica, great blue lobelia (which we just found, having self sowed into a pot of wild senna which is hiding behind the Lobelia).

Yes we *should* pull the Lobelia or the Senna BUT sometimes at Blue Stem you’ll find two-fers.

08/18/2026

Got Monarda?

Such a bee magnet that one of its common names is “bee balm”

Stop in this week to see the bee balms we carry, as well as mints, bonesets, and many other bee favorites!

08/14/2026

UPDATE: Thanks so much everyone! We put everyone's comments + shares into a spreadsheet. A number generator picked the comment # of F***y Lau Dines
Congrats! If you weren't picked this time, consider stopping by and we'd love to help you pick out plants for your garden!

🦋 GIVEAWAY: Win a Monarch Waystation Starter Kit! 🦋

We're giving away a Monarch Waystation Starter Kit to one lucky gardener. It's a 15-plant kit built to feed and shelter monarchs from spring through fall. (pssst...We're giving a second one away on Instagram, you can add your name there too)

A $162 value! Note: this is pickup only, no shipping, so YOU'LL NEED TO BE LOCAL-ISH. 📍

HOW TO ENTER:
1️⃣ Follow us on Facebook
2️⃣ Like this post
3️⃣ Tag a LOCAL friend who'd love to grow for monarchs (each tag = one entry, tag as many as you want!)
4️⃣ Bonus entry: share this post to your story and tag us

📅 Giveaway runs NOW through Thursday, August 20. Winner announced on the 21st!

🌱 Fall is actually our favorite time to plant natives in New England. Roots settle into cooling soil now so plants come back even stronger next spring. Don't want to leave it to chance? You can buy your own kit in person or on our website (pickup only).

Not affiliated with Facebook. Must be 18+. Winner selected at random and contacted via DM.

08/13/2026

Load up, Little Beauty!
You may be getting bored of my repetitive posting of this one little area of our nursery, but I can't help it...it has been a wildlife magnet all summer! Usually hummingbirds will zip in and right back out again, but this one really took his time. Who can resist those beautiful Cardinal flower blooms, anyway?