Spring 2025 Southeast Michigan Native Plant Swaps and Sales

With only a few last remaining piles of snow, it’s time to think spring and planning for our gardens.

Which is a lot easier when you can learn about native plants from fellow gardeners at local plant swaps and growers at native plant/extension sales.

For folks in southeast Michigan, I’ve compiled a list of publicly announced native plant swaps and sales happening over the next few months in our area.

Native Plant Swaps and Sales

Plant swaps are a common (and free!) way to check out how a plant grows in your garden.

Communities and local gardening groups host plant swaps for folks who have plants they no longer want or have too many of.

I’m still learning about plant swaps in our area and discovered local libraries as well as local butterfly, gardening, and wild plant organizations host swaps in spring and fall.

What kind of plants will you find at plant swaps? At the swaps I’ve attended, I’ve found:

• Native plants
• Perennials (non-native) that needed division
• Seeds
• Tree saplings

What I like about swaps is that I can ask questions from fellow gardeners about the best soil, sun requirements, blossom color, height and how much the plant will spread.

County extensions, friends’ groups, and native plant nurseries often have time-limited plant sales in spring and fall, where you can get flats of plants and individual/large quantities of tree saplings for your garden.

Note: all times are Eastern Daylight Time.

Native Plant Swaps

• Canton Public Library Springtime Plant Swap

  • Where: Canton Public Library in Canton, Michigan
  • When: May 10, 2025 from 10am to noon in the Community Room
  • Details: Join fellow gardeners to share your extra plants and find new plants for your garden. Bring a labeled plant (or plants) in a box or bag.  On your plant labels, include plant name, sun or shade requirement, whether it’s a perennial or annual, and any other plant details.

  Plymouth Pollinators members will be available to discuss native plants and creating pollinator gardens.

• Farmington Community Library 2nd Annual Plant Swap

  • Where: Farmington Community Library at 23500 Liberty Street, Farmington, MI 48335
  • When: May 17, 2025 from 11am to 2pm in the Meeting Room
  • Details: Share your seeds/potted plants with your neighbors at the plant swap.

  Bring boxed or potted plants with labels including the plant name, sun requirements, perennial information, and care tips.

• Ypsilanti District Library-Whittaker Native Plant Swap

  • Where: Ypsilanti District Library-Whittaker in Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197
  • When: May 18, 2025 from 1pm to 2pm in the Whittaker Garden (next to the parking lot, in the back)
  • Details: Join Washtenaw County Master Rain Gardeners members for their spring plant swap. Bring your plants/shrubs/trees to swap, be sure to label plants with name and their sun preference.

  I’ve attended the swap for the past two years, one of my favorite swaps! Each time I bring my Lanceleaf Coreopsis and Great Blue Lobelia, which are favorites for many gardeners.

  Last year I picked up a Stiff Goldenrod (Solidago rigida) which I’ve never grown before. I’m looking forward to seeing how it does this year in the front garden.

• Downriver Butterflies Spring Plant/Seed Swap

  • Where: Park Ave between McLain and Harrison, Allen Park, MI 48101 (public parking lot between McLain and Harrison)
  • When: May 18, 2025 from 1pm to 3pm
  • Details: Free event where folks will be trading out of the trunks of vehicles. People bring a wagon or cart to go from car to car. You can also bring a folding table to set your plants on, or set them directly on the ground next to your vehicle.

  Note: this is a swap, no sales of plants are permitted. Label plants and seeds, don’t bring diseased plants.

• Westland Public Library Plant Swap

  • Where: Westland Public Library, 6123 Central City Parkway, Westland, MI 48185
  • When: May 31, 2025 from 10am to 2pm
  • Details: Bring your perennials, extra seedlings, pack annuals, houseplants, vegetables, and other plants to trade with neighbors and friends. Plants should be in a container with soil, or as rooted cuttings in water or moist paper towel. Label plants (annual/perennial, size, sun/shade, bloom color, etc.)

  Remember to bring flats, trays or boxes so you can take your new plants home. Plants should be well-watered, pest and disease free.

  The Master Gardeners of Western Wayne County will be available to answer questions.

• Wild Ones Wayne County Up-Potting Workshop and Seedling Swap

  • Where: University of Michigan-Dearborn Environmental Interpretive Center, 4901 Evergreen Rd, Dearborn, Michigan, 48128
  • When: June 8, 2025 from 10AM to noon
  • Details: Bring your milk jugs from Wild Ones’ February winter sowing event, or seedlings from your own winter sowing project and trade with other gardeners. Or donate seedlings to Wild Ones planting projects.
    
    Note: limited supplies will be available, so it’s best to bring your own small individual pots or containers.
    
    Pre-registration required (Google Doc).

Plant Sales

• Fair Lane Estate Annual Plant Sale

  • Where: Henry Ford Estate, 1 Fair Lane Drive, Dearborn, MI 48128
  • When: May 16 and 17, 2025 from 9am to 2pm
  • Details: The annual garden volunteers fundraiser will have a wide variety of plants for sale, including native plants, herbs, vegetables, annuals, and perennials as well as bee houses.

  The plant sale will be in a large tent next to the parking lot.

• Washtenaw County Conservation District Spring Native Plant Pre-Sale

  • Where: Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds, 5055 Ann Arbor-Saline Rd, Ann Arbor, MI 48103
  • When: Order online by March 17, 2025. Plants can be picked up June 9, 2025 at the Native Plant Expo and Marketplace
  • Details: Credit card or check is accepted for orders made through our online store. All pre-order customers will receive email reminders and more details in the mail prior to the event.

  I’ve never attended this sale, but one of my birding friends said it’s one of the best in the area!

  Native plants can also be bought from vendors at the Native Plant Expo on June 9, 2025.

• Native Plant Sale at Bowers School Farm Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

  • Where: Bowers Farm – Bloomfield Hills Schools 1219 East Square Lake Road Bloomfield Hills, MI, 48304
  • When: Pre-order your native plants (grasses and wildflowers) April 1-6, 2025 for pickup Saturday, May 17, 2025 from 10am to 2pm.
  • Details: Plants are 2.5″ junior sizes at $5 each. The kits are a tray of 2.5″ pot size with 32 pre-selected plants and come with a design plan for $120.

  All proceeds from the plant sale support the Master Gardeners of Oakland County who volunteer to provide Bowers School Farm horticultural gardens.

• Livingston County Conservation District Spring Tree Sale

  • Where: Mail order only, all orders must include payment for processing.
  • When: All orders due by April 10, 2025 by 5pm. Orders must be picked up at Munsell Farm barn on April 26, 2025, from 9am to 1pm. The barn is located at 301 Smith Rd, Fowlerville, MI (west of the main Munsell Farm, just north of Mason Rd on Smith Rd).
  • Details: Seedlings are ordered in quantities of 10, 20, 50, or 100 per species. Mail order form and payment to LCD, P.O. Box 916, Fowlerville, MI 48836.

  Note size for species: 2-2 indicates the tree seedling has spent two years in a seed bed and two years in a transplant bed. Similarly, 3-0 indicates three years in a seed bed and zero years in a transplant bed. Transplants have a larger root system than regular seedlings

• Oakland County Conservation District Spring Tree and Shrub Pre-Order

  • Where: Pre-order only.
  • When: Final day to place orders is April 13, 2025. Order early, as many species sell out quickly.
  • Details: Order in quantities of 10, 25, or 50 seedlings per species.

  All orders are pre-orders and must be picked up at Waterford Oaks Event Center at 2800 Watkins Lake Road Waterford, MI 48328 on Saturday, May 3, 2025, from 10am to 2pm.

• Friends of the Rouge Spring Sale

  • Where: Livonia Department of Public Works, 12973 Farmington Rd, Livonia, MI 48150 for pickup, delivery also available for plant flats delivered to your door (see details for more info)
  • When: May 17, 2025 from 10am to 2pm
  • Details: Plant plugs, quarts, and one to three-gallon pots of native flowers, grasses, and shrubs will be available for purchase. You can also pre-order plants.

  There are different deadlines for pre-orders, depending on what you order:

  • March 30, 2025: deadline to pre-order plant flats to be delivered to your door in June 2025.
  • April 30, 2025: deadline to pre-order native plants as well as rain barrels and accessories for you to pickup May 17, 2025

• Rochester Pollinators Spring Native Plant Pre-Order Sale

  • Where: Online order only.
  • When: Unfortunately, their pre-order page has no order deadline info. Sent email message asking about order deadline and will update this info if/when I get a response. I received a reply: “Our shop closes when we sell out, or sometime soon after May 15.” Pickup is on May 17, 2025 from 8am to 1pm at The Rochester Farmers Market on the corner of 3rd and Water Street in Rochester, Michigan 48307.
  • Details: You can pre-order over 70+ individual native plants, native ornamental grasses, native shrubs and trees, and native plant kits.

  Prices range from $4.50 to $30 per plant.

• Kensington Metropark Nature Center Native Plant Sale

  • Where: Kensington Metropark Nature Center, 4570 Huron River Parkway, Milford, Michigan 48381
  • When: May 17, 2025 and May 18, 2025 from 10am to 4pm
  • Details: Native plants, shrubs, and trees will be for sale. “All plants for sale are Michigan native genotypes, which means they are more likely to thrive in our area and will be more beneficial to local wildlife.”
    Plants are from Wildtype Native Plant Nursery, which collects seeds from various southeast Michigan metroparks.

  Boxes and bags may be available, but they recommend you bring your own. I think I brought a large cardboard packing box lid in prior years when I bought plants at the sale.

  My recommendation: come early on Saturday. Though it’s a two-day sale, plants get picked over quickly.

  No pricing was available on the event description.

• Lake Erie Metropark Native Plant Sale and Swap

  • Where: Lake Erie Metropark, 32481 West Jefferson Avenue, Brownstown, MI 48173
  • When: May 17, 2025 from 10am to 3pm at the Food Bar
  • Details: Join other gardeners to swap your native plants or buy new plants for your garden. Whether you have too many of one native plant variety or are looking to try out new native plants, you’ll find a wide range of plants to choose from.

  Note: this is a swap and sale. Plants for sale are from Wildtype Native Plant Nursery. As with the Kensington Metropark native plant sale, I recommend coming early.

  Staff will be available to answer questions and offer tips on enhancing your garden.

• River Raisin Watershed Council First Annual Native Plant Sale

  • Where: River Raisin Watershed Council Headquarters, 804 N Evans St. Tecumseh, Michigan 49286
  • When: May 30, 2025 from 2pm to 7:30pm
  • Details: Bringing together native plant vendors and environment-related organizations, you can learn about the importance of native plants and how to incorporate them into your existing landscape.

  Master Gardeners from the Tecumseh Little Garden Club will be on hand to answer questions and help with species selection.

  Activities include: seed bomb making, peanut butter pine cone making, kids’ activities, on-site native plant prairie tours, live music, and food you can buy from the Pita Delight food truck and Musgrove + Company.

  No pricing was available on the event description.

Summary

With bright sunshine and blue skies this week, I can’t wait to get started in the garden!

But the soil is cold and wet, so for now, I can only dream about the plants and shrubs I’ll find at the upcoming spring native plant swaps and sales.

If you know of other native plant swaps and sales in southeast Michigan, share details and info in the comments.

First published March 12, 2025