Irie Orchard · Plant guides

Native plants of the Central Asian steppe

These 34 plants belong to the Central Asian steppe. They were here before the gardens were: they know the weather, live on the rain that falls, and feed the insects and birds that grew up alongside them. Plant a few and your yard starts to fit its place.

Fruit trees (4)

• Apricot · zones 5–8
• Cherry plum (myrobalan) · zones 4–9
• Siberian apricot · zones 2–7
• Wild apple of Kazakhstan · zones 3–7

Berries and small fruit (4)

• Currant · zones 3–7
• Nanking cherry · zones 2–7
• Sea buckthorn · zones 3–7
• Steppe cherry (Mongolian cherry) · zones 2–7

Nut trees (5)

• Almond · zones 7–9
• English walnut · zones 5–9
• Pistachio · zones 7–10
• Siberian pine (kedr) · zones 2–6
• Yellowhorn · zones 4–8

Perennial vegetables, greens and herbs (7)

• Altai onion · zones 2–7
• Astragalus (huang qi) · zones 5–9
• Caraway · zones 3–8
• French tarragon · zones 4–8
• Garlic · zones 3–9
• Horseradish · zones 3–9
• Licorice · zones 6–9

Annual vegetables, herbs and grains (7)

• Barley · zones 2–9
• Bread wheat · zones 2–9
• Einkorn · zones 3–9
• Foxtail millet · zones 3–11
• Mustard · zones 2–11
• Onion · zones 2–11
• Rye · zones 3–9

Native and wild plants (6)

• Common juniper · zones 2–7
• Feather grass · zones 4–8
• Prickly wild rose · zones 1–6
• Scots pine · zones 2–7
• Silver birch · zones 2–7
• Yarrow (native) · zones 3–9

Helper plants for soil, wildlife and biomass (1)

• Siberian pea shrub · zones 2–7

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General guidance, not professional advice. Conditions vary by yard and year; for local specifics ask your county extension office. Never eat a wild plant you cannot identify with certainty. Traditional uses are shared as history, not medical advice. © 2026 Sean Priest · Irie Orchard. Terms & credits · Privacy · Home