A huge array of wonderful trees, flowers, and food begin with this letter near the end of the alphabet. We have already explored 31 Wonderful Flowers That Start With W in a previous article.
From the pretty wallflower to the hearty wheat plant, let's take a look at 25 amazing plants starting with W.
Plants Starting with W – Quick Look
- Wallflower
- Waterlily
- Wisteria
- Winter Jasmine
- Wax Flower
- Weigela
- Willow Tree
- Wax Begonia
- Wattle
- Watsonia
- Winter Aconite
- Witch Hazel
- Wedelia
- Water Violet
- Watercress
- Weeping Beech
- White Mulberry
- Wild Tulip
- Wintergreen
- Wych Elm
- Wood Lily
- Whorl-Grass
- Wavy Hair Grass
- Wolf’s Bane
- Wheat
1. Wallflower
- Common Name(s): Wallflower
- Scientific Name: Erysimum
- Native to: Southwest Asia, the Mediterranean, Europe, Africa, Micronesia, and North America through to Costa Rica
Not just a name for a shy person at a party, wallflowers are cultivated around the world. They grow well in loose wall mortar, giving them their unique name.
2. Waterlily
- Common Name(s): Water Lily
- Scientific Name: Nymphaeaceae
- Native to: Eastern North America
These flowers are valued for their beauty and are most famously depicted in the oil paintings by French painter Claude Monet.
He depicted them in over 250 paintings made in his garden in Giverny.
3. Wisteria
- Common Name(s): Wisteria
- Scientific Name: Wisteria sinensis
- Native to: North America and Asia
This plant is a popular choice to grow as it is both hardy and beautiful. They are fast-growing and are best when climbing up a structure. They can climb as high as 66 feet (20 meters).
4. Winter Jasmine
- Common Name(s): Winter Jasmine
- Scientific Name: Jasminum nudiflorum,
- Native to: China
The Chinese name for these flowers translates to “the flower that welcomes spring”.
These pretty flowers are now widely cultivated throughout Europe and North America as well as their native continent.
5. Wax Flower
- Common Name(s): Wax Flower
- Scientific Name: Chamelaucium
- Native to: Western Australia
These flowers are popular for use in cut flower arrangements. As the name suggests, their petals are slightly waxy to the touch.
6. Weigela
- Common Name(s): Weigela
- Scientific Name: Weigela
- Native to: Eastern Asia
These plants are a popular choice for ornamental gardens. They bloom in early summer and attract butterflies and hummingbirds.
7. Willow Tree
- Common Name(s): Willow, Sallows, Osiers
- Scientific Name: Salix alba
- Native to: Temperate regions in the Northern Hemisphere
These trees have long been used medicinally and mentioned as such as far back as ancient texts in 5 BCE. The salicin present in the bark is an effective pain reliever.
However, as it causes stomach irritation, salicin isn’t used in aspirin production (although it is widely believed to be). Instead, it’s made from a chemically synthesized compound called acetylsalicylic acid.
8. Wax Begonia
- Common Name(s): Wax Begonia
- Scientific Name: Begonia x Semperflorens-cultorum
- Native to: South America
This small shrub grows well in tropical or subtropical climates. It is long-blooming and has a waxy sheen to its leaves.
9. Wattle
- Common Name(s): Wattle, Acacia
- Scientific Name: Acacia
- Native to: Angola and Australasia
Though the same name, this is not the material used for “wattle and daub” structures. However, it does have many uses.
Aboriginal Australians traditionally gather the seeds and ground them into high-protein flour. The timber is used for the construction of tools, musical instruments, and weapons.
10. Watsonia
- Common Name(s): Watsonia, Bugle Lily
- Scientific Name: Watsonia
- Native to: Southern Africa
Although native to Africa, they have become widely cultivated in Australia after they were introduced there in the mid-19th century.
11. Winter Aconite
- Common Name(s): Winter Aconite
- Scientific Name: Eranthis hyemalis
- Native to: Europe
These small yellow flowers are in the buttercup family. Although it doesn’t look like it, all parts of the plant are toxic.
12. Witch Hazel
- Common Name(s): Witch hazel
- Scientific Name: Hamamelis
- Native to: North America, China, and Japan
The leaves of this plant are widely used in folk medicine and cosmetics. It contains tannins which can help protect skin against damage.
13. Wedelia
- Common Name(s): Wedelia, Creeping-oxeyes
- Scientific Name: Wedelia
- Native to: Texas, the Caribbean, tropical South America, Central America
As well as being planted ornamentally, this plant is used as ground cover and used as a remedy for coughs and colds.
14. Water Violet
- Common Name(s): Water violet, Featherfoil
- Scientific Name: Hottonia palustris
- Native to: Europe and northern Asia
This aquatic plant can usually be found in bogs and marshes. It can also be grown in or around ponds as an oxygenator.
15. Watercress
- Common Name(s): Watercress, Yellowcress
- Scientific Name: Nasturtium officinale)
- Native to: Europe and Asia
This plant is regarded as a weed in some countries, and as an aquatic herb in others. It is most widely grown and eaten in the United Kingdom.
16. Weeping Beech
- Common Name(s): Weeping Beech
- Scientific Name: Fagus sylvatica
- Native to: Europe
The “weeping” branches of this tree are often enough to hide the entire trunk of the tree. It is a striking tree in all seasons, with foliage that turns copper in the fall and branches that turn silvery in the winter.
17. White Mulberry
- Common Name(s): White Mulberry
- Scientific Name: Morus alba
- Native to: India and China
This tree is cultivated to feed silkworms. It also produces edible berries, and the leaves can be made into a tea.
18. Wild Tulip
- Common Name(s): Wild tulip, Woodland tulip
- Scientific Name: Tulipa sylvestris
- Native to: Eurasia and North Africa
Wild tulips can survive much harsher conditions than their cultivated counterparts and can be found frequently on exposed mountain ledges battling cold and wind.
19. Wintergreen
- Common Name(s): Wintergreen
- Scientific Name: Gaultheria
- Native to: North America
The minty oil from wintergreen is frequently used for flavor and scent. It can be found in toothpaste, mouthwash, chewing gum, confectionery, soft drinks, essential oils, and candles.
20. Wych Elm
- Common Name(s): Wych elm, Scots elm
- Scientific Name: Ulmus glabra
- Native to: Europe
This tree is used for lumber, but also has a long reputation as a panacea. Throughout the 18th century in France, it is referred to as an elixir that could cure all.
21. Wood Lily
- Common Name(s): Wood lily, Philadelphia lily, Prairie lily, Western red lily
- Scientific Name: Lilium philadelphicum
- Native to: North America
Although they can be eaten by humans, and the bulbs were cooked and eaten by Native Americans, cats are very sensitive to the flowers and ingestion can be fatal.
22. Whorl-Grass
- Common Name(s): Whorl grass, Brook grass, Water whirl grass, Water hairgrass
- Scientific Name: Catabrosa aquatica
- Native to: The non-tropical northern hemisphere, Chile, and Argentina
This plant can be found in wet areas, and the branches appear in distinctive half-whorls with green-purple spikelets.
23. Wavy Hair Grass
- Common Name(s): Wavy hair grass
- Scientific Name: Deschampsia flexuosa
- Native to: Eurasia, Africa, South America, and North America
This grass can be found on moors and heaths throughout the world. The fine, wavy leaves and delicate flowers shake around in the gentle breeze.
24. Wolf’s Bane
- Common Name(s): Wolf’s bane, Aconite, Monkshood, Leopard's bane, Mousebane, Women's bane, Devil's helmet, Queen of poisons, Blue rocket
- Scientific Name: Aconitum
- Native to: Mountainous regions in the Northern Hemisphere in North America, Europe, and Asia
This plant is widely known as a poison and its use as such has been recorded throughout history.
25. Wheat
- Common Name(s): Wheat
- Scientific Name: Triticum
- Native to: Southern Levant
The cultivation of domestic wheat dates back at least as far as 9600 BCE and it remains one of the most important food crops to this day.