Quick answer: 120 native Florida plants have a recorded bloom range that includes April.
120 species
- Adam's needle Yucca filamentosa · 21 states
- Allegheny chinquapin Castanea pumila · 21 states
- American basswood Tilia americana · 37 states
- American beech Fagus grandifolia · 31 states
- American bladdernut Staphylea trifolia · 28 states
- American elm Ulmus americana · 31 states
- American holly Ilex opaca · 28 states
- American hornbeam Carpinus caroliniana · 33 states
- American olive Osmanthus americanus · 8 states
- American plum Prunus americana · 37 states
- American sycamore Platanus occidentalis · 28 states
- Atlantic white cedar Chamaecyparis thyoides · 17 states
- Bald cypress Taxodium distichum · 16 states
- Beach sunflower Helianthus debilis · 1 states
- Bitternut hickory Carya cordiformis · 28 states
- Black cherry Prunus serotina · 35 states
- Black oak Quercus velutina · 30 states
- Black tupelo Nyssa sylvatica · 31 states
- Black walnut Juglans nigra · 33 states
- Black willow Salix nigra · 24 states
- Blackjack oak Quercus marilandica · 24 states
- Bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis · 34 states
- Boxelder Acer negundo · 16 states
- Broadleaf cattail Typha latifolia · 39 states
- Carolina allspice Calycanthus floridus · 17 states
- Carolina jessamine Gelsemium sempervirens · 10 states
- Chinkapin oak Quercus muehlenbergii · 30 states
- Cocoplum Chrysobalanus icaco · 1 states
- Common blue violet Viola sororia · 37 states
- Common hackberry Celtis occidentalis · 33 states
- Common hoptree Ptelea trifoliata · 28 states
- Common leopardbane Arnica acaulis · 10 states
- Common persimmon Diospyros virginiana · 26 states
- Common winterberry Ilex verticillata · 32 states
- Common yarrow Achillea millefolium · 47 states
- Coral bean Erythrina herbacea · 10 states
- Coral honeysuckle Lonicera sempervirens · 16 states
- Coralberry Symphoricarpos orbiculatus · 30 states
- Crossvine Bignonia capreolata · 16 states
- Downy serviceberry Amelanchier arborea · 37 states
- Dwarf fothergilla Fothergilla gardenii · 5 states
- Eastern bluestar Amsonia tabernaemontana · 18 states
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · 42 states
- Eastern hop-hornbeam Ostrya virginiana · 37 states
- Eastern leatherwood Dirca palustris · 25 states
- Eastern purple coneflower Echinacea purpurea · 24 states
- Eastern red cedar Juniperus virginiana · 37 states
- Eastern red columbine Aquilegia canadensis · 36 states
- Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis · 32 states
- Farkleberry Vaccinium arboreum · 16 states
- Feathery false Solomon's seal Maianthemum racemosum · 45 states
- Fire pink Silene virginica · 26 states
- Florida anisetree Illicium floridanum · 3 states
- Flowering dogwood Cornus florida · 31 states
- Fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica · 30 states
- Fringed bluestar Amsonia ciliata · 2 states
- Golden alexanders Zizia aurea · 35 states
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · 43 states
- Green-and-gold Chrysogonum virginianum · 13 states
- Indigo bush Amorpha fruticosa · 37 states
- Jack-in-the-pulpit Arisaema triphyllum · 35 states
- Lanceleaf coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata · 35 states
- Leavenworth's tickseed Coreopsis leavenworthii · 1 states
- Lobed tickseed Coreopsis auriculata · 8 states
- Longleaf pine Pinus palustris · 10 states
- Lyreleaf sage Salvia lyrata · 22 states
- Mapleleaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium · 27 states
- Mayapple Podophyllum peltatum · 35 states
- Maypop passionflower Passiflora incarnata · 21 states
- Mockernut hickory Carya tomentosa · 26 states
- Mountain azalea Rhododendron canescens · 14 states
- Narrowleaf blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium angustifolium · 21 states
- New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus · 35 states
- Northern spicebush Lindera benzoin · 31 states
- Orange azalea Rhododendron austrinum · 5 states
- Pagoda dogwood Cornus alternifolia · 30 states
- Pawpaw Asimina triloba · 29 states
- Pignut hickory Carya glabra · 31 states
- Possumhaw Ilex decidua · 17 states
- Post oak Quercus stellata · 28 states
- Red buckeye Aesculus pavia · 15 states
- Red maple Acer rubrum · 33 states
- Royal fern Osmunda regalis var. spectabilis · 30 states
- Rusty blackhaw viburnum Viburnum rufidulum · 18 states
- Sassafras Sassafras albidum · 22 states
- Saw palmetto Serenoa repens · 4 states
- Scarlet sage Salvia coccinea · 3 states
- Shumard oak Quercus shumardii · 22 states
- Silky camellia Stewartia malacodendron · 8 states
- Silver maple Acer saccharinum · 37 states
- Slippery elm Ulmus rubra · 30 states
- Smooth Solomon's seal Polygonatum biflorum · 34 states
- Smooth alder Alnus serrulata · 23 states
- Sourwood Oxydendrum arboreum · 17 states
- Southern crabapple Malus angustifolia · 14 states
- Southern live oak Quercus virginiana · 10 states
- Southern magnolia Magnolia grandiflora · 10 states
- Southern red oak Quercus falcata · 23 states
- Spotted beebalm Monarda punctata · 29 states
- Stiff dogwood Cornus foemina · 12 states
- Sundial lupine Lupinus perennis · 28 states
- Sweetbay magnolia Magnolia virginiana · 17 states
- Sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua · 26 states
- Trailing arbutus Epigaea repens · 24 states
- Tulip tree Liriodendron tulipifera · 27 states
- Two-wing silverbell Halesia diptera · 8 states
- Umbrella tree magnolia Magnolia tripetala · 17 states
- Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana · 30 states
- Virginia sweetspire Itea virginica · 19 states
- Water oak Quercus nigra · 17 states
- White ash Fraxinus americana · 35 states
- White baneberry Actaea pachypoda · 33 states
- White fringetree Chionanthus virginicus · 21 states
- White oak Quercus alba · 33 states
- White wild indigo Baptisia alba · 23 states
- Wild blue phlox Phlox divaricata · 36 states
- Wild geranium Geranium maculatum · 33 states
- Willow oak Quercus phellos · 23 states
- Woodland pinkroot Spigelia marilandica · 16 states
- Yaupon holly Ilex vomitoria · 11 states
April in a Florida native garden
April is one of Florida's busiest bloom months, with 120 of the state's 228 native plants flowering (the peak is May).
49 start blooming in April, including Adam's needle, American basswood and American beech. 11 finish in April, including American elm, American sycamore and Bloodroot, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
75 of them grow in full or partial sun and 77 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Bloodroot and Common yarrow to trees such as Allegheny chinquapin and American basswood. For wildlife, 95 support pollinators, 79 provide food or cover for birds and 54 are caterpillar host plants.
94 of the 120 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Beach sunflower, Common yarrow, Crossvine: common listings for these are often a bred variety or a different species.
Good places to start
Verified wild-species listings that take sun and are widely native, so they are forgiving first plants.
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Apr-Jun
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Feb-Apr
- American basswood Tilia americana · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Apr-Jul