Quick answer: 9 native Iowa plants have a recorded bloom range that includes November.
9 species
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · 41 states
- Buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides · 19 states
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · 42 states
- Prairie blazing star Liatris pycnostachya · 19 states
- Shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda · 23 states
- Sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula · 38 states
- Switchgrass Panicum virgatum · 43 states
- White heath aster Symphyotrichum ericoides var. ericoides · 26 states
- Witch-hazel Hamamelis virginiana · 33 states
November in an Iowa native garden
November is a quieter month in Iowa: 9 of the state's 196 native plants flower in November, compared with 116 at the May peak. That makes these plants valuable for keeping color, and food for pollinators, going outside the main season.
5 finish in November, including Big bluestem, Shrubby cinquefoil and Sideoats grama, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
8 of them grow in full or partial sun and 1 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Buffalograss and Sideoats grama to trees such as Witch-hazel. For wildlife, 8 support pollinators, 6 provide food or cover for birds and 6 are caterpillar host plants.
All 9 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Shrubby cinquefoil, Switchgrass: 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.
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Jun-Dec
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Aug-Nov
- Sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Jun-Nov