Quick answer: 113 native Kansas plants have a recorded bloom range that includes May.
113 species
- Alderleaf mountain mahogany Cercocarpus montanus · 15 states
- American basswood Tilia americana · 37 states
- American bittersweet Celastrus scandens · 33 states
- American bladdernut Staphylea trifolia · 28 states
- American hazelnut Corylus americana · 34 states
- American plum Prunus americana · 37 states
- Birdfoot violet Viola pedata · 34 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
- Blackfoot daisy Melampodium leucanthum · 6 states
- Blackhaw Viburnum prunifolium · 12 states
- Blackjack oak Quercus marilandica · 24 states
- Blue wild indigo Baptisia australis · 23 states
- Broadleaf cattail Typha latifolia · 39 states
- Buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides · 19 states
- Bur oak Quercus macrocarpa · 33 states
- Butterflyweed Asclepias tuberosa · 40 states
- Canada anemone Anemone canadensis · 29 states
- Canada wild rye Elymus canadensis · 37 states
- Candle anemone (thimbleweed) Anemone cylindrica · 12 states
- Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis · 41 states
- Chinkapin oak Quercus muehlenbergii · 30 states
- Chocolate flower Berlandiera lyrata · 6 states
- Chokecherry Prunus virginiana · 44 states
- Clasping coneflower Dracopis amplexicaulis · 7 states
- Climbing prairie rose Rosa setigera · 27 states
- Common blue violet Viola sororia · 37 states
- Common elderberry Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis · 36 states
- Common hackberry Celtis occidentalis · 33 states
- Common hoptree Ptelea trifoliata · 28 states
- Common ninebark Physocarpus opulifolius · 30 states
- Common persimmon Diospyros virginiana · 26 states
- Common selfheal Prunella vulgaris · 25 states
- Common yarrow Achillea millefolium · 47 states
- Coralberry Symphoricarpos orbiculatus · 30 states
- Downy hawthorn Crataegus mollis · 24 states
- Downy serviceberry Amelanchier arborea · 37 states
- Dutchman's breeches Dicentra cucullaria · 32 states
- Eastern hop-hornbeam Ostrya virginiana · 37 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
- Fire pink Silene virginica · 26 states
- Flowering dogwood Cornus florida · 31 states
- Foxglove beardtongue Penstemon digitalis · 35 states
- Fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica · 30 states
- Golden alexanders Zizia aurea · 35 states
- Grayhead coneflower Ratibida pinnata · 26 states
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · 43 states
- Heart-leaved meadow parsnip Zizia aptera · 30 states
- Indian ricegrass Achnatherum hymenoides · 17 states
- Indigo bush Amorpha fruticosa · 37 states
- Jack-in-the-pulpit Arisaema triphyllum · 35 states
- Jacob's ladder Polemonium reptans · 31 states
- Lanceleaf coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata · 35 states
- Large penstemon (shell-leaf beardtongue) Penstemon grandiflorus · 12 states
- Largeflower tickseed Coreopsis grandiflora · 25 states
- Lewis flax (blue flax) Linum lewisii · 17 states
- Longbract wild indigo (cream false indigo) Baptisia bracteata var. leucophaea · 19 states
- Low prickly pear Opuntia humifusa · 31 states
- Mayapple Podophyllum peltatum · 35 states
- Maypop passionflower Passiflora incarnata · 21 states
- Mexican hat Ratibida columnifera · 17 states
- Narrow-leaf coneflower Echinacea angustifolia · 11 states
- New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus · 35 states
- Northern red oak Quercus rubra · 33 states
- Northern spicebush Lindera benzoin · 31 states
- Ohio buckeye Aesculus glabra · 20 states
- Pale purple coneflower Echinacea pallida · 17 states
- Pawpaw Asimina triloba · 29 states
- Pin oak Quercus palustris · 27 states
- Possumhaw Ilex decidua · 17 states
- Post oak Quercus stellata · 28 states
- Prairie Junegrass Koeleria macrantha · 29 states
- Prairie blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium campestre · 11 states
- Prairie crabapple Malus ioensis · 15 states
- Purple meadow-rue Thalictrum dasycarpum · 17 states
- Rattlesnake master Eryngium yuccifolium · 20 states
- Red baneberry Actaea rubra · 29 states
- Red-osier dogwood Cornus sericea · 36 states
- Richardson's alumroot Heuchera richardsonii · 11 states
- Rocky Mountain bee plant Peritoma serrulata · 26 states
- Roughleaf dogwood Cornus drummondii · 11 states
- Rusty blackhaw viburnum Viburnum rufidulum · 18 states
- Shagbark hickory Carya ovata · 34 states
- Showy milkweed Asclepias speciosa · 17 states
- Shumard oak Quercus shumardii · 22 states
- Silver buffaloberry Shepherdia argentea · 17 states
- Smooth Solomon's seal Polygonatum biflorum · 34 states
- Smooth hydrangea Hydrangea arborescens · 23 states
- Smooth sumac Rhus glabra · 42 states
- Spotted beebalm Monarda punctata · 29 states
- Sugar maple Acer saccharum · 34 states
- Swamp white oak Quercus bicolor · 23 states
- Three-flower melic grass Melica nitens · 17 states
- Virginia creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia · 40 states
- Virginia iris Iris virginica · 26 states
- Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana · 30 states
- Western yarrow Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis · 18 states
- White ash Fraxinus americana · 35 states
- White baneberry Actaea pachypoda · 33 states
- White oak Quercus alba · 33 states
- White wild indigo Baptisia alba · 23 states
- Whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata · 30 states
- Wild blue phlox Phlox divaricata · 36 states
- Wild geranium Geranium maculatum · 33 states
- Wild hyacinth (Atlantic camas) Camassia scilloides · 20 states
- Winecup Callirhoe involucrata · 16 states
- Woolly paperflower Psilostrophe tagetina · 7 states
May in a Kansas native garden
May is Kansas's peak bloom month: 113 of the state's 183 native plants in this directory flower in May, more than in any other month.
29 start blooming in May, including American bittersweet, Butterflyweed and Candle anemone (thimbleweed). 31 finish in May, including Alderleaf mountain mahogany, Black oak and Black walnut, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
84 of them grow in full or partial sun and 63 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Birdfoot violet and Buffalograss to trees such as Alderleaf mountain mahogany and American basswood. For wildlife, 95 support pollinators, 65 provide food or cover for birds and 40 are caterpillar host plants.
96 of the 113 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Common yarrow, Eastern hop-hornbeam, Prairie crabapple: 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.
- Chokecherry Prunus virginiana · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Apr-Jul
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Apr-Jun
- Smooth sumac Rhus glabra · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms May-Aug