Quick answer: 57 native Massachusetts plants have a recorded bloom range that includes August.
57 species
- American bellflower Campanulastrum americanum · 34 states
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · 41 states
- Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta · 44 states
- Blue mistflower Conoclinium coelestinum · 32 states
- Blue vervain Verbena hastata · 34 states
- Bog Labrador tea Ledum groenlandicum · 11 states
- Butterflyweed Asclepias tuberosa · 40 states
- Canadian burnet Sanguisorba canadensis · 20 states
- Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis · 41 states
- Closed bottle gentian Gentiana andrewsii · 23 states
- Common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale · 40 states
- Common yarrow Achillea millefolium · 47 states
- Crimson-eyed rose-mallow Hibiscus moscheutos · 28 states
- Culver's root Veronicastrum virginicum · 32 states
- Cup plant Silphium perfoliatum · 27 states
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · 43 states
- Dense blazing star Liatris spicata · 24 states
- Eastern teaberry Gaultheria procumbens · 23 states
- Fall obedient plant Physostegia virginiana · 37 states
- Fire pink Silene virginica · 26 states
- Fireweed Chamerion angustifolium · 37 states
- Golden alexanders Zizia aurea · 35 states
- Great blue lobelia Lobelia siphilitica · 36 states
- Great laurel Rhododendron maximum · 20 states
- Harebell Campanula rotundifolia · 35 states
- Inkberry Ilex glabra · 14 states
- Jerusalem artichoke Helianthus tuberosus · 26 states
- King of the meadow Thalictrum pubescens · 21 states
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · 42 states
- Mapleleaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium · 27 states
- Maryland goldenaster Chrysopsis mariana · 17 states
- New England aster Symphyotrichum novae-angliae · 29 states
- New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus · 35 states
- New York ironweed Vernonia noveboracensis · 18 states
- Northern blue flag Iris versicolor · 10 states
- Partridgeberry Mitchella repens · 31 states
- Pearly everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea · 38 states
- Plumleaf azalea Rhododendron prunifolium · 3 states
- Rocky Mountain bee plant Peritoma serrulata · 26 states
- Scarlet beebalm Monarda didyma · 25 states
- Seaside goldenrod Solidago sempervirens · 13 states
- Sensitive fern Onoclea sensibilis · 26 states
- Showy tick trefoil Desmodium canadense · 29 states
- Shrubby St. John's-wort Hypericum prolificum · 33 states
- Shrubby five-fingers Sibbaldiopsis tridentata · 15 states
- Spotted beebalm Monarda punctata · 29 states
- Steeplebush Spiraea tomentosa · 22 states
- Swamp rose Rosa palustris · 27 states
- Sweet Joe-Pye Eutrochium purpureum · 33 states
- Sweet-fern Comptonia peregrina · 21 states
- Switchgrass Panicum virgatum · 43 states
- Trumpet vine Campsis radicans · 33 states
- Virgin's bower Clematis virginiana · 27 states
- Virginia chain fern Woodwardia virginica · 24 states
- Virginia spiderwort Tradescantia virginiana · 24 states
- Winged sumac Rhus copallinum · 30 states
- Wood lily Lilium philadelphicum · 28 states
August in a Massachusetts native garden
August is a quieter month in Massachusetts: 57 of the state's 190 native plants flower in August, compared with 114 at the May peak. That makes these plants valuable for keeping color, and food for pollinators, going outside the main season.
8 start blooming in August, including Big bluestem, Closed bottle gentian and Jerusalem artichoke. 18 finish in August, including American bellflower, Bog Labrador tea and Eastern teaberry, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
42 of them grow in full or partial sun and 27 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Black-eyed Susan and Butterflyweed to trees such as Great laurel and Plumleaf azalea. For wildlife, 49 support pollinators, 35 provide food or cover for birds and 18 are caterpillar host plants.
47 of the 57 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Black-eyed Susan, Common yarrow, Crimson-eyed rose-mallow: 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.
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Jul-Oct
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Jun-Dec
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Aug-Nov