Quick answer: 100 native Rhode Island plants have a recorded bloom range that includes April.
100 species
- American basswood Tilia americana · 37 states
- American beech Fagus grandifolia · 31 states
- American elm Ulmus americana · 31 states
- American hazelnut Corylus americana · 34 states
- American holly Ilex opaca · 28 states
- American hornbeam Carpinus caroliniana · 33 states
- American mountain ash Sorbus americana · 18 states
- Atlantic white cedar Chamaecyparis thyoides · 17 states
- Beach plum Prunus maritima · 8 states
- Bear oak Quercus ilicifolia · 13 states
- Bearberry Arctostaphylos uva-ursi · 34 states
- Bigtooth aspen Populus grandidentata · 20 states
- Birdfoot violet Viola pedata · 34 states
- Black ash Fraxinus nigra · 19 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
- Bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis · 34 states
- Bur oak Quercus macrocarpa · 33 states
- Butternut Juglans cinerea · 26 states
- Canada anemone Anemone canadensis · 29 states
- Canada yew Taxus canadensis · 18 states
- Canadian serviceberry Amelanchier canadensis · 21 states
- Canadian wild ginger Asarum canadense · 30 states
- Carolina springbeauty Claytonia caroliniana · 20 states
- Chokecherry Prunus virginiana · 44 states
- Common blue violet Viola sororia · 37 states
- Common juniper Juniperus communis · 39 states
- Common winterberry Ilex verticillata · 32 states
- Common yarrow Achillea millefolium · 47 states
- Creeping phlox Phlox subulata · 23 states
- Creeping snowberry Gaultheria hispidula · 12 states
- Downy serviceberry Amelanchier arborea · 37 states
- Dutchman's breeches Dicentra cucullaria · 32 states
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · 42 states
- Eastern hemlock Tsuga canadensis · 25 states
- Eastern hop-hornbeam Ostrya virginiana · 37 states
- Eastern red cedar Juniperus virginiana · 37 states
- Eastern red columbine Aquilegia canadensis · 36 states
- Eastern white pine Pinus strobus · 28 states
- Feathery false Solomon's seal Maianthemum racemosum · 45 states
- Fire pink Silene virginica · 26 states
- Flowering dogwood Cornus florida · 31 states
- Golden alexanders Zizia aurea · 35 states
- Gray alder Alnus incana · 26 states
- Gray birch Betula populifolia · 17 states
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · 43 states
- Heartleaf foamflower Tiarella cordifolia · 18 states
- Jack-in-the-pulpit Arisaema triphyllum · 35 states
- Jacob's ladder Polemonium reptans · 31 states
- Lanceleaf coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata · 35 states
- Mapleleaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium · 27 states
- Marsh marigold Caltha palustris · 28 states
- Mayapple Podophyllum peltatum · 35 states
- Mockernut hickory Carya tomentosa · 26 states
- Mountain maple Acer spicatum · 18 states
- Nannyberry Viburnum lentago · 25 states
- New Jersey tea Ceanothus americanus · 35 states
- Northern red oak Quercus rubra · 33 states
- Northern spicebush Lindera benzoin · 31 states
- Northern white cedar Thuja occidentalis · 21 states
- Pagoda dogwood Cornus alternifolia · 30 states
- Paper birch Betula papyrifera · 28 states
- Pignut hickory Carya glabra · 31 states
- Pin cherry Prunus pensylvanica · 20 states
- Pin oak Quercus palustris · 27 states
- Pitch pine Pinus rigida · 12 states
- Post oak Quercus stellata · 28 states
- Purple clematis Clematis occidentalis var. occidentalis · 15 states
- Quaking aspen Populus tremuloides · 39 states
- Red baneberry Actaea rubra · 29 states
- Red maple Acer rubrum · 33 states
- Red pine Pinus resinosa · 13 states
- Royal fern Osmunda regalis var. spectabilis · 30 states
- Sassafras Sassafras albidum · 22 states
- Scarlet oak Quercus coccinea · 28 states
- Shagbark hickory Carya ovata · 34 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
- Striped maple Acer pensylvanicum · 18 states
- Sugar maple Acer saccharum · 34 states
- Sundial lupine Lupinus perennis · 28 states
- Sweet birch Betula lenta · 21 states
- Sweetgum Liquidambar styraciflua · 26 states
- Tamarack Larix laricina · 17 states
- Trailing arbutus Epigaea repens · 24 states
- Tulip tree Liriodendron tulipifera · 27 states
- Twoleaf miterwort Mitella diphylla · 25 states
- Virginia spiderwort Tradescantia virginiana · 24 states
- Virginia springbeauty Claytonia virginica · 28 states
- White ash Fraxinus americana · 35 states
- White baneberry Actaea pachypoda · 33 states
- White oak Quercus alba · 33 states
- Wild blue phlox Phlox divaricata · 36 states
- Wild geranium Geranium maculatum · 33 states
- Willow oak Quercus phellos · 23 states
- Yellow birch Betula alleghaniensis · 21 states
April in a Rhode Island native garden
April is one of Rhode Island's busiest bloom months, with 100 of the state's 181 native plants flowering (the peak is May).
40 start blooming in April, including American basswood, American beech and American hazelnut. 8 finish in April, including American elm, Black ash and Bloodroot, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
67 of them grow in full or partial sun and 76 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Birdfoot violet and Bloodroot to trees such as American basswood and American beech. For wildlife, 70 support pollinators, 67 provide food or cover for birds and 46 are caterpillar host plants.
77 of the 100 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Common yarrow, Creeping phlox, Eastern hop-hornbeam: 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
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Feb-Apr