Quick answer: 6 native Rhode Island plants have a recorded bloom range that includes February.
6 species
- American elm Ulmus americana · 31 states
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · 42 states
- Eastern red columbine Aquilegia canadensis · 36 states
- Flowering dogwood Cornus florida · 31 states
- Slippery elm Ulmus rubra · 30 states
- Virginia springbeauty Claytonia virginica · 28 states
February in a Rhode Island native garden
February is a quieter month in Rhode Island: 6 of the state's 181 native plants flower in February, compared with 108 at the May peak. That makes these plants valuable for keeping color, and food for pollinators, going outside the main season.
4 start blooming in February, including American elm, Eastern cottonwood and Eastern red columbine.
4 of them grow in full or partial sun and 4 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Eastern red columbine to trees such as American elm and Eastern cottonwood. For wildlife, 6 support pollinators, 5 provide food or cover for birds and 5 are caterpillar host plants.
All 6 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species.
Good places to start
Verified wild-species listings that take sun and are widely native, so they are forgiving first plants.
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Feb-Apr
- Eastern red columbine Aquilegia canadensis · Part Shade, Shade (avoid continuous full sun) · blooms Feb-Jul
- American elm Ulmus americana · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Feb-Apr