Quick answer: 65 native South Dakota plants have a recorded bloom range that includes August.
65 species
- American bellflower Campanulastrum americanum · 34 states
- Arctic brome (Kalm's brome) Bromus kalmii · 15 states
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · 41 states
- Big sagebrush Artemisia tridentata · 14 states
- Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta · 44 states
- Blue grama Bouteloua gracilis · 19 states
- Blue vervain Verbena hastata · 34 states
- Buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides · 19 states
- Bunchberry Cornus canadensis · 18 states
- Butterflyweed Asclepias tuberosa · 40 states
- Closed bottle gentian Gentiana andrewsii · 23 states
- Colorado blue columbine Aquilegia coerulea · 9 states
- Common evening primrose Oenothera biennis · 30 states
- Common gaillardia (blanketflower) Gaillardia aristata · 11 states
- Common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale · 40 states
- Common sunflower Helianthus annuus · 18 states
- Common yarrow Achillea millefolium · 47 states
- Compass plant Silphium laciniatum · 20 states
- Culver's root Veronicastrum virginicum · 32 states
- Cup plant Silphium perfoliatum · 27 states
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · 43 states
- Dotted blazing star Liatris punctata · 17 states
- Fall obedient plant Physostegia virginiana · 37 states
- Fireweed Chamerion angustifolium · 37 states
- Flowering spurge Euphorbia corollata · 29 states
- Golden alexanders Zizia aurea · 35 states
- Grayhead coneflower Ratibida pinnata · 26 states
- Great blue lobelia Lobelia siphilitica · 36 states
- Harebell Campanula rotundifolia · 35 states
- Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutans · 37 states
- Lewis flax (blue flax) Linum lewisii · 17 states
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · 42 states
- Mexican hat Ratibida columnifera · 17 states
- Michigan lily Lilium michiganense · 16 states
- Partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata · 30 states
- Pearly everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea · 38 states
- Prairie blazing star Liatris pycnostachya · 19 states
- Prairie dropseed Sporobolus heterolepis · 19 states
- Prairie goldenrod Solidago nemoralis · 7 states
- Prairie ironweed Vernonia fasciculata · 14 states
- Prairie tickseed Coreopsis palmata · 10 states
- Purple prairie clover Dalea purpurea · 18 states
- Rocky Mountain bee plant Peritoma serrulata · 26 states
- Roundhead lespedeza Lespedeza capitata · 30 states
- Rubber rabbitbrush Ericameria nauseosa · 17 states
- Scarlet globemallow Sphaeralcea coccinea · 12 states
- Seep monkeyflower Erythranthe guttata · 15 states
- Showy goldenrod Solidago speciosa · 28 states
- Showy milkweed Asclepias speciosa · 17 states
- Showy tick trefoil Desmodium canadense · 29 states
- Shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda · 23 states
- Sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula · 38 states
- Smooth oxeye Heliopsis helianthoides · 30 states
- Smooth rose Rosa blanda · 17 states
- Smooth sumac Rhus glabra · 42 states
- Swamp milkweed Asclepias incarnata · 37 states
- Switchgrass Panicum virgatum · 43 states
- Tall blazing star Liatris aspera · 26 states
- Tufted evening primrose Oenothera caespitosa · 15 states
- Virginia mountain mint Pycnanthemum virginianum · 27 states
- Western yarrow Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis · 18 states
- White meadowsweet Spiraea alba · 22 states
- Wholeleaf rosinweed Silphium integrifolium · 16 states
- Whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata · 30 states
- Wood lily Lilium philadelphicum · 28 states
August in a South Dakota native garden
August is a quieter month in South Dakota: 65 of the state's 146 native plants flower in August, compared with 91 at the June peak. That makes these plants valuable for keeping color, and food for pollinators, going outside the main season.
10 start blooming in August, including Big bluestem, Big sagebrush and Closed bottle gentian. 14 finish in August, including American bellflower, Arctic brome (Kalm's brome) and Colorado blue columbine, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
59 of them grow in full or partial sun and 19 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Black-eyed Susan and Buffalograss to trees such as Smooth sumac. For wildlife, 59 support pollinators, 37 provide food or cover for birds and 21 are caterpillar host plants.
55 of the 65 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Black-eyed Susan, Common yarrow, Harebell: 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
- Smooth sumac Rhus glabra · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms May-Aug