Quick answer: 32 native Vermont plants have a recorded bloom range that includes September.
32 species
- 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
- 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
- Culver's root Veronicastrum virginicum · 32 states
- Cup plant Silphium perfoliatum · 27 states
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · 43 states
- Fall obedient plant Physostegia virginiana · 37 states
- Fireweed Chamerion angustifolium · 37 states
- Great blue lobelia Lobelia siphilitica · 36 states
- Harebell Campanula rotundifolia · 35 states
- Jerusalem artichoke Helianthus tuberosus · 26 states
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · 42 states
- New England aster Symphyotrichum novae-angliae · 29 states
- Partridgeberry Mitchella repens · 31 states
- Pearly everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea · 38 states
- Scarlet beebalm Monarda didyma · 25 states
- Sensitive fern Onoclea sensibilis · 26 states
- Showy tick trefoil Desmodium canadense · 29 states
- Spotted beebalm Monarda punctata · 29 states
- Steeplebush Spiraea tomentosa · 22 states
- Sweet Joe-Pye Eutrochium purpureum · 33 states
- Switchgrass Panicum virgatum · 43 states
- Virgin's bower Clematis virginiana · 27 states
- Virginia chain fern Woodwardia virginica · 24 states
- Witch-hazel Hamamelis virginiana · 33 states
September in a Vermont native garden
September is a quieter month in Vermont: 32 of the state's 164 native plants flower in September, compared with 100 at the May peak. That makes these plants valuable for keeping color, and food for pollinators, going outside the main season.
Witch-hazel starts blooming in September. 13 finish in September, including Blue vervain, Butterflyweed and Common yarrow, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
25 of them grow in full or partial sun and 14 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 Virgin's bower and Witch-hazel. For wildlife, 26 support pollinators, 20 provide food or cover for birds and 11 are caterpillar host plants.
30 of the 32 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
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Aug-Nov