Quick answer: 91 native plants for shade are native to Kansas, 80 with a live listing as of 04 Nov 2026.
91 species
- American basswood Tilia americana · 37 states
- American bellflower Campanulastrum americanum · 34 states
- American bittersweet Celastrus scandens · 33 states
- American bladdernut Staphylea trifolia · 28 states
- American hazelnut Corylus americana · 34 states
- American plum Prunus americana · 37 states
- American sycamore Platanus occidentalis · 28 states
- Birdfoot violet Viola pedata · 34 states
- Bitternut hickory Carya cordiformis · 28 states
- Black cherry Prunus serotina · 35 states
- Black tupelo Nyssa sylvatica · 31 states
- Blackhaw Viburnum prunifolium · 12 states
- Blackjack oak Quercus marilandica · 24 states
- Bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis · 34 states
- Blue vervain Verbena hastata · 34 states
- Bur oak Quercus macrocarpa · 33 states
- Canada anemone Anemone canadensis · 29 states
- Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis · 41 states
- Chokecherry Prunus virginiana · 44 states
- Christmas fern Polystichum acrostichoides · 34 states
- Clasping coneflower Dracopis amplexicaulis · 7 states
- Climbing prairie rose Rosa setigera · 27 states
- Common buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis · 29 states
- Common elderberry Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis · 36 states
- Common evening primrose Oenothera biennis · 30 states
- Common hackberry Celtis occidentalis · 33 states
- Common hoptree Ptelea trifoliata · 28 states
- Common ninebark Physocarpus opulifolius · 30 states
- Coralberry Symphoricarpos orbiculatus · 30 states
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · 43 states
- Downy hawthorn Crataegus mollis · 24 states
- Downy serviceberry Amelanchier arborea · 37 states
- Dutchman's breeches Dicentra cucullaria · 32 states
- Eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides · 42 states
- Eastern hop-hornbeam Ostrya virginiana · 37 states
- Eastern red cedar Juniperus virginiana · 37 states
- Eastern red columbine Aquilegia canadensis · 36 states
- Eastern redbud Cercis canadensis · 32 states
- Farkleberry Vaccinium arboreum · 16 states
- Fire pink Silene virginica · 26 states
- Flowering dogwood Cornus florida · 31 states
- Fragrant sumac Rhus aromatica · 30 states
- Great blue lobelia Lobelia siphilitica · 36 states
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · 43 states
- Heart-leaved meadow parsnip Zizia aptera · 30 states
- Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutans · 37 states
- Inland sea oats Chasmanthium latifolium · 21 states
- Jack-in-the-pulpit Arisaema triphyllum · 35 states
- Jacob's ladder Polemonium reptans · 31 states
- Kentucky coffeetree Gymnocladus dioicus · 15 states
- Lanceleaf coreopsis Coreopsis lanceolata · 35 states
- Largeflower tickseed Coreopsis grandiflora · 25 states
- Longbract wild indigo (cream false indigo) Baptisia bracteata var. leucophaea · 19 states
- Mayapple Podophyllum peltatum · 35 states
- Michigan lily Lilium michiganense · 16 states
- Northern maidenhair fern Adiantum pedatum · 37 states
- Northern spicebush Lindera benzoin · 31 states
- Ohio buckeye Aesculus glabra · 20 states
- Pawpaw Asimina triloba · 29 states
- Pignut hickory Carya glabra · 31 states
- Pin oak Quercus palustris · 27 states
- Prairie goldenrod Solidago nemoralis · 7 states
- Prairie ironweed Vernonia fasciculata · 14 states
- Prairie onion Allium stellatum · 12 states
- Prairie tickseed Coreopsis palmata · 10 states
- Purple meadow-rue Thalictrum dasycarpum · 17 states
- Red baneberry Actaea rubra · 29 states
- Red-osier dogwood Cornus sericea · 36 states
- River birch Betula nigra · 28 states
- Roughleaf dogwood Cornus drummondii · 11 states
- Rusty blackhaw viburnum Viburnum rufidulum · 18 states
- Shagbark hickory Carya ovata · 34 states
- Showy goldenrod Solidago speciosa · 28 states
- Silver maple Acer saccharinum · 37 states
- Smooth Solomon's seal Polygonatum biflorum · 34 states
- Smooth hydrangea Hydrangea arborescens · 23 states
- Smooth sumac Rhus glabra · 42 states
- Sugar maple Acer saccharum · 34 states
- Swamp white oak Quercus bicolor · 23 states
- Sweet Joe-Pye Eutrochium purpureum · 33 states
- Sweet coneflower Rudbeckia subtomentosa · 11 states
- Three-flower melic grass Melica nitens · 17 states
- Virginia creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia · 40 states
- Virginia mountain mint Pycnanthemum virginianum · 27 states
- White ash Fraxinus americana · 35 states
- White baneberry Actaea pachypoda · 33 states
- White meadowsweet Spiraea alba · 22 states
- White oak Quercus alba · 33 states
- Wild blue phlox Phlox divaricata · 36 states
- Wild geranium Geranium maculatum · 33 states
- Wild hyacinth (Atlantic camas) Camassia scilloides · 20 states
Native plants for shade in Kansas: what to know
91 of the 183 plants native to Kansas in this directory fit this need: 50% of the state's list, above the 47% share across all species.
Between them they flower from February through October, with the most in bloom in May. Mixing early and late bloomers keeps the planting useful all season.
Many do double duty: 71 are also good for pollinators, 61 are also good for birds, 45 are also drought-tolerant.
50 of them grow in full or partial sun and 91 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 bittersweet. For wildlife, 71 support pollinators, 61 provide food or cover for birds and 28 are caterpillar host plants.
80 of the 91 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Eastern hop-hornbeam, Indiangrass, Smooth hydrangea: 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
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Jul-Oct
- Green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Apr-Jun