Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
Made for open ground — flowers in Jun and Jul, 5–10 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Indiana · Zones 5–7
Native Plants for Full Sun in Indiana
Sun-loving native wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs for the hot, bright, open parts of the yard that bake all afternoon. For Indiana, the right natives are shaped by Eastern Corn Belt Plains & oak savanna and a humid continental climate. Every species below, from Winterberry and Serviceberry to the rest of the list, is genuinely native to Indiana and the wider flora of the Midwest and hardy through zones 5–7. A spot with six or more hours of direct sun is prime real estate for the prairie and meadow natives that evolved in the open — most want exactly that much light to bloom hard and stand up straight. Give them lean, well-drained soil rather than rich and pampered, skip the fertilizer, and they will reward the tough love with more flowers and sturdier stems.
The plants
54 native species for Indiana
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 5–7 · see this collection in other states.
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
Made for open ground — flowers in Apr and May, 15–25 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Trumpet Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
A sun-lover that blooms Apr through Sep, standing 8–15 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 8–15 ft
- Blooms Apr–Sep
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
A sun-lover that flowers in Jul and Aug, standing 2–4 ft tall.
- Full sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Made for open ground — flowers in Aug and Sep, 2–3 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Aromatic Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
A sun-lover that blooms Sep through Nov, standing 1.5–2.5 ft tall.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Nov
Anise Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum
Give it full sun and it blooms Jun through Sep, 2–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Give it full sun and it blooms Jul through Sep, 2–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
Made for open ground — blooms May through Jul, 1.5–2 ft tall.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
Made for open ground — flowers in Mar and Apr, 20–30 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 20–30 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Made for open ground — flowers in Aug and Sep, 2–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Made for open ground — blooms Jun through Aug, 5–10 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Give it full sun and it flowers in Jul and Aug, 3–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Maximilian Sunflower
Helianthus maximiliani
Made for open ground — blooms Aug through Oct, 5–8 ft tall.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Aug–Oct
Short-Toothed Mountain Mint
Pycnanthemum muticum
A sun-lover that blooms Jul through Sep, standing 2–3 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
Made for open ground — flowers in May and Jun, 6–10 ft tall.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Showy Goldenrod
Solidago speciosa
Made for open ground — flowers in Sep and Oct, 2–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
A sun-lover that blooms Jul through Sep, standing 5–8 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
A sun-lover that blooms Jun through Aug, standing 1.5–2.5 ft tall.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Wild Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa
Made for open ground — blooms Jun through Aug, 2–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Scarlet Beebalm
Monarda didyma
Give it full sun and it flowers in Jul and Aug, 2.5–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2.5–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Prairie Smoke
Geum triflorum
A sun-lover that flowers in Apr and May, standing 6–16 in tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry
- 6–16 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
A sun-lover that blooms Apr through Jun, standing 1.5–2.5 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Made for open ground — blooms Jun through Sep, 2–4 ft tall.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
30 more also qualify: Common Yarrow, Foxglove Beardtongue, Black-Eyed Susan, Culver's Root, Pasque Flower, New England Aster, Spotted Joe-Pye Weed, Prairie Blazing Star, Common Milkweed, Virginia Creeper, Bearberry, Compass Plant, Purple Prairie Clover, Stiff Goldenrod, Wild Lupine, Creeping Phlox, Ninebark, Sideoats Grama, American Elderberry, Fragrant Sumac, Blue Vervain, Red-Twig Dogwood, New Jersey Tea, Rattlesnake Master, Common Boneset, Indian Grass, Little Bluestem, Switchgrass, Big Bluestem, Prairie Dropseed.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Indiana
Seeds & live plants on Amazon
Seed packets, plugs, and starter plants for many of these species ship to your door.
Browse on AmazonSome links here are affiliate links — we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. The surest source of locally-adapted stock is a native-plant nursery or a native plant society sale in your area.