What's Blooming in May: Zone-by-Zone Flower Guide

May is when gardens finally stop teasing and commit. Spring bulbs are finishing their run, perennials are hitting their stride, and shrubs are exploding into bloom. It is the month when most gardeners feel the happiest, because everything seems to be flowering at once.

But "everything" depends on where you live. May in zone 5 looks very different from May in zone 9. Here is what to expect in your zone.

Zones 3-4: Spring finally arrives

May is your real spring. Tulips and daffodils are at peak bloom or just finishing. Columbine is opening its delicate spurred flowers. Bleeding heart is hanging its pink or white lockets along arching stems. Creeping phlox is carpeting banks in purple and pink.

The trees are catching up too. Crabapples, lilacs, and dogwoods are in full flower. If you planted early-season perennials, this is their moment. Enjoy it, because summer is short up here.

Zones 5-6: The peak begins

This is the start of the best six weeks of the gardening year. Peonies are opening their enormous, fragrant blooms. Bearded iris is showing off every color imaginable. Columbine, foxglove, and catmint are in full swing.

Late tulips are still going in zone 5. Azaleas and rhododendrons are at peak in zone 6. Roses are budding and will open by month's end. Dianthus is covering itself in spicy-scented flowers. Coral bells are sending up their airy wands of tiny blooms.

This is the month to be outside every day. Things change fast.

Zones 7-8: Early summer energy

May in zones 7-8 feels more like early summer. Spring bulbs finished weeks ago. The garden now belongs to perennials and shrubs.

Roses are in full bloom. Lavender is starting to open. Catmint is a cloud of blue-purple. Salvia is sending up red and purple spikes. Daylilies are budding and the earliest varieties are starting to open. Coneflower and bee balm are not far behind.

Hydrangeas are leafing out and forming buds in zone 8, with the first blooms appearing by month's end. Astilbe is opening its feathery plumes in shaded spots. The garden is shifting from the soft pastels of spring to the bold, saturated colors of summer.

Zones 9-10: Summer is here

In the warmest zones, May is full summer. Spring was February and March. By now, heat-loving plants are running the show.

Roses are at their spring peak before the summer heat slows them down. Salvia, lantana, and coneflower are going strong. Daylilies are in bloom. Bougainvillea is covering walls in hot pink and orange. Hydrangeas are fully open in zone 9.

This is the last comfortable month before the real heat arrives. Water deeply and mulch heavily now to prepare plants for June and July.

What to plant in May

May is a great planting month in most zones. In zones 3-6, it is safe to plant perennials, shrubs, and most annuals after your last frost date (check yours on our homepage). In zones 7-10, you can plant anything that handles summer heat.

The best move in May: fill the gaps. Walk through your garden and notice where there is no color. Then use our browse tool to find plants that bloom in your zone during the months you are missing. A garden that blooms from April through October does not happen by accident. It happens because someone stood in the garden in May and said "I need something here for August."

See what's blooming near you

Enter your zip code on the homepage to see exactly what blooms in your zone this month. Use our May bloom page for a curated list by zone, or build a full-season plan in the garden planner.