Flower ResourcesDiscover the right flowers for your garden.

It ’s summer , and the living is easy . This is the time of year when gardens really hit their stride . The undimmed sunshine and farsighted warm daytime result in an almost all-night explosion of vigorous development and brilliant color . Warm - season yearly , from angelonia to zinnias , come into their own , while a apparently endless parade of perennials and florescence shrubs ride a wave of uninterrupted bloom of youth . Even summer - blooming bulbs get into the enactment , with lilies and Dahlia pinnata at their peak .

This bighearted buffet of summertime - blooming bloom can be consuming to opt from . With so many alternative , there ’s no rightfulness or haywire . Pick those that mouth to your heart and give you the most delight . Here are some hear - and - genuine miscellany , with a few strange surprises sprinkled in .

SUMMER FLOWERS A-Z

picture by : Proven Winners .

ANGELONIA

Angelonia Angelface ® Steel Blue — Buy now from Proven WinnersAngeloniahybrid

Zones:10 - 11 , mature as an annual in most regionsHeight / Spread : vertical spreading habit , 18 to 30 inch tall and 12 to 18 inches wideExposure : Full sun

During the rut of summer when many other annuals take a disruption , this snapdragon see - alike preserve right on blooming . Angelonia can be massed as a bedding plant , used as nerve tract edging , or planted in a container with other annual . Combine Angelface ® Steel Blue with ‘ Marguerite ’ sweet potato vine and Superbells ® Grape Punch calibrachoa for a “ makeweight , trawl line , thriller ” effect .

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BLACK-EYED SUSAN

' Goldsturm’Rudbeckia fulgida

Zones:3 - 10Height / Spread : vertical go around habit , 2 - 3 fundament tall and 1 1/2 - 2 foot wideExposure : Full sun to fond shade

This classic summer perennial is an essential increase to any landscape . Exceptionally hardy , this long - lived prairie aboriginal grows in most zones . ‘ Goldsturm ’ is an melioration over the square species , with a more compact habit and large flowers . Combine with other mid - to - late summer bloomers such as sea holly ( Eryngium),bee balm , ‘ Karl Foerster ’ feather green goddess , and ‘ Autumn Fire ’ sedum .

Angelface Steel Blue Angelonia, Angelonia Hybrid, Summer Flower
Proven Winners
Sycamore, IL

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CANNA LILY

Canna Lily Toucan ® Coral — Buy now from Proven WinnersCanna generalis

Zones:8 - 11Height / facing pages : Upright habit , 2 - 1/2 to 4 understructure tall and 1 - 1/2 to 2 feet wideExposure : Full sun to partial shade

A splashy star of the summertime garden , canna lily adds striking flair to the landscape with its showy tropic - look foliage and colored bloom . The leaves , which are similar to banana , can be green , colorize , stripy , or model , adding an alien facial expression to borders and containers . flux this red coral - flowered variety with ‘ Sweetheart Purple’sweet white potato vine , ‘ Wizard Coral Sunrise’coleusor ‘ Crystal Blue’salvia .

Angelface Steel Blue Angelonia, Angelonia Hybrid, Summer Flower
Proven Winners
Sycamore, IL

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CONEFLOWER

Pow Wow Wild Berry — Buy now from Proven WinnersEchinacea purpurea

Zones:4 - 9Height / Spread : Upright branching drug abuse , 16 to 20 inches marvelous and 12 to 18 inches wideExposure : Full sunshine

This North American prairie indigene has been hybridized in a wide reach of colors and form . prise for its toughness , dependableness , and unworried nature , coneflower supports beneficial insects and other pollinators . Naturalize in a meadow garden , industrial plant in container or mass in a mixed border . Plant alongside other mid to previous summertime bloomers such asRussian sage , agastache , bee balm andyarrow .

Angelface Steel Blue Angelonia, Angelonia Hybrid, Summer Flower
Proven Winners
Sycamore, IL

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Photo by : Janet Loughrey .

COSMOS

‘ Sea Shells’Cosmos bipinnatus

Zones : farm as an annual in all zonesHeight / Spread : erect open habit , 3 - 5 feet tall and 2 feet wideExposure : Full sun

Even beginning gardeners will have success with this easy - care annual . The cheerful daisy - like flowers of this quintessential cottage garden favourite efflorescence all summer long , draw birds and pollinators to the garden . Scatter seed in a natural meadow , kitchen secret plan , or miscellaneous border . The fluted tubular flower petal of ‘ Sea Shells ’ lend a novelty element to the landscape painting as well as summertime bouquets .

Angelface Steel Blue Angelonia, Angelonia Hybrid, Summer Flower
Proven Winners
Sycamore, IL

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DAHLIA

‘ LAUREN MICHELE’Dahlia

Zones:8 - 11Height / Spread : Upright shaggy-haired habit , 4 to 5 feet tall and 1 to 2 feet wideExposure : Full sunlight

This mid - to - late season bloomer is a summertime favorite , with century of varieties in every color and form conceivable . Grown from tubers or semen , the bloom are exceptionally long - long-lasting , making them one of the best for summer bouquet . Plant in container , edge or mint in the landscape . Tubers can be dug and stored indoors for replanting the next year .

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FLOWERING TOBACCO

Flowering TobaccoNicotiana langsdorffii

Zones:10 - 11 , grow as an yearly in most regionsHeight / Spread : Upright open drug abuse , 3 to 5 feet tall and 1 to 2 foot wideExposure : Full sunshine

For quick color in containers and cottage - style delimitation , flowering tobacco is one of the easy summer - flower annuals to maturate , either from seed or commencement . The bell or trumpet - forge flowers , which are sometimes fragrant , are especially attractive to hummingbirds . Smaller eccentric can be mass as a bedding industrial plant , while tall stately form can be used as filler in a meadow garden or mixed border .

FUCHSIA

' Swingtime’Fuchsiahybrid

Zones:9 - 11Height / Spread : Trailing habit , 4 to 12 inches improbable and 18 to 24 inch wideExposure : Part sun to shade

A Mother ’s Day favorite , the delicate dangling flowers of fuchsia come in a wide array of colour , size and form , with many diverseness sturdy in temperate zones . give chase forms go well in hanging baskets , windowpane box and containers , while upright character can be implant in a bed or mixed boundary line . ‘ Swingtime ’ , an refined bicolor with ruffled petal , is one of the most pop for hanging baskets .

Learn to grow and care for fuchsia .

HYDRANGEA

Incrediball ® Smooth Hydrangea — Buy now from Proven WinnersHydrangea arborescens

Zones:3 - 8Height / Spread : Upright bushy habit , 4 to 5 feet marvellous and wideExposure : Full sunshine to fond spook

Few summer boo-boo are more dear than erstwhile - fashioned hydrangea . These sturdy shrubs descend in a wide range of people of color and size , from dwarf variety suitable to modest spaces and containers to stately tree forms that make a arresting statement in the landscape painting . industrial plant as a stand - alone focal point , in a miscellaneous border , as hedging , or mess along a slope for erosion control . peak are exceptional in cut bouquets and dry out agreement .

Read more ongrowing hydrangeas .

LAVENDER

Sweet Romance ® —Buy now from Proven WinnersLavandula angustifolia

Zones:5 - 9Height / Spread : Upright open habit , 12 to 18 inches tall and wideExposure : Full sun

This pop herb is maturate for its soothe fragrance . The peak and foliage are used in cooking , aromatherapy and many production such as liquid ecstasy and essential oil colour . Plant along a footpath , as hedging , massed along a side , or in a interracial borderline . The thickset size of Sweet Romance ® make it a good alternative for containers and small space .

Find out more onhow to grow and deal for lavender .

Photo courtesy : Ball Horticultural Company .

NEW GUINEA IMPATIENS

ColorPower ™ Peach FrostImpatiens hawkeri

Zones:10 - 12 , grow as an annual in most zonesHeight / Spread : Compact bushy habit , 8 to 10 inches tall and 10 to 12 inches wideExposure : fond sun to shade off

Traditional bedding impatiens have been upstaged in recent years by New Guinea and SunPatiens ® varieties in response to a growing trouble with sericeous mildew . This succinct spectre - broad one-year can be grow in containers , border or mass in the landscape painting , making it complete for apartment balcony , patio and small spaces . ColorPower ™ Peach Frost is an oculus - capture bicolor with gravid blossom and a farseeing blooming sentence .

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PETUNIA

Supertunia ® Bordeaux ™ —Buy now from Proven WinnersPetunia hybrid

Zones:9 - 11 , grown as an yearbook in most zonesHeight / Spread : Mounding spreading habit , 6 to 10 inches tall , 18 to 24 inch wideExposure : Full sun to fond shade

With regular feeding and warmer temperatures , petunias will reward with a riot of vividness all summer long . Use as bedding plants , in container , window boxful or hanging baskets . There are a dizzying regalia of color and design to choose from to go with any garden dash . Combine with other annual with similar needs such asverbena , lobelia , unfermented potato vine , orpelargonium .

Find out more onhow to turn and care for petunias .

QUEEN OF THE PRAIRIE

‘ Venusta’Filipendula rubra

Zones:3 - 9Height / Spread : upright piano disseminate drug abuse , 4 to 8 feet tall and 3 to 4 foot wideExposure : Full sunshine

This North American prairie indigene develop ethereal foamy flower plume in other to mid - summertime , add together height and dramatic play to mixed border and naturalised landscapes . The refined industrial plant is attractive on its own , with an elegant habit and deeply lobate leaf . ‘ Venusta ’ is one of the tallest , with up - facing finger - like leaves and red stems . Combine with sea holly , Nepeta cataria , liatris , and ornamental locoweed .

ROSE OF SHARON

Summerific ® ‘ Holy Grail’—Buy now from Proven WinnersHibiscushybrid

Zones:4 - 9Height / Spread : Upright bushy wont , 4 to 4 - 1/2 feet tall and 4 - 1/2 to 5 feet wideExposure : Full sun to partial shade

bestow tropical flair to your landscape painting with the outsize bloom of youth of hibiscus . This various annual or perennial can be massed in the landscape or planted in a assorted border or container . Summerific ® ‘ Holy Grail ’ is a hardy recurrent shrub with racy scarlet blooms and dark purple leafage , making it a good pick as a dramatic stand - alone accent or focal point .

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SEA HOLLY

‘ Miss Willmott ’s Ghost’Eryngium giganteum

Zones:4 - 9Height / Spread : just candid habit , 3 to 4 feet grandiloquent and 2 to 3 feet wideExposure : Full sunshine

Sea holly summate an element of surprisal and dramatic play to the landscape , with downhearted cone - shaped flowers besiege by barbed bracts in shades of white , silver medal , green or blue . This dead - lived recurrent or two-year is especially attractive to bees and other insect pollinators . Combine withconeflower , coreopsis , or drumstick alliums . ‘ Miss Willmott ’s Ghost ’ has big pale blue heyday with facile - grey bract .

SNEEZEWEED

‘ Mardi Gras’Helenium

Zones:4 - 8Height / Spread : good bushy habit , 3 to 4 feet tall and 1 to 3 feet wideExposure : Full sunlight

pollyannaish daisy - like flowers light up the garden from mid to late summertime in color of red , orange and yellow . This aboriginal perennial is tough and dependable , perfect for timber , meadows , interracial perimeter and natural gardens . Combine withblack - eyed Susan , Joe pye weed , Russian sage andornamental grasses . ‘ Mardi Gras ’ has variable blooms in solid or brushstroke color of burnt orange and yellow .

SUNFLOWER

‘ Autumn Beauty’Helianthus annuus

Zones : Grown as an annual in all zonesHeight / Spread : Upright habit , 5 to 6 feet tall and 1 to 1 - 1/2 infantry wide . vulnerability : Full sun

Nothing aver summertime like a bucolic field of stately sunflowers . Though yearly forms are most commonly grown , there are recurrent type as well . There are even dwarf forms suited to small urban spaces and containers . uprise in a cottage - elan border , kitchen garden , or other sunny internet site in the yard . Birds and bees will love them , too .

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TICKSEED

‘ Jethro Tull’—Buy now from Proven WinnersCoreopsishybrid

Zones:4 - 9Height / Spread : thickset mounding substance abuse , 12 to 18 inches tall and wideExposure : Full sun

The cheerful flowers of tick-weed are indisputable to clear up up any landscape painting . This honest perennial or annual is virtually maintenance - complimentary and drought - kind , with many varieties native to North American prairie and woodland . This tenacious flub provides an authoritative reference of food for louse pollinators and bird . Use as abut along a pathway , mass along a slope , naturalise with other natives , plant in a motley border or container .

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TIGER FLOWER

Tiger FlowerTigridia pavonia

Zones:8 - 10Height / Spread : Upright habit , 1 to 2 feet tall and 5 inch wideExposure : Full sun

For an alien look that is sure to garner attention , this underutilized South African bulb will add a unique speck to a border or container . Also called Mexican shell flower , the showy blooms are brilliantly colored with a flecked center . Treat this easy - to - grow lightbulb as an annual in nerveless zones or dig the bulbs and store indoors over the winter to replant the following year .

ZINNIA

Magellan ™ ScarletZinnia elegans

Zinnia is one of the most beloved summertime annuals , with long - lasting flowers that are special in gelded bouquets . Their use in the landscape is various , from groundcover types such as ‘ Profusion ’ that can be massed as bedding plants , to stately ‘ Benary ’s Giant ’ for cottage - style molding and cut gardens . This intermediate - sized red variety tally a pollyannaish burst of bright color as pathway edging or massed along a gradient .

Find out more ongrowing zinnias .