What Are Flower Type Plants to Grow a Garden? Your Easy Guide to Choosing the Perfect Blooms

Wondering what are flower type plants to grow a garden that will thrive? Whether you have a big backyard, a sunny balcony, or just a promising corner, creating your dream garden is totally possible. It all starts with picking the right plants. Let’s explore the different types of flowers you can choose from, helping you plan a beautiful, easy-care space that looks great all season. This guide is here to answer exactly what are flower type plants to grow a garden that fit your specific conditions.

The Backbone of Your Garden: Perennial Flowers to Grow

Perennial plants are the reliable foundation. They come back year after year, giving your garden lasting structure and color. When considering what are flower type plants to grow a garden for long-term impact, perennials are a top choice.

Hydrangeas are true garden show-stoppers. Varieties like ‘Endless Summer’ bloom from early summer right into fall. They love part-shade. Here’s a fun fact: soil acidity changes their flower color! Acidic soil brings blue blooms, while neutral soil gives you pink or mixed clusters.

Coneflower is a tough perennial. It handles heat and drought like a champ and brings in butterflies and bees. Its unique cone center and drooping petals add a lovely, wild look.

Hostas are the perfect answer for shady spots. They’re famous for their beautiful, broad leaves that come in solid green, variegated, and more. Come summer, they send up elegant flower spikes. They’re super hardy and low-fuss.

Astilbe is another shade-loving star. It has feathery plumes in white, pink, or deep red. It prefers moist soil and adds soft, romantic color and texture to those darker garden nooks.

Blanket Flower is practically foolproof. It’s drought-tolerant and thrives in poor soil, pumping out bright red, yellow, and orange blooms all summer long.

Seasonal Surprises: Bulb Flowers for Your Garden

Bulbs deliver amazing seasonal color. You typically plant them in the fall for a spectacular spring or summer show. They are a key part of what are flower type plants to grow a garden for seasonal drama.

Tulips are the classic spring symbol. Plant the bulbs in autumn for a vibrant display next spring. They look incredible planted in big, bold groups.

Daffodils are some of the first heralds of spring. Their cheerful yellow or white flowers brighten up the winter-weary garden. They’re sturdy, and most animals leave them alone.

Dahlias are the dramatic queens of the late garden. The variety in size, form, and color is stunning (over 30,000 varieties exist!). Plant the tubers in spring for non-stop flowers from mid-summer until frost.

Hyacinths offer bold color and a rich, wonderful fragrance. They’re perfect near a porch or along a path. You can also grow them in pots or even in water.

Instant Color Fillers: Annual Flowers to Grow

Annuals live their whole life in one growing season. They’re your go-to for quickly filling beds, pots, and hanging baskets with long-lasting color. If you’re deciding what are flower type plants to grow a garden for quick, vibrant impact, annuals are essential.

Petunias are marathon bloomers. They flower from spring until frost in just about every color and pattern imaginable. They explode with color in hanging baskets or garden beds.

Zinnias love the heat and bloom all summer. Their bright, cheerful flowers attract butterflies and make excellent cut flowers.

Marigolds are a friendly companion in both vegetable and flower gardens. They’re easy to grow and are said to help repel some pests. You’ll enjoy their flowers from late spring to fall.

Sunflowers are vibrant and easy to grow from seed. Beyond the classic tall yellow types, look for shorter, branching varieties perfect for pots, in colors like red and rusty orange.

Top Picks for Balconies & Containers to Grow

If your gardening space is a balcony, patio, or porch, these plants will perform beautifully in containers. Figuring out what are flower type plants to grow a garden in pots opens up so many possibilities.

Lavender needs full sun. It’s drought-tolerant, and its foliage and blooms have a relaxing scent that pollinators love. English lavender varieties are quite hardy.

Herbs & Succulents like rosemary, aloe, jade plant, and sedum are great choices. They often need less water, love sunshine, and add interesting shapes—perfect solo or in mixed pots.

Ornamental Grasses & Ferns such as switchgrass or Boston fern bring movement and soft texture to container arrangements. Boston ferns need to stay moist and appreciate humidity.

Dwarf Fruit Trees, like a lemon tree, can grow happily in a large, sunny pot. You get fragrant spring flowers and the joy of homegrown fruit (just bring it indoors before winter in cold climates).

Creating a Romantic Cottage Garden Feel

If you love the lush, informal charm of an English cottage garden, these plants are essential. They are classic answers to what are flower type plants to grow a garden with timeless charm.

Start with the classic cottage garden trio: Foxglove with its tall spires of bell-shaped flowers adds incredible vertical interest. Delphinium follows with its stunning spikes of blue, pink, or white that look like floral spires. Lupine brings wild beauty with its palmate leaves and dense, colorful flower towers.

Don’t forget other cottage garden souls: Hollyhock planted along a fence creates a stunning, tall backdrop of summer blooms. Dianthus forms low, neat mounds with long-blooming, often fringed flowers, perfect for lining a garden path.

Low-Maintenance Plants for Beginners to Grow

Just starting your gardening journey? Build confidence with these tough, easy-care plants. When unsure what are flower type plants to grow a garden as a newbie, start with these reliable picks.

Creeping Phlox is a perennial that forms a stunning carpet of pink, white, or purple flowers in spring. It’s hardy and drought-tolerant once established.

Coreopsis sports bright yellow flowers that bloom from summer into fall. It’s very adaptable to dry and poor soils.

Speedwell produces beautiful blue or pink flower spikes that bees adore. It’s adaptable and reliable.

Salvia varieties like woodland sage or ‘May Night’ have long-blooming, drought-tolerant flower spikes in gorgeous shades of blue and purple. They’re excellent for filling in borders.

Heuchera (Coral Bells) is grown mainly for its foliage, which comes in an amazing array of colors like purple, gold, and bright orange. It’s a champion for lighting up shady spots.

Planning What to Grow in Your Garden

As you choose what are flower type plants to grow a garden, keep a few practical things in mind.

Check the light. Is your space full sun, part-shade, or full shade? This is the most important factor when picking plants.

Know your soil and water. Most plants need soil that drains well. Understand how your garden soil behaves.

Find your hardiness zone. Look up your USDA Plant Hardiness Zone to pick plants that can survive your local winters.

Think about layers and combinations. Place tall plants (like foxglove) in back, medium ones (like hydrangea) in the middle, and low-growing or creeping plants (like dianthus or heuchera) in front. Mix plants with different bloom times, leaf shapes, and textures for a garden that’s interesting all year.

Gardening is a joyful journey. There’s no need to do everything at once. Start with a few plants you love, watch them grow, and learn as you go. The real goal is to create a green space that feels uniquely yours and brings you peace. Your local nursery is waiting—head over and see what are flower type plants to grow a garden that call out to you today.