Looking for Easy-to-grow Flowers

Have you tried buying mums or other flowers that already have blooms on them. I have done this in the past and had success. Seeds don't work very well for me either.

S. A.

I've had good luck with petunias of various colors. I water them with Miracle Gro once every 2 weeks (usually every other Sunday afternoon) and they look great. Although they're supposed to be annuals, I always have some come back by themselves the next year. I don't know why.

Blue Daze! pretty green foliage, gorgeous blue flowers, cheap! Drought tolerant and if it gets too dry they "let you know" and will come back fairly quickly when watered (kind of like those "heart leaf" houseplants. Also try the name brand "wave" petunias - home depot carries both of these and will guarantee them.

Try Lillies, Lavender or Phlox. They seem to withstand anything.

I would try Nasturtiums. They are so easy to grow, and BOY do they grow. The flowers are actually edible (if you are into that sort of thing) and you can get them in all different colors. I always plant them in my vegatable garden for an extra zing. :)

I can competely sympathize with you J.! Last year was the first year I've ever had any luck with flowers at all- after several years of trial and error. I had the best "easy" to grow luck with morning glorys (they climb and spread, but look lovely going up an ugly chain link fence) mums, gladolias, petunias and coleus. Inside I actually kept 3 African Violet plants alive for well over a year until my kitten killed them! I started everything that was a seed indoors and then transplanted them outside when the roots were well established. (do this in phases or you'll have a ton of plants to keep track of!) I also used the Miracle Grow spray feeder once a week- you attatch the feeder to your hose and water like usual. If you have clay like soil like I do getting many plants to thrive is difficult. I tried to plant some azalea bushes, but they just couldn't take it. Another thing to pay attention to is the "full sun" "part sun" "full shade" and "part shade" reccomendations on the plants themselves, as well as the planting zone you live in. Good luck, and just keep trying. I've killed more plants than I've grown, but I have fun trying every year!

Marigolds and Gazanias are two of the hardiest flowers in the universe and bloom from Spring through the fall...You can both them both in plantings and not do the seed thing unless you have allot of patience....
It could be that your sprinklers are overwatering your flowers....many of the hardier ones don't need tons of watering especially in this area.
Also Cosmos if started from plants are very abundent and can get very large and colorful...
The latter part of the season try planting bulbs for next spring...tulips, iris, etc...as long as you plant them according to direction and put a bit of straw over them during the winter months, they are so pretty as they begin to bloom....Keep trying and don't give up...buy plants that look healthy, make sure they are moist when you put them in the ground and start them out with a good planting mix and you will succeed!!!! Happy spring and summer, I know you will get blooms!!!

I have always had really good luck with impatients. They grow really good for me. I dig the hole and put some potting soil in the bottom of the hole and I have a bucket of miracle grow mixed with water and I pour a little in the bottom of the hole. Just enough to make the soil wet and then I put my flower in the hole and cover it up with dirt. Hope this helps.

all i can grow are begonias. they are easy and they spread out to fill in the whole bed, so it looks full and lush. the red ones are good for full sun and the white ones are good for shady areas. if you put the white ones in full sun, the blooms will burn. you just plant them like, four to six inches apart, water them right after you plant them, and then forget about them. especially if you have a sprinkler system. if they start to look a little burned on the leaves, give them a water. but they are soooooo easy. if i can grow them, anyone can.

If you have lots of red clay, it could be the soil that is keeping your flowers from flourishing. Many flowers want soil that drains water easily. You could try mixing topsoil and sand into the ground where they are planted. Irises are pretty easy to grow, they just need a little lime to get lots of blooms. Vinca are pretty easy to grow, they like to pop up year after year. Daffodils are pretty low maintenance. The three of them would provide spring and summer blooms for you. Good luck!

Try stella d'ora day lillies in full sun. They are a prennial, bloom all summer and require very little care...you will only need to water them if we have a draught like last summer's! :)

Try portulacca, they are drought resitant have pretty blooms, and can be planted in any type of soil. They like full sun and very little water. But will do ok if your getting plenty rain. They spread quick and come in a variety of colors. also gerber daisyies and begonias are some easy flowers.

A couple of flowers that I've had success with and are easy to grow are impatients (shade) and petunias (sunny). They come is several colors and look good massed together. Good luck! I hope you get some flowers to grow! :)

if you want flowers and greenery with out much care at all; do this... in the sun DAYLILLIES!!! no care, no worries and beautiful blooms to pick from. plant plants not seeds. water to start and let um go! they spread and bloom and bloom. and after they bloom take out some anger by popping off their dead heads.;-) and if you forget to then you will have seeds that reseed. and you'll just have more daylillies. they come in a bounty of colors bloom sizes and double triple and more. always pick at least 3 ones that smell good. have fun cause they (at least for me) pretty much take care of themselves. in the shade... hostas. (hostas have different size leaves and different colored flowers they are very showy in the greenery department different green color shades) each die down in the fall and comeback more in the spring. good luck!

Dear J.,

I too have killed my share of flowers. You could take a photograph of your landscape to your local plant grower. They can help you choose flowers that are "hardy" for the type of area you wish to plant. I chose a grower that guarenteed my flowers for one year. I now have a lovely flower garden wtih flowers that bloom at different times of the year. Good Luck!

Marigolds are easy as long as they don't get too much water. They keep pest bugs away. I've always had great luck with the Lilliput variety of Zinnia. Try perennial Salvia. Maybe a native plant--assuming you are from the midwest--like Purple Coneflower or Rudbeckia (aka Black Eyed Susan)?

I have a black thumb too. I find buying the flats of growing young plants (like Marigolds, zinnas etc.) and planting a small. concentrated little garden is satisfying. You might try container gardening too. That's where you get a huge pot or half barrel, and make a little mini garden. Look on-line for instructions--Southern Living or Martha Stewart probably have hints. Give your children their own pots to work with and you could have a grand time. Also, I adore poodles--full strengh, or mixed, they're just the best! I have 2 standards now--way too big, but sweet and funny. Good luck growing your plants, and your beautiful family.

I am the same way with flowers... they just DIE, whatever I plant... BUT last year I tried pansies, and they were SO HEARTY! I've barely had to do anything, and they've been flourishing now for at least 4-5 months!

Good luck!
C.

Hey J...The best performing perrinals I have are cone flower,rudebeckia,and bee balm (monarda)for sunny spots...and for shade hosta,bleedinghearts, and astilbe... Have you tested your soil's PH? and do you make sure to loosen your soil or planting area really well and about 3 times larger than your plant?

Hi J.,

I don't know how much experience or info you have, so please don't think I'm being condescending. Anyway, that said, the first thing you need to look at is how much sun or shade the planting area gets. This means throughout the day. For instance in my yard I have places that get sun all day; some that get morning sun but shade the rest of the day; some that get shade in the morning but some evening sun; and of course I have places that are shady all day long. On the plants there is always a tag that suggests what type of light they should be planted in and you should pay close attention to them. If a sun=loving plant is placed in the shade it will become "leggy" from trying to reach the sunshine and also may not bloom at all. If a shade-loving plant is placed in the full sun it will simply wither and die. If you have any more specific questions I'd love to help. Just let me know. Good luck!
P.

There could be soil issues, but I'm the same way...the Typhoid Mary of the plant world. Hastas. They're almost impossible to NOT grow...abundantly and hardily. They're perrenials and come back fuller each year.

I have had luck here planting petunias and pansies. (One is good for really hot temp. and one is good even for early frost.) I can't remember :) They are the ones that come in little six packs or four packs and you pop the little dirt out with a flower on top. They are so easy! One tip I have done is to kinda loosen the roots (massage it like) from the package before replanting/repoting. I buy some of those at any place... Home Depo., Lowes, Wal-Mart, etc. Then I place them in dirt of only Mirical Grow (that is key). Watering though helps in the hot summer, I do it each day. Also, it can take some time to plant them, but just buy enough for like an hour plant/pot six of them. (I do like 50! Big project but they look great!)

Gerber daisies. Buy the plant, stick it in the ground and enjoy. They come back also. I literally don't do anything to them. Very pretty & lots of colors to choose from. Good luck. Chas

The soil needs of grass and shrubbery are a little different from those of flowers. Try correcting soil in your beds (depending on where you live)with "Black Cow" when you plant. I have the same problem as you. Black thumbs are a curse. My Aunt actually uses the containers that her annuals come in by just cutting the bottom out of the container. That way she knows that they are being planted at the proper depth for the size of plant and sticks them in the ground. Try it and see if it works for you.

First off have soil tested.You can find test kits where you buy seeds.That way you know if the soil is missing anything and what.Second as for easy plants to grow..sunflowers come to mind...pansies,snapdragons these grow great if you pinch the top of at planting,makes them fuller plus there are different heights.Talk to your local nursary for ideas and tell them whats happening and what you want.Conversation is free...good luck..
S. B

I always have great luck with zinnia. They need full sun or mostly sun. Just buy a bunch of those 10 cent zinnia seed packets, and scatter them randomly in the garden. Then, take a rake and give them a once over to cover with dirt. You will need to water them well after planting, or plant them a couple of days before a good rain shower. After that, they do pretty well on their own with little or no intervention. They even grew (not as much) during last years drought when we could not water at all. They bloom all summer long and are great for cut flowers.