With over 400,000 species of flowers in the world, there is a vast array of flower types. Flowers come in a spectacular range of shapes, sizes, colors, and characteristics based on their genus, species, and cultivar. Here is a comprehensive overview of the major categories of flowers and popular varieties within each group.
Annual Flowers
Annual flowers complete their entire lifecycle in one growing season. They germinate, mature, bloom, go to seed, and die all within a single year. Annuals must be replanted each year. Some of the most popular annual flowers include:
1. Marigolds – Available in shades of yellow, orange, red, bronze, cream, and multi colors with large, bold blooms. Very easy to care for.
2. Zinnias – Large, vibrant daisy-like flowers blooming in almost every color on tall plants. Excellent for cut flowers. Heat and drought resistant.
3. Petunias – Profuse amounts of single, double, or ruffled blooms all summer long. Available in many colors and patterned varieties. Require full sun.
4. Sunflowers – Iconic tall stems with bright yellow and yellow-orange flowers. Some giant varieties can grow over 12 feet tall. Require full sun and fertile soil.
5. Cosmos – Delicate, ferny foliage with colorful single, semi-double, and double blooms in summer and fall. Grow quickly in containers or gardens.
6. Snapdragons – Spiky towers of flowers resembling open dragon mouths. Colors include white, pink, red, yellow, peach, purple. Withstand cool weather.
7. Morning Glories – Climbing vines or bushes with trumpet-shaped blooms in shades of purple, blue, red, white, pink. Some have variegated leaves.
8. Sweet Peas – Climbing vines with extremely fragrant flowers in spring and summer. Colors include white, pink, red, purple, orange, yellow, blue.
9. Nasturtiums – Edible and ornamental annuals with round leaves and bright, funnel-shaped blooms. Grow easily from seed.
10. Calendula – Also called pot marigolds. Prolific bloomers with yellow and orange flowers that prefer cool weather and attract pollinators.
11. Alyssum – Dainty annuals prized for profuse clusters of tiny blooms in white, pink, purple. Withstand heat and attract butterflies.
Perennial Flowers
Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They regrow every spring from roots, bulbs, and stems that survived the winter. Some popular perennials include:
1. Peonies – Beloved for big, fluffy, fragrant blooms in late spring and early summer. Colors include white, pink, coral, red, yellow, lavender.
2. Daylilies – Named for flowers that only bloom for one day. Reblooming varieties available. Grow well in sun or shade.
3. Irises – Elegant flowers with ruffled petals in spring and early summer. Come in bearded and beardless varieties.
4. Hostas – Grown for foliage but some species produce spikes of tubular blooms. Available in many leaf colors, sizes, and variegations.
5. Lilies – Big, showy, often fragrant blooms in summer. Upright or nodding flowers in colors like white, pink, red, orange, yellow.
6. Roses – Available in bush, climbing, and shrub forms. Colors range from red, white, pink, yellow, orange and comprise hybrid teas, floribundas, grandifloras, and more.
7. Lavender – Fragrant purple flowers used in cooking, crafts, aromatherapy on compact shrubs. Tolerates heat and resists deer and pests.
8. Chrysanthemums – Abbreviated as “mums.” Big rounded flowers, some decorative and some edible. Grow as annuals or perennials depending on climate.
9. Asters – Daisy-like flowers in late summer and fall in colors like purple, pink, red, white. Attract butterflies.
10. Russian Sage – Long bloom period with lavender-blue spikes combined with attractive silver foliage. Drought tolerant.
Bulbs
Flower bulbs are special underground storage organs that regenerate every year into colorful blooms. Popular spring and summer bulbs include:
Tulips – Cup or goblet-shaped flowers in almost every color. Bloom in spring. Require a cold period to grow properly.
Daffodils – Trumpet or cup-shaped blooms in yellow, white, orange, pink, or multi colors. Often the first flowers to bloom in spring.
Crocus – Early spring bloomers with cup-shaped flowers in purple, yellow, white. Grow from corms planted in fall.
Hyacinths – Fragrant, bell-shaped flowers packed on dense spikes in shades of pink, purple, blue, white, yellow. Pre-chill bulbs prior to planting.
Alliums -round, pom pom-like flower heads ranging from grape sized to beach ball sized. Colors include purple, pink, white, yellow. Deer and rodent resistant.
Lilies – Large, showy, often fragrant blooms in white, pink, orange, red, yellow. Grow from bulbs, rhizomes, or tubers.
Gladiolus – Tall spikes lined with big, ruffled blooms summer into fall. Colors include red, pink, white, yellow, purple, orange.
Succulents
Succulents are plants with thick, fleshy leaves or stems that conserve water for arid climates. Many bloom in summer. Popular succulents include:
Echeveria – Rosettes of thick, colorful leaves like ‘Hens and Chicks.’ Some varieties produce spikes of bell-shaped blooms.
Sedum – Fleshy leaves. Flowers have starry shapes in white, pink, yellow, or red. Drought and heat tolerant.
Senecio – Tall stems with clusters of small tubular blooms in summer. Foliage may be gray, green, or variegated.
Kalanchoe – Many interesting leaf textures. Umbels of tiny flowers in orange, pink, yellow, white, or red.
Aeonium – Grow as single rosettes on stems. Cup-shaped blooms in yellow or white. Require partial shade in hot climates.
Tropical Flowers
Tropical flowers thrive in hot, humid environments and can’t withstand frost or freezing weather. Popular tropical flowers include:
Orchids – Available in thousands of species and hybrids. Unique shapes and colors. Grow as houseplants or outside in tropical zones.
Bougainvillea – Thorny vines covered in papery bracts of purple, pink, orange, white or multi colors rather than true flowers.
Heliconia – Banana-like plants with vibrant bracts in colors like orange, pink, yellow, green. The national flower of several tropical countries.
Plumeria – Fragrant blooms in white, pink, yellow, or red with a central yellow center on large shrubs. The traditional Hawaiian lei flower.
Hibiscus – Large, colorful, trumpet-shaped blooms in white, red, orange, pink, yellow and multi colors. Grow as tropical shrubs or houseplants.
Anthurium – Heart-shaped red, pink, white, green, orange bracts on tropical plants for cut flowers and houseplants.
Ginger – The colorful cone-shaped bracts of flowering gingers (not the kitchen spice) provide tropical flair in shades of red, pink, orange, yellow.
Wildflowers
Wildflowers are native plants that grow freely in the wild and have not been cultivated for gardens. Some common wildflowers include:
Black-Eyed Susans – Cheerful yellow and brown daisy-like blooms that grow in meadows. Official flower of Maryland.
Coneflowers – Pink, purple, white, or yellow daisy-like flowers native to the U.S. prairies and meadows.
Lupines – Spikes of pea-like flowers in shades of purple, blue, red, white, yellow. Grow well from seed and attract butterflies.
Poppies – Papery flowers with crepe petals. California poppies grow wild in the western U.S. with golden orange blooms.
Sunflowers – While cultivated as annuals, wild sunflowers grow freely across North America and can reach towering heights.
Dame’s Rocket – Sometimes considered an invasive weed but displays attractive phlox-like blooms in purple, pink, and white in late spring.
Trilliums – Three white, pink, or red petals atop a trio of leaves. Wild trillium is a woodland ephemeral that blooms before trees leaf out.
Conclusion
With such an incredible diversity of flowers in nature, there are always spectacular new blooms to discover in gardens, nurseries, and in the wild. Many provide habitat and food for pollinators while brightening the environment with natural beauty.