I love orange flowers and I’m guessing if you are reading this post that you probably do too. I have A LOT of favorite flowers and quite a few of my favorites are orange. Some are perennials, some are annuals. Read on if you want to know what your garden is missing.
Geum
I love geums because they have very small intensely bright orange flowers. They also have nice dark green mounds of foliage which make them attractive even when they are not in bloom. Geums bloom in early summer and bloom best when planted in full to part sun. While geums are a perennial in Iowa, it is often a short lived one.
Zinnias
Zinnias are just one of my favorite flowers period- their sunny little faces can brighten up any pot or garden in a matter of minutes. They also take full sun like a champ and I love using them in my cut flowers arrangements. I typically purchase zinnias from the garden center if I plan to put them in a pot as these varieties stay smaller and more compact for planters. If I want them for cut flowers I plant them by seed in my garden each year (although sometimes they willdo reseed themselves). My favorite orange variety of zinnias to grow for cut flowers are Benary’s Giants Orange.
Torch Sunflower
Torch Sunflower (also known as Mexican Sunflowers) are an amazing orange flower. Their petals are almost look velvety and have this lush dark orange color that is really phenomenal. They grow easily from seed when I plant them in my garden each year, typically growing around 4-5′ tall. The make a great cut flower for arrangements and have prolific blooms on the plants until the first frost in the fall. Absolutely love this plant!
Sierra Sunset Coreopsis
I’m a sucker for a good coreopis. These pretty little daisy like flowers capture my heart every time I see their prolific blooms covering a plant. This particular variety starts off with a really nice bright sunny orange color and gradually and transitions to this pretty peachy color. They do great in full sun and well drained soils. They will also rebloom if you dead-head or trim back the old spring/summer blooms.
Tulips
Tulips are a great way to add some early spring color to the garden and there are plenty of pretty orange tulip varieties. I fell in love with variety last year show below which is called Princess Irene. I loved the compact nature of this particular tulip and how it was edged in magenta. Other pretty varieties include Orange Emperor and Daydream.
Poppies
There are many varieties of poppies but one my favorite perennial varieties for our area is one called Summer Breeze orange poppies. They are absolutely a treat in the garden. Their happy little faces greet me in early summer with a prolific amount of blooms. This particular type of poppy is nice and compact, only growing 12-15″ tall and wide so they make a great border plant and the deer don’t bother them either. I look forward to these little beauties every year.
Nasturtiums
Nasturtiums are a lovely addition to any garden for their pretty orange and yellow blooms but also because these blooms happen to be edible as well! Their blooms have a spicy peppery taste similar to arugula that can be added to salads for a colorful component. I love them too because my grandmother used to grow them so they always make me think of her when I see them. I’ve grown them from both seed and plant starts. The best advice I received was to rough up seeds with sandpaper and soak overnight before planting and I had much better germination rate when doing this. My favorite variety is the Alaska Mix because of the variegated foliage and multi colored blooms.
Dwarf Leonotis
The plant above is called Dwarf Leonotis. The picture below was taken on October 31st of last year. I knew that when I saw this gorgeous orange plant blooming that day that I had to have one for my garden, I ended up planting 12 of these plants in my gardens this spring. In the back of my head I knew these were a late summer fall blooming annual and told myself it will be worth the wait. I know it will be, I’m still patiently waiting for them to bloom (in a not so patient sort of way- when is it finally going to happen???) but when the rest of the garden is shutting down and these magnificent beauties take off it will be spectacular.
Butterfly Milkweed
Butterfly Milkweed should be in every garden in the midwest. Its gorgeous orange color is enough to make us orange junkies drool with happiness but it also has a host of other benefits. It is also the only host plant for the monarch butterfly caterpillars and its flowers also provide nectar for plenty of other pollinators. Oh did I mention it is a native plant and can handle drought like conditions AND the deer don’t like it either? You’re welcome- that’s why one of my favorite plants should be yours too! Plant one in a sunny spot in your garden and I swear you won’t be disappointed.
Coneflowers
There are some absolutely lovely varieties of orange coneflowers are the market today but one of my favorites is called Julia coneflower. The flowers are a rich deep orange and they are very large in size- up to 4″ across. The plant itself is tidy and compact and holds the flower heads up very well for their large size. Some of my other favorite orange coneflowers are tiki torch and cheyenne spirit.
Azaleas
I just has an orangeasm and went to heaven. Love love love the vibrant orange color from this beautiful Mandarin Lights Azalea. There isn’t anything quite as magnificent as an azalea shrub covered in a mass of orange blooms in the spring time. This shrub is perfect for adding that bright spot of spring color to the garden. Plant it in full to part sun.
Lilies
Orange pixie lilies make an easy addition to any garden. I love their small size (12-15″ tall) and the great show they put on when they bloom. Their vibrant orange color adds a splash of spectacular to any garden. Their compact natures also makes them easy to pop into those small pockets along walkways and bare spots in gardens.
I would love to hear about your favorite orange flowers so I can add them to my garden. Please send a comment my way and let me know what I should plant next.