I love having flowers in my gardens. They attract bees, butterflies, other pollinators and some flowers actually repel the unwanted bugs and pests.

       Here is a sampling of some of the flowers in my small backyard.

They have all been easy to grow for the zone I live in to grow.(8b,(mostly9&10),11)

We can grow flowers & veggies year around .

Geraniums

 

There are approximately 422 species of this annual plant. They like full sun, and mine do very well in mostly shade! They stay all year long where I live and are super easy to grow and propagate. I have a video on TicTok about Geraniums. @avah0070

The leaves and flowers are safe to eat and have been said to have medicial benefits. People make essential oils out of the flowers, leaves and stems. I have not tried this, if you have please let me know how they taste and what benefits you have found in them.

HollyHocks

I had a friend over 20 yrs ago give me some seed from her garden of HollyHocks and I am still growing them year after year from what she gave me! I save the seeds and give them to my family and friends too. 

The seeds spread and reseed easily and, year after year I don't even try to plant them any more, they reseed themselves.

I do not get any allergic reaction from touching them as I have read that some people with contact can trigger a redness to your skin. Hollyhocks are non-poisonous to dogs and cats. 

Elegant Zinnias

I bought a Dollar Tree box of mixed flower seeds and the Zinnias really did well from the mixture.

My flower garden has so many that grew from that box. The Zinnias have to be replanted every year, they love full sun!! Maybe that's why they are doing well in my garden. They are great for attracting bees and butterflies as pollinators. They are SO colorful and really add to the beauty of the garden. Turns out that they are great to plant next to tomatoes to help protect them from common garden pests and I have many right next to my tomatoes. 

Bougainvilleas and Nasturtium

Bougainvilleas are so hardy!I don't need to water a lot which is good for where I live.

It comes in many different colors. I love this white one in my yard. It grows SO much I have to constantly cut it back.

Nasturtium is a very hardy flower. It loves full sun. It reseeds itself and comes back year after year. Nasturtiums are great for drawing away pests in the garden. I planted mine near my tomatoes and squash plants. They can also attract bees and butterflies too!

The leaves and the petals are eatable. It contains high levels of Vitamin C and has many claims of  health benefits. I would research the eatable uses of it before eating. There are some cautions to take when eating could cause stomach aches and other side effects.

Star Jasmine and Stone plant

Star Jasmine flowers once a year. They are so fragrant and beautiful. I love how mine grows and climbs  on the fence and is a gorgeous hedge. They are super easy to grow and stays all year around. The growing zone I am in is Zones 9 and 10.

The pink flower from this succulent is from the Stone Plant family. It doesn't need a lot of water and flowers once a year like this one. Its a great addition to my succulent garden.

I had a "rock pond" in my back yard and could never get it to work properly. So my son in law, @Byron Talbott , suggested I put some dirt in it and have a succulent garden. It was the perfect suggestion and is totally doing well and so beautiful.

Chrysanthemums and Marvel of Peru

This Chrysanthemum was a plant that I bought from Costco in fall 2021 and decided to replant it and see what will happen. It has flourished and doing well in my front flower garden. I loved the color for my fall decor and now its coming back!

The Marvel of Peru is a plant that I have had for many years. I bought a seed packet not know anything about it. They reseed them selves and come back year after year. They actually take over the little flower garden area where they grow. They open in the morning and close in the heat of the day. 

China Rose and Sweet Alyssum

The China Rose is my favorite color and was why I bought this rose bush. It has been growing so well and will flower on and off all year long.

The Sweet Alyssum was a total surprise to me. I bought a six pack from Home Depot and just planted it here in a super large pot. I had other plants in the pot and just planted to see what would grow. It grew and grew until it was overflowing over the pot. I also have planted some succulent in this pot to see how they will grow. They are doing well !

Much of my planting is trial and error. It's not that I am a great gardener. I never give up and just keep trying.  I have had MANY planting fails.  It makes me so happy to just get outside , walk barefooted around my yard and try , try , try!

Happy Planting and best wishes from 

Avah's Garden.