Attracting Bees and Butterflies to Your Garden This Summer

Nothing adds beauty to your landscape like splashes of colorful flowers. Many are old favorites and some may be new to you. We’ve put together a list of the top 10 summer flowers that beautify your landscape and require less water and maintenance than many others. You can get them at your local garden center and transplant them into pots or right into the ground. You’ll make a fantastic statement by adding these colorful beauties to your patio, porch or landscape.

1. Pineapple lily. Interestingly, though this flower is definitely not a pineapple, it certainly resembles one! Even more interestingly, pineapple lilies are actually related to asparagus and absolutely thrive during the summer. The pineapple lily typically grows to about 12″ – 15″ tall, making it perfect for indoor planting, too. Outdoors, it’s great in either pots or flower beds.

2. Gloriosa Daisy, aka the Black Eyed Susan. This gorgeous flower has bright yellow or orange petals and a deep brown to black center. It’s also perfect for summer planting, though it can survive cooler weather, too. The gloriosa daisy grows to around 3.5′ tall and attracts friendly pollinators, such as bees, butterflies and hummingbirds, adding an extra dash of natural beauty to your landscape.

3. Gaillardia Aristata, aka Blanket Flowers. These flowers come in bright yellows and reds and are related to sunflowers (another great summer flower!). They do very well in hot weather and are often used to create entire flower fields of color in landscapes. The gaillardia aristata also brings butterflies to your yard.

4. Surprise lily, aka Resurrection Lily and, because it sometimes grows during hurricane season, the Hurricane Lily. These exquisite flowers produce a wonderful scent and bloom in the sweetest whites and pinks. Note: some parts of the Surprise Lily are poisonous, so do not consume this plant!

5. Daylilies. First, this flower is not actually a lily! It got the name daylily because the flowers open in the morning and close at night. They’re gorgeous and very low maintenance. Hearty flowers, they easily adapt to all seasons. This is one summer flower that is also edible. If you plan to eat them, buy organic!

6. Daffodils. No summer flower garden is complete without beautiful daffodils. They usually start blooming in spring, but continue throughout the summer.

7. Sunflowers. This is one of the best summer flowers. You can plant them purely for looks or as a crop, harvesting their delicious and nutritious seeds. They easily handle heat and dry conditions. Plus, they’re just fun! Not too many flowers make us grown-ups feel like little kids when we stand next to them; sunflowers surely do, though!

8. Hibiscus. Here is a multi-purpose flower if ever there was one. Hibiscus not only adds blooms of a variety of bright colors to your landscape, they’re also edible. Many people even make tea with hibiscus flowers.

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9. Aster. This flower gets its name from the Latin word for star, which is certainly appropriate. Asters are perfect wildflowers for a summer garden. Their bright blooms, in a variety of colors, bring butterflies to your landscape. They are also low maintenance.

10. Plumeria. This beauty is actually a tree and is typically found in subtropical or tropical areas. The blooms of the plumeria are amazing! You’ll get clusters of flowers in pinks, purples, yellows, whites, or reds, depending on the variety. The tree will continue to grow throughout the year.

You can’t go wrong with these top 10 summer flowers that beautify your landscape. You’ll save water, time & effort and have a gorgeous, multi-colored view to enjoy every day!