Both of my parents enjoyed growing flowers. My father would plant bulbs in the fall and we’d have Daffodils, Crocus, and Tulips in the Spring. Then he was done until time for the next Fall’s planting.
My mother maintained flower pots, flower beds and usually one rose bush. The flowers that most often grew were those you could buy as small plants at Walmart and the other big box stores. The rose bush was one that was grown as a cutting from one my grandmother had grown.
The flowers that I have listed below are those that I have found to be easy to grow and maintain.
1. Marigolds 
To me the Marigold is the easiest flower to grow. It takes very little care once in the ground and it will reseed for the next year. If you save a few seeds each year ‘just in case’, you will only ever have to buy one packet of seeds. I grow Marigolds in planters and in the ground around my tomatoes and other vegetables.
The Marigold has a scent but I wouldn’t describe it as fragrant or perfumey. You either like it for you don’t. I like it because it reminds me of the planter boxes my mom maintained in our front yard when I was growing up. Click here for my Marigold Growing Guide.
My favorite color is orange. Marigolds come in shades of orange, yellow, and red which is another reason I put them at the top of my list.
I sow Marigolds directly in the ground after danger of frost has past. They are not cold hardy and will die with the first frost. They like a sunny spot.
I take the spent blooms that have turned to seed and distribute them down the easement behind my house. I also like to throw them out the car window when driving down country lanes. I say share the beauty.
2. Zinnias 
Zinnias are another flower my mother would grow around our house. They are almost as easy to grow as Marigolds. Zinnias come in a variety of colors, even green. I grow a green zinnia called Envy. There are also varieties with different types of blooms. Zinnias make great cut flowers to take into the house or give to someone.
If you choose to grow Zinnias, I recommend that you grow them in mass. They grow tall and like to lean on their friends. They also enjoy reaching up in full sun.
In my experience, they tend to start looking a little ragged in late summer, particularly on the lower leaves. If you grow a shorter flower at their base, such as a dwarf marigold. It will help to camouflage it when this starts to happen.
I start Zinnias in seed trays in February. This gives me small plants to transplant outside once all danger of frost has passed. They germinate quickly and I am usually potting them up into small pots within a month.
3. Lantana 
I purchase Lantana plants each Spring from Walmart. I have two hanging baskets that I place on poles on each side of a fountain in my back yard. I like using Lantana in this location. The pollinators love the flowers, particularly the humming birds. Although I usually buy the orange-yellow flowered plants, they come in many other colors.
I have found that if I put the Lantana in a sunny location and water it daily during the hot summer, it thrives and blooms until Fall.
4. Petunia 
I have grown petunias in pots, hanging baskets and in the ground. I prefer them in pots and hanging baskets. The thing I like most about petunias are the vibrant colors you can get them in. I have not been successful growing them from seed but that’s a different story for a different time. I purchase them each Spring at Walmart, Lowe’s or Home Depot.
They bloom non-stop until frost if you dead head them, or remove the spent flowers. Petunias make a statement. You can see them from distance. I recommend that you plant two complimentary colors together or beside each other.
I live in Fayetteville, AR, the home of the Razorbacks of the University of Arkansas. The team colors are red and white. In the summer you will see red and white petunias in gardens and commercial landscaping all over town. I prefer those in shades of purple which I feel complement all the orange flowers that I regularly grow.
5. Iris 
I inherited a patch of Irises when I moved into the house where I now live. The previous resident had grown purple bearded and purple mini irises. This resident is a friend and bought the house next door and lives there now. The back yard in that house has a large bed of Irises. This past summer we started thinning them. This is good to do every 3-4 years. It had not been done in that bed for 15 or more years. We did this in July and have only completed a small portion of it. We will continue this coming July.
I have found the Irises to be almost maintenance free. They do not require a lot of fertilizing and the ones I have grow in dappled sun. When thinning those from next door, I created two new Iris beds in my own back yard. This coming summer will be the first year for them. They are also in dappled sun.
You can buy Irises in a variety of colors at all the big box stores. However, if you’re willing to wait a year, find a friend, family member or neighbor who is currently growing them and see if you can get free plants to start with. Irises grow from rhizomes which look like skinny sweet potatoes to me. Follow the directions on packaging to plant them. If you have received rhizomes, watch the video below on planting Irises.
6. Canna 
I have grown Cannas from both tubers and seeds. The first Canna seeds that I used were 8 years old at the time. I was excited when many of them actually germinated. Currently I have raised beds in one corner of my back yard. The beds are 3 feet wide. I grow Cannas in the back and elephant ears in the front. Last year I had Caladiums scattered among the elephant ears. They did well but this year I am going to place Caladiums in terra cotta pots in front of the elephant ears.
Cannas are grown mainly for their foliage. However, I like the Iris like flowers that they produce as well. Although most of mine are orange, I also have yellow, red, some yellow with red spots and others that are multi-colored orange and yellow. Cannas do quite well in the warm summers of Northwest Arkansas.
The winters of Arkansas can be brutal. The cold usually only lasts a few days at a time, but the temps can bounce. As I’m typing this, it is February 15, the daytime temp today is 65 and it is a beautiful sunny day. It is a Tuesday. The forecast on Thursday night is a temp of 17 degrees. Because of this, I dig up the Cannas in the Fall and place them in my garage for the winter. The garage temp stays between 35 to 50 degrees throughout the winter. Even on the coldest nights. I also dig up the elephant ears and caladiums and store them in the garage as well.
I do now of gardeners in this area who leave their Cannas in the ground during the winter. Since I have a place to store them, I do not want to chance losing them.
7. Hibiscus 
I am proud of my Hibiscus and also proud of the fact that I have never paid full price for the 8 that I own. These 8 are planted in pots at the moment. They also reside in my garage during the winter. During the first winter I had Hibiscus, I put them in the garage and didn’t water them the entire winter. They survived and bloomed beautifully the next Spring.
Since that first winter, I have been purchasing Hibiscus in the Fall when the weather starts turning cool. The big box stores will have plants that were bitten by frost. Hibiscus are very hardy and I pick these plants up for 1/2 to 1/4 of their original price. All 8 that I currently own are healthy and doing well in my garage at the moment. I water them once per month. I have it scheduled on my phone to water every month on the 14th.
During the Spring and Summer, I water the plants regularly, daily during the peak heat of the summer. I also fertilize them every 7-10 days. I have become obsessed with Hibiscus blooms. They are show stoppers. I currently have orange, red, and white. I also have one orange double bloomer. This year I want to add yellow, pink and any other colors that I do not currently own.
The blooms are large and can get heavy requiring that I stake some of the plants to keep them from flopping over. Also, I recently pruned the Hibiscus in my garage. I cut all stems back by 1/3. I do this every year in February. Please be aware that the Hibiscus are slow to break their dormancy and you may think them dead because they lag behind other plants. However, be patient, they will come out of dormancy in due time and they grow fast. The blooms appear in late summer and last until frost.
Summary
I have found these seven flowers to be easy to grow: marigolds, zinnias, lantana, petunias, Iris, Cannas, and Hibiscus. There are several other flowers that I grow every year sometimes with success, sometimes not so much. These seven however, I have had continual success in growing.
I am currently over-wintering bare rooted geraniums based on a YouTube video I watched on this process. I will provide more information on this in the Spring when I bring them out and replant them. I will leave a link here to a blog documenting my success or failure.
In future growing seasons I will add other flowers that I deem successful to this list. I do want to point out that I feed these plants with a liquid fertilizer every 7-14 days. I like a product called Tiger Bloom that I pick up at a local garden center.
Do you have flowers that you have found successful and can recommend for beginner gardeners to grow? If so, please tell us in the comment box below so we can give them a try.
If you have any questions about the flowers I have recommended above, please ask in the comment section below. I try to answer all questions.