10 Low-Maintenance Plants for Your Flower Garden

For beginner gardeners, it’s essential to grow plants that don’t require too much attention and care.

Are you looking to start your first flower garden? Maybe you’ve admired your neighbor’s garden, and now you want to see if you have a green thumb, too. Or perhaps you’ve just moved into your first home and are ready to spruce up your yard.

Low-maintenance plants and flowers are a great way to start your gardening journey. That’s why Blain’s Farm & Fleet is here to help you find some of the easiest plants to care for.

Before Getting Started

Before you get started, you will want to make sure you have proper supplies to care for your garden. We suggest buying some basic gardening tools, such as a trowel, a watering can, garden shears, and gardening gloves.

Low-Maintenance Plants for Your Garden

We recommend you get a good mix of both flower and green, leafy plants. This will help give your garden variety and balance.

And having a few leafy plants other than flowers will be great for filling empty space. They will also help create separation between different types of flowers.

1. Coneflower

Coneflowers are beautiful, low-maintenance perennial flowers that are quite hardy, and they love being in full sunlight. They’re relatively drought tolerant and make great cut flowers. They come in several different colors and bloom in the summer and fall.

They do well in USDA Hardiness Zones 3 to 9.

2. English Ivy

English Ivy is a vigorous-growing evergreen vine. It can thrive clinging to buildings, fences, and tree trunks.

It is wonderful for attracting wildlife, including many nectar-feeding insects. Many different species of birds eat its berries. Some animals also use these low-maintenance plants as a shelter.

They prefer growing zones 4 through 13.

3. Cosmos

Cosmos are pretty, little annual flowers that make good border or container plants. They love full sunlight and can grow in a variety of soils. They need plenty of moisture to get started, but they’re very drought tolerant.

Beekeepers love them because they attract bees and butterflies to your garden.

Cosmos can grow in zones 3 through 10.

4. Hostas

Do you have shade and and ample rainfall? Then you’ll be able to grow hosta plants in your border garden this year.

These plants grow in four-foot clumps. Hostas’ heart-shaped leaves can grow almost two feet in length.

They are excellent, drought tolerant plants. They grow wide, which makes these low-maintenance plants excellent at erosion control.

Hostas can grow in the range of USDA Hardiness Zones 3 to 9.

5. Daylily

Daylilies are surprisingly-rugged and adaptable perennial flowers. They can survive in many growing conditions. And they can grow in gardens with very little to no care at all. Their flowers only bloom during the day.

Daylilies are another species that love the sunlight, and they only tolerate a little shade. They’re best planted away from trees and bushes because of moisture and nutrient competition.

They prefer hardiness zones 4 to 9.

6. ‘Jack Frost’ Brunnera

‘Jack Frost’ Brunnera is another foliage plant that is easy to grow and care for, preferring moist soil and some shade. They make excellent ground-cover plants.

These low-maintenance plants can grow in zones 3 through 8.

7. Geraniums

Geraniums are all-around great flowers to plant. They’re not picky about sunlight, whether it’s full, partial, or in the shade.

Geraniums also don’t need a lot of water. They don’t need to have wet roots or sit in overly-moist soil. This makes them fairly resistant to drought.

Don’t overcrowd the geraniums. They should have a space of at least six inches between each plant.

They do well in growing zones 3 to 9.

8. Elijah Blue Fescue

If you’re looking for ornamental grass, Elijah Blue Fescue could be a perfect choice for your home. These low-maintenance plants love the bright sunshine and do not need a lot of water.

They prefer warmer climates, growing well in zones 4 to 8.

9. Yarrow

Yarrow are a fragrant flower with fern-like leaves and tiny, closely-packed flower heads. Yarrow is very adaptable, and you can plant it in a wide degree of climates. They can grow anywhere from rock gardens to wildflower meadows.

They work best in zones 3 through 9.

10. Black-Eyed Susan

Black-Eyed Susans are beautiful, perennial flowers with yellow-golden petals and a black center. They’re very adaptable flowers, and they can grow in full sun to part-shaded areas. Plus, they’re drought resistant.

These flowers typically bloom in the middle of summer and continue into the fall.

They live in growing zones 3 through 9.

Now that you have a list of low-maintenance plants, you are ready to start your first flower garden.

If you need more help along the way, you can always refer to our Gardening Blog for a variety of tips and how-tos.