
All Summer Blooming Flowers
Don’t you just love spring and summer? I do. Each day we gain more daylight time, gardens are lush and colourful, blossom is blooming in the hedgerows, fruit trees are popping, buzzing with pollinators, it’s a wonderful time of year. Now is the time to sow the seeds for all summer blooming flowers.
On warm, sunny days spent in the garden we come alive, breathe lungfuls of fresh, clean air, feeling altogether invigorated and inspired.
We can’t rest on our laurels though, lots to do if we want the benefit of those beautiful long flowering summer plants, I’m talking about annuals, that fantastically huge selection of summer flowers that help to give the borders some pizzazz.
All Summer Blooming Flowers – Annuals
Annuals are plants that grow, flower, set seed all in one year. They are relatively easy to grow and with some love and attention will blossom into a riot of colour that will be the envy of all your friends and family. They are long-lasting and will continue to flower right through from early summer into autumn. They tend not to often survive our cold wet winters, therefore gardeners can collect their seeds to save for sowing the following year.
Annuals can be given a good head start by sowing indoors early spring in trays or small pots, given warmth and perfect growing conditions they will germinate and become strong and healthy to be planted out as soon as the weather and soil outdoors is warm enough for them.
Most gardeners will have already started seeds growing indoors, by this time they will have a variety of summer annuals ready to go outside to fill the borders with summer colour and fragrance.How to Grow Plant Seeds. 5 Easy Steps
Summer flowers compliment other plants in the garden such as the perennial plants that are starting to grow, foliage plants and shrubs.Perennial Plants. First Year Flowering
If you have a greenhouse or indeed a warm, sunny windowsill then you can get ahead of the game by starting early.
If you haven’t done this yet do not panic or despair as some of our most popular summer annuals can be sown directly into the borders or containers outside after all risk of frost has gone.
Many lovely plants, annuals and perennials can be used to great effect in hanging baskets, vertical planters and any containers to add a moveable, colourful display to patios, walls, balconies and fences. Take a look here to find out the best plants for hanging baskets and how to plant them and the care that is required to give you a beautiful, long-lasting summer show.
All Summer Blooming Flowers
There is nothing better than seeing a blaze of colour in summer borders, by direct sowing some seeds now, you too can achieve a riotously colourful garden full of pizzazz and vitality.

It is so much cheaper this way as well. A packet of seeds can cost a few £’s or even less if you buy them during a seed sale at the end of season.
Buying young plants that are garden ready is an expensive way of gardening and filling your borders so save yourself some money and grow your own.
Some of my favourites are:
- Cosmos
- Marigold
- Calendula
- Sweet peas
- Stocks
- Nemesia
- Zinnia
- Antirrhinum
- Verbena
- Diasca
- Nasturtiums
- Welsh poppy
- California poppy
- Morning Glory
- Larkspur
This list is only an example of what flowers can be grown on an annual basis from seed. There are so many to choose from, browsing through seeds online or in shops you will find a wealth of summer flowers. Have a go at growing some for your garden. It is a most satisfying way of filling your garden with summer colour.What is National Gardening Week About?

When To Sow Summer Annual Seeds Outdoors
As soon as the weather is warmer, danger of frost has gone and the soil is warm. Seeds sown directly outside need this warmth in order to germinate. Here in the UK this generally is from April onwards to autumn.
Sowing seeds outdoors is perfect for those who don’t have a lot of space to start seeds indoors earlier in the year. Or if time is a factor, sowing outdoors is easier too as it means less maintenance time.
Regular watering will ensure good conditions for growing annual seeds all summer, providing you with colourful long flowering summer plants.
Always refer to the instructions on the seed packets as optimum sowing times can vary.
How to Sow Annual Seeds Outdoors
- In the area where you wish to sow, dig the soil to clear weeds and debris. Beds and planting areas can be prepared in advance this way then covered with plastic sheet or weed suppression fabric until time for sowing.
- Fork in some nutrient rich compost ( homemade if you have it ). Work the soil until you have a fine crumbly texture.
- Mark out a shallow drill, using a cane for a straight line, check seed packets for the correct depth and water the drill, dampening the soil at this stage is easier as the seeds won’t be washed away or swamped.
- Sprinkle the seeds in the drill, but not too many or too close as they will have to be thinned out as they start to grow.
- Use a rake to gently cover the seeds with soil.
- Label and mark where the seeds are.
- Alternatively scatter the seeds in drifts for a more naturalised planting scheme.
- Cover the area with fleece to protect emerging seedlings from pest such as pigeons.
- Slugs and snails can be controlled using environmentally friendly, natural nematodes.
- Remember to water during dry periods.
Summer Annual Colour Combinations
Colour schemes are an important factor, a good mix of bright colours or a more subtle approach is of course entirely down to your own taste and preference. There are lots of different colours to play with, so experiment to see what colours go together to form the colour palette and style you are looking for.
Colour popping plant partners for you to try.
All of these plants work well in the borders, containers, baskets or window boxes.Best Plants for Hanging Baskets
Bold is beautiful.
Zinnia Purple Prince
Cosmos Sonata mix

Hot and Sophisticated
Petunia Storm Blue
Calibrochoa Can-Can hot pink
Verbena Showboat.

Pale and interesting.
Petunia Tumblelina.
Nemesia pink, white and blue.

Going for Gold
African Marigold Sun mix
Zinnia Pop art
Zinnia Swizzle.

A whiter shade of pale.
Plant these together in a container for a classic white combination
Antirrhinum ‘Royal Bride’
Nicotiana Duo
Cosmos purity

Further ideas on flower garden colour combinations.
Let’s grow All Summer Blooming Flowers
I really hope this article has inspired you to sow some seeds to give your garden a long summer flowering season, with a wealth of summer blooming flowers that with a little care and attention will keep flowering well into autumn. Remember to keep them watered during dry spells and you also need to dead head in order to produce more flowers.
Plants such as sweet peas, cosmos and many of the others I have mentioned will continue flowering longer the more you pick them. Some of our summer annuals are also wonderful as cut flowers to bring into the house. I have to say though that I much prefer to see flowers where they are happiest…outside in the garden.
Help to keep them sufficiently watered is also on hand with my best home garden irrigation systems review, installing an irrigation kit with a timer ensures that your plants will receive enough water without them becoming over-watered. they help to conserve water too as they only allow through the amount that is actually needed.
Shop here for seeds to sow now.

I do hope my ideas and advice have been helpful to you, please share with friends, family and social media.
Any thoughts, views or question can be added in the comments box below, I always reply as soon as possible and I love to hear from you.
Happy gardening.
Another really good informative blog. Good structure and it flows hope others read it and it inspires them to get stuck in
Hi,
Thank you for commenting, I hope you have got stuck in to gardening too.
Yes I love April too, it is a lovely time of year for gardening, everything is fresh and new, the air is clean and it’s not too hot yet.
This is a great article on summer blooming flowers,
Annuals really do add so much colour and interest to gardens.
Thankyou
Alison
thank you,
I am happy to know that you enjoyed my article on all summer blooming flowers.
I am sure you will have lots of colour in your garden this summer.
Hi Louise! Ahh, summer is such a great time of the year! Love the fresh air. Listen to nature. It’s a wonderful time to go outdoors, exercise and spend quality time with family!
Thank you for this list. I’ll follow your advice and sow some of these this year. Your Cosmos picture has brought good memories from childhood, so I’ll sow them. And also sow morning glory. Thank you very much!
Hello Henry,
I am happy to have inspired some summer plant growing, Cosmos is one of my favourites too. I love the vivid blues of Morning Glory, aptly named I think.
All the best
Louise
Hi Louise
Thank you for coming up with the long list of annuals, as you say most are easy to grow. Some are half hardy and are best to start indoors. What most people don’t know is that a lot of annuals that are grown for one season are in fact perennials.
l grow all my annuals from seed from nicotiana, nemesia, petunia, French and African Marigold. It is so much cheaper and more satisfying this way. The British weather can play havoc as we don’t know if a frost is due or a storm is passing through.
I really enjoyed the article and all the beautiful plants you suggest. I got to admit my absolute favourite is the annual mimulus.
Thanks
Antonio
BTW I agree with you that flowers look better in the garden.
Hi Antonio,
Yes I agree it is much better and cheaper to grow from seed, I have kept many plants throughout h winter for them to flower again the following summer, all depends on the weather and care of the plants. I like Mimulus too.
Happy Gardening
Ok, I know this is a dumb question. I got out of your post that annuals bloom all year long. But are annuals the ones that you plant once and they come back every year? I always seem to get this confused. I love to plant flowers, but prefer to have ones that come back every year. I really like your hot and sophisticated flowers. Very pretty and something I would definitely like to do in a pot.
Hello Matt’s Mom,
Annuals are planted in Spring and will flower all summer, into autumn. Depending on climate and growing conditions some will flower later into the year. We plant new annuals each year…But some with care can be nurtured through winter and they will grow and flower again a following year.
Perennial plants are planted once they flower during their season, die back and are left in the ground and will flower again the following year, they will last for many years in your garden. Perennial Plants. First Year Flowering
Hope this helps
Louise
Beautiful flowers! Cannot believe it’s snowing in the Northeast though today! April snow flurries bring… Typically, though, yes, April is great. Flowers start to bloom and the smell of spring is in the air. Thank you for the great references here. Can’t wait to try some of these! Keep up the great work.
Hello,
You had snow in the north here in the UK?
We just have high wind and rain here in Devon.
Happy planting , thank you for your kind comments
I’ve been wanting to take up gardening for awhile, so I’m trying to learn all I can about getting started. I like the way you broke this down. Before reading this, I wouldn’t have known which flowers were best to begin growing in which seasons. Some of these are absolutely beautiful and would look great in a small garden in my patio. Thanks for sharing!
Hello Mark,
I love to hear from new gardeners. I am happy that you enjoyed my blog. These annuals will definitely look great on your patio, for more information read…Best Plants for Hanging Baskets
Ideas for Spring Containers
Hi Louise,
Thank You very much for sharing such an informative article with all the necessary information about “All Summer Blooming Flowers”
April is the month of gardening.So,i love april very much.I have a little garden in my house.Actually i couldn’t make the proper decision that which flowers should i plant in my garden in this summer.So in this regard this article helps me a lot because it suggested so many summer blooming flowers.I have really inspired a lot from this article.I have gained all the thorough details in this purpose.I am going use your ideas and advice because these ideas and advice are very worthy for my garden.I will plant these flowers in my garden that you have mentioned above.This article is very helpful for those people who are fond of gardening as you have highlighted the article so nicely.Definitely i am going to share this article with my friends and relatives so that they can benefited a lot from this.
I have allergies problem,is there any flowers among them that you have mentioned above which is harmful for my allergy?
Hello Mahbub,
Thank you for your comments, I am please to know that I have inspired you to grow some summer annuals for your lovely garden.
There are many different plant allergies so i am unable to say whether any of these plants will affect you.
I for example am allergic to pine trees and Buddliea,
Please read the packets of seeds for any allergy information.
Thank you for sharing.
Louise
Hello,
Thank you for the article. You really inspired me to give it another try… I am such a terrible gardener. I have a beautiful rocky landscape in my backyard, and I’ve tried many times to establish a garden there which would bloom all summer long. Some perennials do bloom, but not as many as I planted. And, on my rocks, they seem to be shorter every year. Do I need to add soil annually (is it slipping away through the rocks?) or only fertilize it?
My attempt was to plant flowers whose blooming period is one after another and crossing over – thus, I was hoping to cover three seasons with blossom. All summer blooming flowers is a wonderful idea! I know and love some of the flowers you mentioned, but I didn’t know that they bloom all summer long.
I tried to sow summer annual seeds outdoors – none of them came up. I am telling you, I am a horrible gardener! LOL. I think that birds and squirrels had tasty meals out of my seeds. 🙂 You are advising to cover the area with fleece… Could you please explain this in more details? Wouldn’t a fleece block sun, which I thought would be needed for seedlings? Would it not block the space for seedlings to grow? Is it some special fleece?
I appreciate your advice and am inspired to try again. Thank you very much,
~ Julia
Hello Jewelia,
I have loved hearing about your rocky garden, I would suggest Alpine plants as they don’t need highly nutritious soil and it needs to be very free draining which rocky areas are. Phlox, Auberetia, cyclamen, sapanaria, pulsatilla, stonecrop are a few examples you can try. These are perennial plants and will come back each year.
Horticultural fleece is a light weight, white sheet that is used to protect young emerging seedlings from wind, pests, drying out. It lets light in.
Thank you for your comments and best wishes with your garden.
Louise