Make Your Garden Bloom with a Pop of Blue This Season with Some of Our Florida Friendly Fan Favorites
Finding true blue flowers to incorporate in your garden may be tricky, but we have a few blue – purple fan favorites to enhance the color of your landscape this season!
Blue Daze
Blue Daze, with its vibrant blue blooms, will add a splash of color to your outdoor space from spring all the way through the first frost. A beloved choice among Florida gardeners for its ability to thrive in heat and drought conditions, this versatile plant can serve as a charming border or groundcover. Whether nestled in a pollinator garden, enhancing a classic Florida landscape, or adorning containers, there’s always a perfect spot for Blue Daze to shine. While not native, Blue Daze is endorsed by the University of Florida’s Florida-Friendly™ Landscaping Program and is pollinator friendly.
Salvia
Salvia plants, commonly known as Sage or Garden Sage are a prolific blooming herbaceous perennials. A variety of colors ranging from Red, Blue, White and Pink are available to brighten any pollinator garden or container garden. Once established, many salvia varieties are heat and drought tolerant and bloom even in the exhaustive heat of summer with minimal attention. Salvias are pollinator friendly and attract butterflies and hummingbirds, making them a perfect addition to any Florida landscape.
Many cultivars of Salvia are available for purchase, and while they are not native they are still a wonderful addition to your landscape, and if you are lucky to find the native Salvia coccinea, its brilliant red flowers will add another dimension to your garden.
Blue Plumbago
Plumbago, a low-maintenance shrub, boasting vibrant blue flowers from spring to fall. While it may require protection in severe winters in the Florida Panhandle, it typically regenerates in early spring. Whether as a focal point or in clusters, Plumbago adds brightness to any outdoor setting. Although Plumbago auriculata isn’t native, it’s considered Florida-Friendly. The white variety (alba) is widely available in Florida nurseries, and discovering the native white species, Plumbago zeylanica, is a fortunate find for pollinator gardens, as it hosts Cassius Blue Butterfly larvae. Regardless of the type, incorporating Plumbago into your landscape is always a wise decision.
Amethyst Falls Wisteria
Wisteria ‘Amethyst Falls’ is a variety of the native American Wisteria. This non-invasive cultivar is a deciduous, woody climbing vine. Unlike the invasive Asian Wisteria, ‘Amethyst Falls’ and other American Wisteria are notably less aggressive, reaching heights of 18 to 20 feet and boasting abundant fragrant blooms in spring. Adding ‘Amethyst Falls’ Wisteria to your garden is an excellent choice for introducing vertical interest. While the blooms are more purple than blue, the light color plays well in the pallet of a blue garden.