Wildflowers are wondrous additions to any yard, as they tie even the most formal garden to the natural environment. It’s a strong case of “plant it and they will come.” Even a small area of wildflowers will soon be filled with birds, pollinators, and other local wildlife, adding yet more color and variety to the view.
And yet, wildflower gardens seem like a contradiction in terms. If plants grow wild, how can they be tamed into showpieces in a residential space?
Getting Started
Wildflowers will thrive en masse in a large backyard or as a no-mow replacement for a front lawn, but they’ll also do well in a small side yard or even in containers. In fact, starting small is a great way to step into this world of natural color and scent without becoming overwhelmed.Another great place to start is a space in the yard that is too hot and sunny or too shaded, making it difficult or impossible to grow popular garden flowers there. Chances are that there is a wildflower—or more likely several—well suited to these less-than-ideal spots.
Black-eyed Susans, butterfly weed, and woolly mullein are three easy-to-grow wildflowers that are famous for thriving in full sun (six to eight hours per day minimum), dry conditions, and high heat. If the yard is too wet, consider moisture lovers such as cardinal flowers, rose turtlehead, and pale gentian that will do well in damp, even boggy areas in full to partial sun (four to six hours each day).
Don’t fret if the yard is filled with trees. There is a nice variety of woodland wildflowers that are content in lightly shaded areas. Foxglove, forget-me-not, penstemon, eastern red columbine, and eye-catching snapdragons will be happy in partial sun to partial shade (three to five hours of sun and ideally under cover during the midday heat) found beneath trees. There are even some, such as violets and Virginia bluebells, that flower in full shade—less than three hours of direct sun daily.
The trade-off is that these flowers will have a less manicured appearance than crisply shaped hydrangeas or azaleas or a rose garden.
Lifespan of Loveliness
“Wildflowers” make many of us think about the colorful seed packets of popular annuals such as California poppy, Carolina geranium, cornflowers, cosmos, plains coreopsis, pot marigold, and borage.However, like their more cultivated counterparts, wildflowers come in biennial and perennial forms, as well as the famed annuals. These varieties will complete their life cycle in a single growing season and often come back the following year if they are left to naturally go to seed. These wildflowers add an attractive dimension to the winter garden and feed local wildlife.
Biennials last two seasons and may go dormant over winter depending on the climate they are grown in. Some popular selections are American bellflower, common evening primrose, forget-me-nots, foxgloves, hollyhocks, sweet William, and wallflowers.
Perennials are often considered the backbone of a garden, as they come back reliably year after year. Take care with planting these. While they can be moved to a new location, black-eyed Susans, columbines, coreopsis, coneflowers, lupines, milkweeds, phloxes, yarrows, and head-turning delphiniums (also known as larkspur) will be most content if placed in their final location from the start.
Go Wild (Pun Intended)
When planting wildflowers in large groups, remember that nature is unplanned. Avoid rigid rows, strict squares, or other geometric groupings. Instead, think in swaths, clusters, clumps, or individual plants. In fact, wildflowers work extremely well among more traditional annuals or as a valuable member of a perennial border.How they are planted matters. Broadcasting seeds is easy and will result in a lush but potentially untidy look. For a more controlled informality, such as is often seen at botanical gardens, start seeds inside and carefully plant them in the garden as seedlings, keeping in mind their final size and the overall vision for the space. Since this takes significantly more work, you can reduce the annual time commitment by opting for biennials and perennials.
Include some native wildflowers to help protect, enhance, and restore habitat. They’re also easier to grow, as they’re accustomed to the quirks of the local growing area.
