20 Low Maintenance Flowers Busy People Will Love

Do you lead a super busy life but still want to enjoy a flower garden? Choose easy to grow, low maintenance flowers and make your garden dreams a reality!

Choosing easy to grow low-maintenance plants can make gardening a reality for even the most harried among us.

While gardening can require a lot of work, time, and planning, the flowers listed here are easy to grow and require little follow up attention. Use this list as your flower growing guide if you don’t have a lot of time to garden!

Even the most neglectful of gardeners can come home to a welcoming array of gorgeous flowers. Just follow this list to fill your garden with your own easy but beautiful blooms!

Best Low-Maintenance Flowers For Busy People

These 20 low maintenance plants will keep your garden beds looking bejeweled even when you don’t have the time to dote on plants. And your yard will be full of pretty bloomers from late spring to early fall!

Low Maintenance Plants For Part Shade:

Let’s start with the best low maintenance flowring perennials for partial shade to shaded areas:

Hellebores

Hellebores will bring the color to the spring garden and thrive until mid summer. They feature beautiful evergreen foliage and attractive flowers in shades of pink, white and plum.

This beautiful flower will bloom in late winter every year. As a perennial, hellebores will come back the following spring, bringing even more lovely flowers.

Hellebores can be under planted under larger trees and shrubs and enjoys shade to partial sun. These hardy plants are incredibly easy to grow and will brighten up a rainy spring with their showy flowers.

Get our salvia companion plant growing guide here!

Bleeding Heart

Bleeding Heart is an easy to grow shade-loving perennial. These romantic flowers are easy to grow, the perfect choice for a bold pop of color in early spring. When planting, give Bleeding Heart well-drained soil that is full of organic matter.

This plant can tolerate full shade and will produce lovely little flowers in early spring.

Fun fact: Both Bleeding Heart and hellebores can tolerate deep shade, so if you have a shady corner of your yard that you want to see bloom, try these two together!

Sweet Alyssum

Sweet Alyssum will brighten up a shady spot and requires little effort from the gardener. These resilient flowers will come back year after year and can grow in partial shade.

Sweet Alyssum will bloom in spring, then die back a bit in the heat of summer. You’ll see another flush of flowers in fall, giving you a lot of return for your planting efforts.

Plant in partial shade in well draining soil that is rich in organic matter.

Hydrangea

Hydrangea are very easy to grow and produce abundant, gorgeous blooms. Choose a location that gets morning sun and afternoon shade for this romantic flowering shrub.

These beautiful plants are available in several different colors: shades of white, blue, pink and purple.

Hydrangeas are resistant to many pests and diseases, making them easy to maintain. They do not have to be trimmed back to produce new blooms the following season, and the flowers last for several months. Hydrangea love water but need good drainage to prevent root rot.

Once established hydrangeas are a happy and self sufficient bloomer.

Bearded Iris

Bearded iris is a beautiful spring bloomer that boasts lovely blooms year after year. There are over 300 species of iris with various colors to choose from. These beautiful perennials can have a bloom range from early spring to late summer.

Bearded iris will attract hummingbirds and butterflies to the garden and can also make lovely cut flowers!

Low Maintenance Annual Flowers

These low maintenance annuals require little water and thrive in full sun. Plant them and enjoy cut flowers all summer long with very little effort:

Dwarf Sunflowers

Dwarf sunflowers are one of the easiest flowers to grow. Thriving in full sun, dwarf sunflowers will produce multiple bloom heads. These beauties need very little water and come in several lovely color varieties.

They are not picking on soil and will produce showy blooms that you can adorn your tabletop with.

Cosmos

Cosmos will thrive in your sunny garden, are incredibly easy to grow and make great cut flowers. These prolific bloomers are available in a wide variety of colors and can fill your flower vases throughout the summer months. They are available in white, yellow, red and pink flowers.

Cosmos require little water and grow in poor soil, making them one of our top choices for low-maintenance flowers. These prolific bloomers will produce flowers up until the first frost of the year.

Zinnias

Zinnias are a cut and come again flower that require very little attention. Set them up beside the vegetable garden to help attract bees and butterflies.

If you want to see these plants produce flowers all summer long, simply deadhead the spent flowers. But, you could also let them bloom just once and enjoy the show! Zinnias require little water but do need fertile soil to grow in.

Learn how to grow zinnias in pots or containers here.

Sunflowers

Sunflowers crave direct sunlight and could care less what kind of soil they have! All these beauties really need is well draining soil and full sun. And, there are so many lovely sunflower varieties to choose from!

A few different varieties to choose from:

dwarf sunflowers: make excellent cut flowers

red sunflowers: are unique and fun

wild sunflowers: have many stems and will produce lots of smaller pretty flowers

Sunflowers thrive all over North America and are a good choice when gardening with kids. They will smile happily at you with their large flower heads. Sunflowers are an excellent choice for busy gardeners who want to see a pop of color in their yard.

Read our beginner’s guide to growing flowers here.

Pansies

Charming and sweet, pansies are one of the first flowers you will see pop up in early spring. (Find more early spring perennial flowers here). Pansies are cold hardy and adaptable to many conditions. They provide colorful blooms early in the gardening season.

Water when the soil is dry and give pansies morning sun and they will thrive!

Pansies are a favorite for my children: the burst of color is a thrill in early spring and the flowers are easy to grow and maintain. Set a container next to your front door and fill it with pansies: you’ll be glad to see this cheerful flower greeting you!

Low Maintenance Flowers (Perennial Full Sun)

These perennial flowers are easy to grow and they will bring the blooms back to your garden year after year! If you are looking to fill your flower garden with easy flowers that you won’t have to replace each season, choose from this list:

Catmint

Catmint loves full sun and will bloom twice if you cut off the first flush of flowers. This sun loving plant will need extra water the first year, but once established they are drought tolerant!

Catmint is a really beautiful plant with sage green leaves and lovely flowers. It will attract bees and hummingbirds. Line your walkway with Catmint for a warm home welcome.

Lavender

Famous for it’s fragrant flowers, lavender is a great choice for low maintenance gardening. Lavender actually thrives in moderate to poor soil, and is very drought tolerant once established. Plant in full sun alongside Catmint for a dreamy vibe! (Get some great ideas for other lavender companion plants here).

Black Eyed Susan

Black Eyed Susan are a popular flower that are stunning, drought tolerant, and very easy to grow. This daisy-like flower is a perfect companion plant for sunflowers.

With bold black centers and vibrant yellow petals, Black Eyed Susan are a favorite for bees and butterflies. They are also one of our favorite low-maintenance plants! Black-Eyed Susan are drought resistant and can pretty much grow without any attention from you. Except for maybe a loving glance as you arrive home!

Black eyed Susan can thrive in drought conditions and is not picky about soil.

Read about the best annuals for full sun here.

Shasta Daisy

Alongside Black Eyed Susan be sure to plant some Shasta daisies. We love this charming flower because it makes a lovely cut flower for a charming summer bouquet.

For best results plant Shasta Daisies in full sun with well draining soil.

Lupine

Hardy and well known for it’s ability to grow in a variety of different climates, lupine is a beautiful perennial that often grows in wildflower mixes.

Lupine won’t need much help from you to thrive- just plant it in full sun and make sure the soil has good drainage. (Avoid swampy soils with no drainage)!

Lupine is deer resistant and it’s stunning flowers will return year after year!

Blanket Flower

These low maintenance flowers are drought-resistant and will last for decades! With bold red and yellow flowers, they brighten up the summer garden and are a great companion plant for lavender. Plant in full sun and enjoy the beauty of these low maintenance perennials.

Hardy Hibiscus

Hardy hibiscus are a gorgeous flowering shrub that are FULL of beautiful flowers that bloom in succession all summer and into fall.

Hibiscus can tolerate dry summer weather but need to be consistently watered (they love moist soil that drains well). These bloomers need well drained soil and sun to thrive. Make sure the sprinkler hits your hibiscus at the base of the plant once a day in the summer.

Hibiscus have long flower production period and if you love color and romantic blooms this is the plant for you!

Salvia (Sage Plants)

Most salvia plants are very easy to grow and drought tolerant. There are many varieties of salvia. They offer irresistible blooms and soft green colors.

Hot lips salvia is a two toned red and white flowering sage that loves warm weather. And Mystic Spires blue salvia is heat tolerant and offers long spikes of vibrant blue flowers.

Visit this post for a full list of easy to grow sage plants.

Yarrow

Featuring yellow, pink and white flowers, yarrow is a lovely native plant that will attract bees and butterflies.

Yarrow is incredibly easy to grow and requires little to no maintenance. Give yarrow soil that is well draining and a hot, sunny place in which to live. Yarrow is not picky on soil type as long as it drains well.

Yarrow is a plant that will give you incredible bang for your buck. Once established it will be self sufficient and as a hardy perennial it will come back year after year!

As an added bonus it will attract a wide array of butterflies, bees and ladybugs to the backyard.

Yarrow starts blooming in spring to early summer and continues to bloom through fall.

Echinacea Purpurea

Echinacea, or purple cone flower, is an easy to grow, luminous purple flower. These flowers grow well in full sun and need well draining summer. They have sturdy stems that don’t require staking and will bloom the whole summer. These drought resistant perennials are a great addition to a low maintenance garden.

Tips On Creating Low Maintenance Flower Beds

Every yard requires a little maintenance, it’s true! Here are our best tips that will help the busy gardener enjoy their plants without the added stress:

• Choose the right plants for your busy life. Selecting the right plants for your lifestyle is essential for busy gardeners. If you don’t have time to deadhead, make sure to choose flowers that don’t need that extra care and attention. Look for low-maintenance perennials that fit your lifestyle.

• Perennial plants will give you the most bang for your buck. If you want to plant once and forget it, look for perennials that will bring you beautiful blooms year after year. Fill your garden and flowers beds with perennials that bloom at different seasons.

• Plant a Garden Native To Your Area Take a little time to research your area and you will be able to grow plants that naturally thrive in your zone. This will take away the need to pamper plants that don’t typically grow in your zone.The plants you choose will naturally thrive, requiring little in the way of watering.

• Easy annuals can be a fun way to spice up the garden each year. There are a lot of low maintenance annuals that you can use to change up the landscape and add beauty.

• Choose plants that all like the same soil/sunlight conditions. Choosing plants that grow in the same soil and sunlight will save you lots of time. You won’t have to worry about the different watering needs of each plant, and fertilizing will be quick and easy-if you need to do it at all. Our post on how to grow lavender plants with companion flowers is a perfect example on how to do this!

• Look For Low Upkeep Plants. To create a low maintenance yard full of flowers, it’s a good idea to look for plants that don’t need a lot of watering and that have low upkeep. Plants that need trimmed regularly or lots of fertilizer and staking in order to thrive will increase your work load.

• Ask for help at garden centers. To save time, take photos of your yard and flower beds and ask for assistance! Most garden centers will be more than happy to help you find low maintenance plants that will work in your garden.

Final Thoughts

Even busy gardeners can thrive with this list of low maintenance flowers that bloom. Pulling into the drive and being greeted your own flowers will bring you instant joy and help you relax from your busy schedule!

The peace and joy of gardening can be obtained by those with busy schedules- just make sure to choose the right plants: those that work with a busy lifestyle!