Amplify your landscape with big flowers. Check out the biggest blooms on the block that will make an immediate impact in your yard.
Top 10 Big Flowers for Your Garden
Updated on Dec. 12, 2024
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Boost Your Garden With Big Flowers
Bigger is usually better, especially when it comes to flowers. Get your hands on varieties of plants you already know and love with these 10 plants bred to produce massive and prolific blooms. Put a few of these supersized flowers in your yard and give your neighbors something to talk about.
Fireworks Clematis
Clematis hybrid, Zones 4 to 8
Lilac with neon fuchsia bands, these 6-to-8-inch clematis flowers bloom in the spring and again in late summer to early fall. A tall vining plant, Fireworks, like several other clematis vines, prefers cool soil and bright light—think morning sun and afternoon shade.
Why we love it: Fireworks’ vining habit creates eye-level dramatic blooms. Plant by the front door and you can’t miss it.
Red Buckeye Tree
Aesculus pavia, Zones 4 to 8
Red buckeye features 6-to-8-inch tall, upright panicles of tubular flowers between April and May. Hummingbirds flock to the blooms, which cover the tree in a red blaze. Preferring partial shade and moist, well-draining soil, this native is often found in woodland areas and near streams.
Why we love it: It is small enough for suburban backyards. Homeowners can enjoy viewing the red blossoms from the kitchen window.
Gladiator Allium
Allium hybrid, Zones 3 to 8
This ornamental onion punctuates the garden with lilac-colored, 5-inch globose flower heads on 3-to-4-foot-tall stems. In late summer to fall, the lilac fades to tan, and the globes still stand on the sturdy robust stems. Sold as a bulb, Gladiator is a full-sun perennial preferring well-draining soil.
Why we love it: Sweetly scented Gladiator makes a great cut flower for both fresh and dried bouquets.
French Vanilla Hardy Hibiscus
Hibiscus, Zones 4 to 9
Part of the Summerific line, French Vanilla has light yellow buds opening to ruffled, creamy white flowers with red eyes. This perennial hibiscus shrub is relatively short, about 3 to 4 feet tall. French Vanilla blooms all summer in sun and well-draining soil.
Why we love it: The red stems and dark green foliage echo the eye-popping red centers of the cream-colored French Vanilla flowers.
Maki Dahlia
Dahlia hybrid, Zones 8 to 10
Blooming from summer to frost, Maki’s 12-to-14-inch flowers have ruffled pink petals, marked with red to purple flecks. Depending on the light, the flowers appear to be pink, rose-red or rose-lilac. Stake these 4-foot-high dahlia plants in full sun and well-draining soil.
Why we love it: Maki is the focal point of any floral arrangement, blending well with other flowers.
Bartzella Peony
Paeonia hybrid, Zones 4 to 8
In the summer, Bartzella blooms double-petaled, yellow flowers marked with red flares in the center. The sweet scented, 6-to-8-inch flowers cover the shrub. It prefers full sun and well-draining soil.
Why we love it: A cross between an herbaceous and a tree peony, Bartzella performs as a compact early-season flowering shrub—no need to stake.
Grandise Fantasy Amaryllis
Hippeastrum hybrid
Grandise Fantasy features exotic tapered ivory petals streaked with raspberry colored veins. Before planting the bulb in a container, remember to insert a stake to support the 2-foot-tall plant.
Why we love it: This amaryllis doubles as home decor and a holiday gift. Try growing it outdoors in warm climates.
Bigleaf Magnolia
Magnolia macrophylla, Zones 5 to 8
Similar to a southern magnolia, bigleaf magnolia produces thick, creamy white flowers—only much larger. Each blossom is 10 inches wide with six petals, three of which are marked with rosy purple at the base. Reaching 30 to 40 feet, this shade-tolerant native tree is also known for its 30-inch-long leaves.
Why we love it: It takes a single blossom in a shallow dish of water to add color and fragrance to a room.
Scheherazade Orienpet Lily
Lilium hybrid, Zones 4 to 8
Scheherazade is a stately lily reaching 4 to 7 feet tall. The flower has crimson petals with white edges and a gold throat. This perennial lily blooms in mid- to late summer in full sun and rich, organic soil.
Why we love it: A cross between an Oriental lily for its fragrance and a Trumpet for its sturdy stems, it combines the best qualities of the two species.
Titan Sunflower
Helianthus annuus, Annual
Towering as high as 12 to 14 feet, Titan produces massive 2-foot-wide sunflower heads with molasses-colored faces and bright yellow petals. This fast-growing annual needs full sun, vertical support and moist, well-draining soil.
Why we love it: Titan’s seeds can be saved to sow the following year or to eat as a snack.
Benefits of Growing Big Flowers
Use big flowers to:
- Make a statement in the garden
- Serve as a focal point
- Place in the back of the border
- Cut for large fresh arrangements
- Float in shallow water dishes
- Accentuate your kitchen window view
