Curated by real gardeners
Summer-Blooming Plants
Peak-season color that stands up to heat. Summer is the most-planted-for season among Sow gardeners — these are their picks, ranked.
The 24 most-saved picks
#1 most savedButterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
#2 most savedCheyenne Spirit Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea 'Cheyenne Spirit'
#3 most savedButterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa 'Gay Butterflies Mix'
Butterfly Kisses Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea 'Butterfly Kisses'
Butterfly Weed Gay Butterflies Milkweed
Asclepias tuberosa 'Gay Butterflies'
Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa 'Deluxe Butterfly Garden'
Hello Yellow Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa 'Hello Yellow'
Garden Phlox
Phlox paniculata 'Mix'
Purple Coneflower Rainbow
Echinacea purpurea 'Rainbow'
Butterfly Milkweed
Asclepias x hybrida
Old Farmyard Hollyhock
Alcea rosea 'Old Farmyard'
May Night Sage
Salvia nemorosa 'May Night'
Black-eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta 'American Gold Rush'
Pugster Amethyst Butterfly Bush
Buddleja davidii 'Pugster Amethyst'
Garden Phlox 'Rene Duval'
Phlox paniculata 'Rene Duval'
Pugster Pink Butterfly Bush
Buddleia davidii 'Pugster Pinker'
Blanket Flower
Gaillardia x grandiflora 'Mixed Border'
Incrediball Hydrangea
Hydrangea arborescens 'Incrediball'
Zinnia Raggedy Ann
Zinnia elegans 'Raggedy Ann'
Cinderella Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata 'Cinderella'
Cheyenne Spirit Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea 'Cheyenne Spirit Mix'
Black-eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta 'Autumn Colors Mix'
Common Milkweed
Asclepias syriaca
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Summer blooms questions
How do I keep beds blooming through August?
Rely on long-haul performers (coneflower, rudbeckia, salvia), deadhead early bloomers hard in July, and let ornamental grasses carry texture when flowers pause in extreme heat.
Keep exploring
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Find the right summer blooms plants for YOUR yard
Sow matches plants to your zone, sun, and style — then designs the bed and reminds you how to care for it.
