Try These 7 Small Flower Bed Ideas For Big Blooms In Compact Corners

Even the tiniest gardens and gardening spaces can be easily utilized to showcase dazzling flora. Designing small flower bed ideas can include constructing beds and borders that create a lasting impact in your yard or garden. If you’re a gardener with limited space, you can still have fun establishing small perennial flower beds, naturalized landscape spaces and miniature pollinator gardens.

Whether you’re looking to create a small backyard oasis from scratch or just give your existing plot a makeover for spring, here are some of the key plants to make room for in the year ahead. These plants can be used to make instant impact as standalone displays or incorporated into more extensive small front yard landscaping ideas. Below, we’ll explore some of the best flower bed ideas for small yards – and the kinds of space they may need.

Choosing the Best Plants for Small Flower Beds

Ideas for small flower beds are limited only by your imagination, but gardeners often opt for plants that are easy to grow and maintain. Perennials, flowering bulbs and native species are among the best candidates. Smaller beds may also benefit from plants that bloom freely throughout the growing season, or those that feature unique and interesting foliage. Consider their requirements for growth, and their overall size at maturity, to make sure each species is well-suited to the space.

1. Allium

Though you can use larger species of allium to add visual impact to small spaces, dwarf types will also add color and interest. Many small garden flower bed ideas include using perennials as dependable groundcover or as focal plants.

Specific types of allium that you may find interesting for the landscape include Allium atropurpureum, A. christophii, A. sphaerocephalon and A. nutans. These plants will vary by species, but most alliums are hardy to USDA zones 3-9.

2. Butterfly Weed

Many flower bed ideas for small spaces serve a purpose. Pollinator beds, for example, are exceptionally popular. Planting butterfly weed in the garden is essential for attracting beneficial insects to this kind of space and supporting local populations of Monarch butterflies, for which the plant plays host.

The native species, Asclepias tuberosa, performs best in full sun and thrives with only a little extra care. You can expect butterfly weed to multiply where conditions are ideal, returning season after season. Variety 'Hello Yellow' is one of six specially selected seeds in Park Seed's Butterfly Lovers Seed Collection, available at the Gardening Know How Shop. Butterfly weed plants are hardy to USDA zones 3-9.

3. Hydrangea

Small round flower bed ideas often include hydrangeas. Though most shrubs will grow to be relatively large, many hydrangea cultivars can be used as focal plants in smaller spaces, including several smaller dwarf varieties.

Hydrangea macrophylla, H. paniculata, and several other species are especially good candidates for partly-shaded beds or containers. Popular types for smaller gardens include Little Lime, which is a smaller version of Limelight from Green Promise Farms, available at the Gardening Know How Shop. Other popular cultivars include Firelight Tidbit, and Everlasting Revolution. Hydrangeas are hardy to USDA zones 3-9.

4. Lobelia

Many species of lobelia are well-suited to small garden beds and containers. Taller types, such as Lobelia cardinalis, available at the Gardening Know How Shop, can be planted to add height and attract pollinators, but edging lobelia is much more common. L. erinus is one such example.

Short-statured lobelia plants serve a variety of purposes, playing a frequent role as ground cover. These plants are unmatched in their beauty, spilling gracefully from pots or spreading throughout established beds. Though most lobelia plants can be grown as annuals, perennial types are generally hardy to USDA zones 9-11.

5. Nasturtium

Though the nasturtium may return as a perennial in frost-free climates, most gardeners grow the plant as an annual. These flowers grow quickly from seed, blooming from early summer through fall.

Compact varieties can sprawl across garden soil or be trained onto a small trellis. They come in a vibrant selection of beautiful colors. Nasturtiums are cherished for their signature spicy fragrance.

6. Yarrow

Native throughout much of the United States, yarrow can thrive in most small spaces. Highly attractive to pollinators and other beneficial insects, yarrow will continue to bloom throughout the summer providing a prolonged seasonal interest as well as an invaluable source of food and shelter to local wildlife.

Exceptionally attractive varieties of yarrow for the landscape include Colorado Mix, Summer Berries and Flowerburst Red. Yarrow is hardy to USDA zones 3-9.

7. Zinnia

Zinnias are mostly known for their tall stems and prolific production of flowers. Still, many dwarf varieties can be used in flower bed ideas for small spaces. Easy to grow, these plants are ideal for beginners, requiring only minimal care after planting.

Vibrant zinnia flowers are great for bedding or planted in containers and reward us with lasting seasonal color. Common varieties of zinnias that are available to home growers include Dreamland Mix, Magellan Mix and Thumbelina Mix.

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