Year-round Blooming Flowers

Year-round blooming plants bring color to the garden, indoors or out.

Gardeners in tropical climates have the chance to enjoy year-round blooming plants in their outdoor gardens. Many of these plants will thrive and bloom year-round indoors in containers, giving gardeners in cold climates the same chance to enjoy the exotic blooms. Well-draining soil high in organic matter, regular fertilization and adequate light are essential to keeping plants healthy and blooming, whether you grow them outdoors in the garden or indoors in a container.

Allamanda

Allamanda "Cherries Jubilee"

An evergreen climbing vine with vivid yellow or lavender-red trumpet-shaped blooms, Allamanda blooms year-round, although the largest flush of blooms occurs during the warm summer months. Allamanda tolerates a wide variety of soils and moderate moisture, making it an easy plant to care for. Plant in full sun outdoors, or use supplemental lighting indoors. Grow-light bulbs are the best because they mimic natural sunlight and produce all the colors of the rainbow, which is essential for proper plant growth. Attach the twining stems to some type of support when they are young, because they become woody with age. Keep all parts of this toxic plant away from children and pets. Allamanda is hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 9 through 11.

Bougainvillea

Bougainvillea in full bloom

Bougainvilleas are tropical, woody vines that can be trained into small shrubs. These thorny plants are ideal for creating hedges that keep unwanted visitors out of the garden. The true flowers of Bougainvillea are inconspicuous and hidden by the colorful bracts, which come in a range of colors, including pink, purple, white and orange. Plant bougainvillea in full sun outdoors, or place the plants in a sunny, south-facing window indoors. Plants that do not receive enough light will either not bloom or have very sparse blooms. Bougainvillea is hardy in USDA hardiness zones 10 and 11, although some gardeners in zone 9 have successfully overwintered this plant inside a cold frame. A cold frame is a boxlike structure with a clear glass or plastic top used to protect marginally hardy plants over the winter months.

Hibiscus

Tropical hibiscus flowers year-round.

Dinnerplate, or hardy hibiscus, dies back to the ground in the winter, so the hibiscus to choose for year-round blooms is the tropical hibiscus. Many tropical hibiscus are grown as annuals in cold, northern climates. Once the outside temperatures fall below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, these tropical plants will die. An alternative to this, if you do not live in a warm climate, is to grow hibiscus in a container and bring it indoors for the winter, where it will continue to flower all winter long. Once spring arrives, prune the foliage back by 1/3 to rejuvenate the plant. Grow tropical hibiscus in a frost-free location, in full sun, in well-drained, moist soil that is rich in organic matter. The flower colors come in both single and multicolors, including red, yellow, orange, black, brown, apricot and white. Tropical hibiscus is hardy in USDA hardiness zones 9 and 10.

Murraya Paniculata

Orange jasmine, Murraya paniculata, has highly fragrant, orange-scented white blossoms that bloom year-round, indoors or out. Murraya paniculata is often sheared into a square shape and used in place of boxwood in warm climates. It also makes an attractive small tree, which is the form most often used when it is grown in a container. The exfoliating bark creates additional interest. Plant Murraya paniculata in part-shade in well-drained, adequately moist soil. Murraya paniculata is hardy in USDA hardiness zones 9 through 11.

References

• University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service: Allamanda cathartica; Edward F. Gilman; October 1999
• University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service: Allamanda cathartica "Cherries Jubilee"; Edward F. Gilman; October 1999
• Clemson University Cooperative Extension: Bougainvillea; Al Pertuit; March 1999
• Clemson University Cooperative Extension: Hibiscus; Karen Russ; December 2004
• University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service: Murraya paniculata; Edward F. Gilman; October 1999