6 Flowers That Give the Best Bang for Your Buck

Planting flowers is an easy way to spruce up your lawn and add to your home's curb appeal without breaking the bank -- they add color and great visual structure that will benefit any landscape. However, many people struggle to find the right ones and often hesitate when confronted with the care and upkeep required. Luckily, there are a number of different flowers available that are low in cost, easy to care for, and will add a great deal of beauty to your yard.

1. Celosia - Hardy, Vibrant, and Flame-like

Celosia is a perfect choice if you need to add a specific and vibrant color to your garden. This plant comes in a variety of appearances, including flame or spear-shaped, and colors such as red, pink, purple, and gold. Celosia grows best in hot climates as perennials, though they can be planted elsewhere as annuals. Plant them in your garden area or planting pot in the spring, and make sure they get plenty of sunlight. Spreading mulch around the base will help with weed control, and make sure you follow a watering schedule that keeps the soil moist, but not wet. Besides those requirements, these plants will grow in pretty much any soil type and are very hardy. Plus, they are also edible.

2. Daylily - Low Maintenance Sun Lovers

Daylilies feature a blooming flower with six petals and are great if you need to add a variety of color to your garden area. They are perennials and depending on the variety can be planted in zones one through eleven. Some varieties have a very short bloom cycle, but all can tolerate many different soil types. Furthermore, care for these flowers is minimal. Daylilies are normally planted in the spring, and do better in places where they will get full sun. When planting, make sure the plants are spaced apart and give them a deep watering once a week, especially in the spring and hot summer months.

3. Hyacinth - Fragrant Spring Bloomers

Hyacinth is prefect if you're looking for a plant with fragrance and vibrant blossoms. These tubular flowers give off a sweet aroma and come in a variety of colors including red, pink, orange, yellow, blue, purple, and white. They can be planted in a traditional flower bed or pot in zones four through nine. Since hyacinth blooms in the spring, bulbs should be planted in the fall. They do well in partial or full sunlight, and require little watering, making them a great low maintenance plant.

4. Zinnia - A Black Thumb's Best Friend

Zinnias are one of the easiest annual plants to grow, and are great if you need an assortment of colors in a single plant. This daisy-like flower is sure to give your space a boost in color and liveliness, as the plant comes in just about all the colors of the rainbow. Zinnias grow best in zones three through ten and can be planted pretty much anywhere, from traditional garden spaces to window pots and hanging baskets. When planting, make sure they get plenty of sun, add compost to the soil to encourage growth, and make sure you keep the ground moist.

5. Bee Balm - Shade (and Sun!) Lovers

If you have a large amount of space to fill, then consider bee balm, or monarda flowers, which cover a lot of area but are easy to manage. These colorful, tubular flowers can be grown in zones three to nine and caring for them is simple. They are flexible when it comes to sunlight, so you can choose an area with little to full sun. Just make sure the soil is kept moist and the plant will thrive. One additional benefit to planting bee balms is that they also attract bees, true to their name, and hummingbirds, making them a must for any bird lover.

6. Coneflower - Drought-Resistant Butterfly Attractors

These flowers resemble a daisy in their appearance, with a dark center cone surrounded by colored petals, and are known to attract bees and butterflies. Coneflowers are a great option because they are affordable, hardy, long-blooming, and relatively easy to care for. They come in a wide assortment of colors, so you should be able to find one or two that match your specific need. They grow best in zones three through nine, and can be started as seeds or transplants. Considering the fact that they are drought-resistant, they don’t need a whole lot of watering, though they do tend to grow better when their soil is kept moist.