You don’t need to have green fingers before you can start your own thriving garden. In fact, it’s a total myth to think otherwise. You just need to know what kinds of plants are best for beginners: hint, they’re easy to keep alive.
What makes a plant easy to maintain?
When a plant requires little amounts of sun and water, this makes it low-maintenance and ensures that you don’t have to put in a lot of effort in order to have a more beautiful garden.
Maybe you don’t have time to remember to care for your plants because you work so hard or travel a lot. Or, perhaps you have some spots in your garden where nothing seems to grow because there’s a lot of shade.
Whatever the case, get your hands on these 10 best garden plants that are really easy to look after and will make your garden flourish.
If you’d like to see a graphical breakdown of the best garden plants, we got you covered:
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Table of Contents
Canna Lily
These bright, beautiful flowering plants add a burst of color to your landscape without you having to care for them much.
Once you’ve placed their bulbs into the ground, covered them with mulch, and watered them, they will grow without a fuss.
Canna lilies like to have moist ground, but they’re quite hardy so if you forget to water them for a few days, they won’t show any signs of distress.
They also don’t need to have a lot of sun, although that is their favorite. However, they can grow well in partial shade so it’s not a train smash if you’ve planted them in slightly shady areas.
Knockout Roses
Although you might think that roses need lots of TLC, this isn’t the case with Knockout Roses.
They are resistant to disease and really easy to grow, so they’re great for beginners who want a splash of color in their garden. Best of all, they grow really quickly so you can fill up your space with their pretty blooms.
Just make sure they’re in a spot that gets a lot of sunshine and prune the roses after the last frost has struck, as Bob Vila reports.
Otherwise, don’t worry about them and let them do their thing, which is mainly painting your garden in beautiful colors.
Coneflower
You’ve probably heard of Echinacea when it comes to keeping colds and flu at bay, but did you know you can also grow it in the garden?
Known as the coneflower, this plant only needs a little trim in the late summer so that its pretty flowers can bloom.
Best of all, if you live in a region where there’s moderate rainfall, you don’t need to water these plants because they will get enough of the water they need naturally.
The best way to ensure they will thrive without needing much care is to plant them in full sun.
They want a minimum of five hours of full sun every day, which will help to keep them strong while also making them flower much more.
Although they can grow in partial shade, they will try to lean towards the sun so just make it easier for them by planting them directly in the sun’s path.
Texas Ranger
This plant offers beautiful reddish-purple flowers that can make it seem like it requires lots of water, but in actual fact it hardly needs anything.
The Texas Ranger craves the hot sun.
So, as long as you plant it in full sun, you don’t have to worry about watering it unless it’s summer or there’s a drought in your region. In those cases, give it one or two inches of water directly from a garden hose to provide enough water for its roots.
That’s all it needs to continue growing and looking great.
Dusty Miller
This plant has beautiful grey-silver spiky leaves that give your landscape a bit of an edge and you don’t have to worry about it dying because it can happily withstand drought and extremely hot conditions.
Ideally, Dusty Miller should be planted in a region that has a generally warm climate as this will cause it to flower every year.
Once it’s been planted in areas that receive full sun, it will also be able to handle a bit of shade in the afternoons. When it comes to watering Dusty Miller, do so once a week. You only need to give it an inch of water, so it’s really low-maintenance.
Fountain Grass
Give your garden a touch of the ethereal with fountain grass. It’s long and feathery, giving you lovely height when it’s paired with shorter plants and flowers, so it can add to your landscape design.
Fountain grass actually loves being in dry soil, so you don’t have to worry about watering it often. When it comes to sun, it craves lots of it although it can deal with a bit of shade.
This is an extra bonus if you live in a dry region that’s susceptible to droughts.
When pruning your fountain grass, make sure you don’t do it in the fall season as by this stage the plant hasn’t died back all the way.
Marigolds
These sunny flowers do like being in the sun, but they don’t require much else in order to be happy.
When the weather heats up a lot, you’ll notice they won’t wilt like some other plants in your garden – that’s how resistant to the heat they are.
Best of all, marigolds don’t need specific soil in which to thrive, which makes your job even easier. If they’ve been planted in flower beds, give them a good soak of water once a week.
If they’ve been planted in pots, you only need to water them when the top inch of soil is dry.
Cactus
A list about low-maintenance plants wouldn’t be complete without including cacti.
One of the main reasons why they die is because their owners have watered them too much, so plant them in a sunny area and don’t worry too much about them getting thirsty.
Cacti are wonderful plants that come in a variety of shapes and colors, and can help save our precious water resources.
There are even some cacti species that can live for two years without needing any water at all! However, if you’ve got indoor cacti, these do require a bit more regular watering, so that’s something to bear in mind to ensure the plants maintain their elegance.
Basil
You might not think of herbs as being low-maintenance, but basil sure is.
This herb is perfect for your Italian cooking endeavors, and luckily for you, you don’t have to worry about it if you want to grow it in the garden.
Simply put basil in a sunlight-rich spot and only give it a bit of water when its soil feels dry. Basil is so easy to grow that it’s been referred to as a “plant and forget” herb.
In addition to being fabulously low-maintenance, basil will give you a lot of produce every week – you’re looking at an average of half a cup of leaves.
There’s nothing better than growing your own food, and even better when you get so much of it without much effort.
Snapdragon
This plant blooms with immaculate yellow and white flowers that will make your garden feel much more cheerful.
The best thing about snapdragons is that they thrive in both cold and hot temperatures.
Make sure you just give these plants water when they need it, ideally an inch of water every week if there’s no rainfall in your area.
If the area where you live experiences high temperatures regularly, you don’t even have to worry about planting snapdragon in full sun – in these cases, they can take a bit of shade in their stride.
Related Questions
What are examples of plants that grow really quickly?
Sometimes you want plants that will go from seed to stunning really quickly. Annual plants such as cornflower and marigold will sprout within a week’s time, while basil sprouts in four days and vegetables such as lettuce and cucumbers also grow very quickly.
What plants grow without soil?
There are some indoor plants that don’t even need soil, such as Lucky Bamboo that grows hydroponically, orchids that have soft membranes which draw moisture from the air, and Spanish moss that usually grows from trees and pulls nutrients as well as oxygen from the atmosphere.
Conclusion
After reading this article, it’s clear to see that it is indeed possible for you to have a beautiful garden without having to put in a lot of effort or achieve a black belt in gardening.
With the 10 types of plants in this list, your garden with be lovely and low-maintenance, making you smile every time you look at it – and making your friends wonder how you achieved it.
Last Updated on August 17, 2022 by Gustaf Johansson
