The table calls it a tie: Coreopsis and Russian Sage share the crown at 93 and 93 of 100, a gap smaller than the data can honestly split.
Most clay lists are wish lists. Here the gate is a university-documented clay tolerance record, which cuts the table from 85 flowers to a couple dozen honest survivors, ranked on compacted poor ground, bloom despite heavy soil, and deer.
The picks
The flowers that won
The top score, plus the qualifier that asks least of you.
Takes compacted low-fertility ground: drought, heat, humidity, poor soil, sandy dry soil, shallow rocky, clay soil, salt · Bloom despite heavy ground: 6 months · Stands up to deer: A, B (mean of range)
Flaws, not dealbreakers:no vase data in the postharvest literature
Bloom despite heavy ground30 pointseight or more months 30; six to seven 26; four to five 23; three 15; two 8; one 3; no bloom data 8 Read from: the months it is in bloom.
Stands up to deer20 pointsRutgers A, rarely damaged 20; B 14; C 6; D, deer candy 0; not rated 9 Read from: the Rutgers deer rating.
Habitat value while it works20 pointsfeeds three or more pollinator groups 20; two 14; one 8; none documented 4 Read from: pollinator groups.
Not ranked here: no extension source documents clay tolerance.
The full method ↗
The leaderboard
The top ten
The 10 highest of 22 that qualified. Tap any score to open the lines behind it.
Takes compacted low-fertility ground12 / 30drought, heat, clay soil, salt
Bloom despite heavy ground23 / 304 months
Stands up to deer14 / 20B
Habitat value while it works20 / 204 documented
Considered, not chosen
Not qualifying is a verdict too: the table simply says this question is not theirs.
no extension source documents clay toleranceTulips, Peonies, Sunflower and 60 more
The winner's badge
Generated by the ranking above, and re-scored whenever the table changes.
Coreopsis
The badge is generated by this ranking, not awarded by hand. When the
table changes, it re-scores itself.
How we rank
We keep one table of 85 flowers,
with 25 documented facts each, drawn from university and extension sources. Every ranking is
a published formula worth 100 points; tap any score and it unfolds into the lines that made
it. A flower that does not fit the question is not scored lower: it is excluded, and the reason is
shown. When the table changes, every score and stamp updates itself.
The full method ↗
