The winner: Coreopsis , 100/100. Tied for second at 93: Begonia, Bird of Paradise, Blue Salvia, Catmint .
Every flower here is scored by the same 5 published rules, using one open table of 85 flowers. No taste, no sponsors: tap any score and it unfolds into the lines that made it.
The picks
The flowers that won The top score, plus the qualifier that asks least of you.
100 100 WINNER WINNER YFG INDEX Total months in bloom: 6 months · Carries into September: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 · Set-and-forget upkeep: low
Flaws, not dealbreakers:
no vase data in the postharvest literature
Deer: rarely damaged (Rutgers A) Cat safe (listed non-toxic)
100 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 10 / 10 3 to 9
93 93 LOW-EFFORT PICK LOW-EFFORT PICK YFG INDEX Total months in bloom: 6 months · Carries into September: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 · Set-and-forget upkeep: low
Flaws, not dealbreakers:
toxic to cats
Deer: sometimes eaten (Rutgers C) Not for cat households
93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 3 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 9 to 11
Also great Close behind on points. Neither beats the winner overall, but each is the better answer in a garden the winner would not suit.
93 93 ALSO GREAT ALSO GREAT YFG INDEX Total months in bloom: 12 months · Carries into September: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 · Set-and-forget upkeep: low
Flaws, not dealbreakers:
toxic to cats
Not for cat households
93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 12 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 10 to 12
93 93 ALSO GREAT ALSO GREAT YFG INDEX Total months in bloom: 6 months · Carries into September: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 · Set-and-forget upkeep: low
Flaws, not dealbreakers:
no vase data in the postharvest literature
Deer: seldom damaged (Rutgers B)
93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 8 to 10
The protocol
How the score is built 5 rules, 100 points, no opinions. Every line reads one field of the table.
Total months in bloom 40 points the whole point of the page: raw documented bloom duration Read from: the months it is in bloom.
Carries into September 20 points keeps going when most beds quit Read from: the months it is in bloom.
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 points Read straight from how much upkeep extension guides report.
Color across the season 15 points Read straight from flower color.
Cold-zone reach 10 points Read straight from the zones it survives.
Not ranked here: no documented bloom in June, July or August. Scores are never sponsored
and never sold. The full method ↗
The leaderboard
The top ten The 10 highest of 69 that qualified. Tap any score to open the lines behind it.
1 100 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 10 / 10 3 to 9
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 3 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 9 to 11
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 12 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 10 to 12
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 8 to 10
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 33 / 40 5 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 3 documented
Cold-zone reach 10 / 10 3 to 9
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 10 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Set-and-forget upkeep 8 / 15 medium
Color across the season 15 / 15 9 documented
Cold-zone reach 10 / 10 3 to 9
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 33 / 40 5 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 6 documented
Cold-zone reach 10 / 10 2 to 11
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 33 / 40 5 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 8 documented
Cold-zone reach 10 / 10 3 to 9
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 4 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 8 to 10
2 93 / 100 tap for the breakdown Total months in bloom 40 / 40 6 months
Carries into September 20 / 20 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Set-and-forget upkeep 15 / 15 low
Color across the season 15 / 15 5 documented
Cold-zone reach 3 / 10 10 to 11
Considered, not chosen Not qualifying is a verdict too: the table simply says this job is not theirs.
no documented bloom in June, July or August Tulips, Daffodils (Narcissus), Chrysanthemum and 13 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.
100 100 BLOOMS ALL SUMMER BLOOMS ALL SUMMER YFG INDEX · WINNER 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 a job is not scored lower: it is excluded, and the reason is
named. Nothing here is sponsored, and no score can be bought. When the table changes, every
score and stamp updates itself.
The full method ↗
