The table calls it a tie: Coreopsis and Russian Sage share the crown at 97 and 97 of 100, a gap smaller than the data can honestly split.
Every flower here is scored by the same 6 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.
Cold-hardy reach15 pointshardy to zone 4 or colder 15; zone 5 12; zone 6 8; warmer minimum zone 4 Read from: the zones it survives.
Easy to multiply for free10 points3+ documented ways to propagate 10; 2 ways 7; 1 way 4 Read from: propagation methods.
Payoff window10 pointsin bloom 4+ months 10; 2-3 months 7; a single month 4 Read from: the months it is in bloom.
Moisture flexibility15 pointsdrier-tolerant plants forgive neglect: dry 15 down to wet 3 Read from: how much water it wants.
Not ranked here: annual or biennial life form: does not return on its own the following year. Scores are never sponsored
and never sold. The full method ↗
The leaderboard
The top ten
The 10 highest of 70 that qualified. Tap any score to open the lines behind it.
Not qualifying is a verdict too: the table simply says this job is not theirs.
annual or biennial life form: does not return on its own the following yearSunflower, Marigolds, Zinnias and 12 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 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 ↗
