Make the most of your summer garden with vibrant blooms that thrive in full sun.
Getty Images
Annuals make gardening easy.
They provideinstant gratification, filling in quickly and blooming with abandon all season long.
Credit:Getty Images
They’re inexpensive and happy when planted in containers,hanging baskets, or gardens.
Like other plants, annuals vary in how much sunlight they need to thrive.
Here are 25 of the best annuals for full sun.
Credit:Getty Images
Hundreds of petunia-like blooms cover plants from spring through the first frost without the need for deadheading.
This tough annual is available in a rainbow of colors, including solid and bi-color blooms.
Though commonly sold and grown as an annual, trailing petunia is hardy in frost-free areas.
Credit:Getty Images
Brazlian dwarf morning glory isdrought-tolerantonce established and unbothered by pests.
Flowering late spring through fall, blanket flower is heat, drought, and salt tolerant.
The plant isa butterfly favorite, and finches and other songbirds enjoy feasting on the seedheads left to overwinter.
Credit: Ralph Lee Anderson
Tiny golden flowers tip the spherical flower clusters like sparks, giving the plant its common name.
Flowering late spring through frost, ‘Fireworks’ thrives with full sun and dry soil.
The plant also makes a unique cut flower, both fresh and dried.
Credit:Getty Images
Angelonia tolerates high heat and flowers all summer without deadheading.
Site it in full sun and provide good air circulation around plants to avoidpowdery mildew.
Though treated as an annual, angelonia is a tender perennial and can be overwintered outdoors in frost-free areas.
Credit:Getty Images
Pentas
With dense clusters of star-shaped flowers, pentas shines in gardens and containers.
Hummingbirds are drawn to red varieties, and butterflies swarm all shades of the long-lasting blooms.
It’s one of the best annuals for full sun and a garden bursting with color.
Credit: Van Chaplin
Mexican Zinnia
The cheery blooms of Mexican zinnia are sure to brighten containers and planting beds.
Mexican zinnia also makes an excellent cut flower.
Gorgeous palmate foliage and non-stop blooms make for a stunning display that attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and birds.
Credit:Getty Images
Plants reseed freely in the garden but are not considered invasive.
Plants are densely branched and develop a gorgeous, rounded form that looks great in gardens or containers.
Glossy, dark green foliage adds to the vibrant display.
Credit:Getty Images
Plants can be overwintered indoors in a sunny location.
Fan flower is a bedding plant that thrives in hot, dry climates.
It performs well in garden locations where it can sprawl and in hanging baskets and containers.
Credit: Robbie Caponetto
Plants bloom non-stop from early summer through frost, withstanding the hottest temperatures of the year.
They soak up those hot rays to produce colorful fruits that adorn the garden in fiery hues.
These annuals are easy to grow and look stunning planted in mass.
Credit:Getty Images
The quintessential easy-care annual produces oversized blooms adored by birds, butterflies, and kids alike.
Plants tolerate poor soil and dry sites.
Flowering tobacco produces masses of tubular flowers that you’d think wouldattract hummingbirds.
Credit:Getty Images
However, the blooms are actually pollinated by moths.
Plains Coreopsis
Plains coreopsis is a rugged native annual perfect for those sunny, hard-to-water areas.
Plants tolerate poor soil, sandy and rocky conditions, clay, and other challenging sites.
Credit:hannahgleg / Getty Images
And still, they flourish, offering masses of golden blooms with red to burgundy centers.
The annual boasts pom-pom-like blooms with wispy, floss-like filamentshence the nickname.
Ageratum produces blue and purple blooms from spring until fall, adding a colorfulcottage aestheticto the flower bed.
Credit:Axel Naud
The charming annual is a magnet for pollinators with irresistible blooms atop tall, slender stems.
Cosmos is one of the best annuals for full sun, becoming drought-tolerant once established.
The plant is easily grown from seeds, making it incredibly low-maintenance.
Credit:Getty Images
If you don’t deadhead, nigella will sow and dutifully return in the spring.
Native to Central and South America, nasturtium is known for its lotus-shaped, jewel-toned flowers.
Blooms in rich shades of orange, yellow, and pink sit atop lush foliage.
Credit:AlessandroZocc / Getty Images
While catharanthus prefers acidic soil, it can tolerate other types as long as it has good drainage.
Though it does well under full sun, gerbera daisy doesn’t thrive in sweltering temperatures.
The climbing plant is known for its trumpet-shaped blooms in shades of red, white, and pink.
Credit:Tomohiro Fujita / Getty Images
Add wheat celosia to mixed garden beds or border plantings for texture and height.
Credit: Manu
Credit: Quasarphoto / Getty Images
Credit: ElenaNoeva / Getty Images
Credit: Simon McGill / Getty Images
Credit:Isabel Pavia / Getty Images
Credit:JillLang / Getty Images
Credit:Kerry Michaels
Credit: Koichi Watanabe / Getty Images
