There is no better place to garden in the winter than Florida, which enjoys friendly temperatures ranging from 41°F to 77°F from October through April. In this season, the weather is cooler and more refreshing, the humidity is lower, and pests are less numerous. If you are snowbirds or half-time residents looking for winter gardening tips, this guide will help you find which plants will make your home look best during the winter season!
Flowering Winter Plants
From Thanksgiving to April, those dwelling in Southern Florida can enjoy the peak beauty of their gardens with these winter plants. Including potted plants for condos and balconies, as well as oceanside landscapes, and gardens!
Wild Petunias
There is no need to wait until spring or the end of your trip to plant a wild petunia flower. It thrives here all year long and is perfect for container gardening, planting in large quantities, or using as a groundcover to decorate your property. Among its many uses, it is an excellent butterfly magnet!
Begonias
These annuals make gorgeous bedding plants through the winter season, offering pops of color in shades of pink, yellow, orange, red, and white! Residents should plant begonias in January for best results.
Marigolds
There’s a reason you see these orange and yellow flowers in so many Florida gardens—they’re easy to grow, bloom reliably, and have few insect and disease problems due to their fragrance. Try pairing these bright and cheery beauties with plants that have dark-colored foliage to make the flowers really stand out.
Dianthus
Add planting dianthus to your gardening schedule right when you arrive for winter! These flowers should be planted no earlier than October. Flowers will bloom throughout winter and spring, and will keep your garden looking fabulous the whole time you’re here.
Pentas
These star-shaped clusters of flowers bloom in autumn and winter, especially in South Florida. They vary in shades of red, pink, white, and lavender. Most pentas grow about 15 inches wide and two-to-three feet tall—make sure to leave plenty of space for them to spread out if growing in beds.
Dusty Miller
These winter annuals look great from October through February in pots and garden beds—making them perfect for landscape design. With its chillingly beautiful silver foliage, this isn’t your average tropical-looking Southern Florida plant, which is why it stands out so well!
Winter Jasmine
These gorgeous deciduous shrubs thrive best in USDA zones anywhere from 6-10 and bloom in mid-winter to early spring. Displaying bright yellow foliage as bright as the Florida sun, snowbirds can plant this variety when tending to their spring gardening.
Crinum Lilies
With winters that feel like summers, we are lucky enough to enjoy the beauty of bulbs all year round. Because crinum lilies are considered moderately cold hardy, they are a great variety for gardening here during the “cold” season. Use a mix of peaty soil and coarse sand if you are planting them in a pot or raised bed.
Bird of Paradise
This gorgeous plant, known as bird of paradise, can tolerate winter temperatures as low as 24° in Southern Florida. That being said, flowers and buds will be damaged by freezing temperatures. Plant bird-of-paradise in a container that can be moved indoors and outdoors according to its heating needs.
Firebush Plant
A semi-woody perennial shrub with showy blooms from late spring to winter, the firebush is a popular favorite with snow-bird gardening. This tropical landscape shrub is native to Florida and loved by snowbirds for its yellow-and-orange tube-shaped flowers that are sure to impress.
Bougainvillea
These prolific vining plants can bloom year-round in Florida, and winter is their prime time to show off. A versatile plant that can spread along the ground or climb up walls and trellises, growing to over thirty feet long! Bougainvillea also does amazing in winter gardening as a container-grown plant. Depending on the variety, it blooms gorgeous flowers of bright pink, red, purple, and orange!
Are you new to snowbird gardening or looking for some new varieties this winter? Visit us at Living Color Garden Center in Fort Lauderdale to learn more about the best plant varieties for gardening during the winter season in Southern Florida!