27 Best Purple Annual Flowers for Containers

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Add colors to your garden with our 27 favorite Purple Annual Flowers, which you can grow in containers, windowboxes, and garden beds.

If purple is your favorite color and you love growing annuals–this list is perfect for you.


1. Petunia

Purple Annual Flowers 1

Botanical Name: Petunia

The purple varieties of Petunias range from deep violet to soft lavender. This popular annual blooms profusely during the warmer months of spring and summer.

While planting, ensure they receive plenty of sunlight, and regular deadheading is a must for continuous flowers.

2. Sweet AlyssumPurple Annual Flowers in white pot

Botanical Name: Lobularia maritima

The delicate purple flowers of alyssum make it the perfect ground cover and border plant. Their tiny, fragrant blossoms appear in spring and fall.

Alyssum is easy to care for; you can also grow it in small pots and windowboxes.

3. VerbenaPurple Annual Flowers in garden

Botanical Name: Verbena officinalis

This sun-loving annual displays clusters of purple blossoms throughout the summer and continues till fall. Verbena is a drought-tolerant plant too, and known for its low-maintenance nature.

4. PansyPurple Annual Flowers near rock

Botanical Name: Viola tricolor var. hortensis

There are Pansy varieties that display deep purple shades with cute “faces” on their petals ☺️. This flowering plant prefers cool weather, which makes it an ideal choice for spring and fall displays.

5. Salviabeautiful Purple Annual Flowers

Botanical Name: Salvia officinalis

The tall purple flower spikes of salvia are a favorite among hummingbirds. These annuals burst into bloom in early to mid-summer and keep flowering till the fall.

Plant them in full sun and enjoy their stunning architectural presence in containers, borders, and mixed planting beds.

6. Purple GeraniumPurple Annual Flowers little flower

Botanical Name: Geranium viscosissimum

This purple annual flower shows five open petals arranged in a cluster. It grows well in areas with both full sun and partial shade and more vigorously when provided with regular watering and half-strength bi-monthly fertilizer.

7. African Daisy

Purple Annual Flowers7
mrfothergills

Botanical Name: Osteospermum

African daisy produces daisy-like flowers in various shades like purple, pink, and bicolor. They come from arid and rocky areas, so it’s important to use well-draining soil.

8. Lobelia

Purple Annual Flowers near Window

Botanical Name: Lobelia erinus

The elegant, cascading foliage of lobelia with small, deep purple flowers looks adorable, especially when cascading down from shallow pots and hanging baskets.

They are the perfect choice for spring and early summer plantations, but if you live in a warm, frost-free climate (USDA Zones 10 and 11), grow them in winter and spring.

9. Cleome

Purple Annual Flowers in pot
provenwinners

Botanical Name: Cleome viscosa

Also known as the “spider flower,” it boasts clusters of spidery, lilac-pink or purplish blooms. These annuals are visible throughout the summer.

The towering presence makes them ideal for the thriller plant, background of flowerbeds or as a focal point.

10. Morning Glory

Purple Annual Flowers in garden
living4media

Botanical Name: Ipomoea purpurea

Morning glories have blue flowers, but as the day culminates, flowers start to become purple before closing in the evening.

11. AgeratumPurple Annual Flowers in sunlight

Botanical Name: Ageratum

If you’re looking for an annual with a long flowering season, this is the one–it blooms from late spring to fall. Offering fluffy, powder-puff-like clusters of tiny lavender-blue flowers with a hint of purple.

12. Browallia

Purple Annual Flowers in green pot
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Botanical Name: Browallia speciosa

The bell-shaped, purplish-blue flowers come in display from spring through fall. These compact annuals require a little upkeep. Due to their growing habit, you can also plant them in hanging baskets.

13. ToreniaPurple Annual Flowers in pot

Botanical Name: Torenia fournieri

Also known as the wishbone flower, it features trumpet-shaped purple and blue blossoms with distinct patterns. These shade-loving annuals bloom profusely from spring to fall, and if the winters are mild in your area, they may continue blooming in colder months.

14. Annual Vinca

Purple Annual FlowersBotanical Name: Catharanthus roseus Periwinkle

If you’re looking for a drought-tolerant annual that thrives in heat and doesn’t mind some neglect, grow this one.

Look at the best types of vincas 

15. Heliotrope

Purple Annual Flowers near fence

Botanical Name: Heliotropium arborescens

The deep purple, fragrant flowers resemble tiny bouquets. These annuals typically bloom from late spring to early fall.

They are known for their sweet vanilla scent and if you’re growing them in pots, select a container that is 10 to 12 inches in size.

16. Impatiens

 

Purple Annual Flowers haning

Botanical Name: Impatiens

Some varieties of impatiens appear in beautiful pink and purple colors, which is why they are on our list. If you’re looking for a purple annual flower that grows in part sun or full shade, this is it.

17. Nicotiana

Purple Annual Flowers17
hudsonvalleyseed

Botanical Name: Nicotiana tabacum

Nicotiana, or flowering tobacco, is a popular cottage garden flower with a robust floral fragrance and purplish-pink petals.

If you love fragrant plants, this is a must for your container garden, and don’t miss checking out this list of best scented flowers here.

18. Stock

Purple Annual Flowers in glass

Botanical Name: Matthiola incana

Matthiolas may not be as rich purple as some other annuals here, but they offer a distinctively warm, spicy fragrance. They are suitable for colder climates and areas with mild summers.

19. NemesiaPurple Annual Flowers in shelf

Botanical Name: Nemesia

Nemesia offers lively purple blooms with a mildly sweet fragrance. They are one of the best flowers for window boxes in a balcony garden.

20. Snapdragon

Purple Annual Flowers in black pot

Botanical Name: Antirrhinum majus

Many varieties of snapdragons come in shades of purple. These cool-season annuals bloom in spring and fall. To flower well, they require regular deadheading to promote continuous flowering.

21. DianthusPurple Annual Flowers in garden table

Botanical Name: Dianthus ‘Everlast Lilac Eye’

Lilac Eye Dianthus displays beautiful pink blooms with purple centers. And like any other Dianthus type, this cultivar also adapts well to various environments and conditions.

22. Lupines beautiful Purple Annual Flowers

Botanical Name: Lupinus

While there are perennial lupines, the biggest benefit of planting an annual cultivar is more showy and ornamental flowers that emerge in purple, white, blue, or yellow shades.

23. Larkspur

 

Purple Annual Flowers in pot 1

Botanical Name: Delphinium

Larkspur is a tall, spiky annual with deep blue or purple blossoms that bloom in late spring and early summer. It is relatively low-maintenance and perfect for garden beds and containers.

Look at the Indoor Plants With Purple Flowers

24. Cosmos

Purple Annual Flowers

Botanical Name: Cosmos bipinnatus

Some varieties of cosmos feature violet and purple flowers, which is great if you love this color, considering their long-lasting flowers and extended blooming season that starts from early summer and continues till early winter.

25. Sweet Pea

Purple Annual Flowers hanging

Botanical Name: Lathyrus odoratus

You can find shades of purple in sweet peas! These climbing annuals flourish in slightly cool weather and offer fragrant blossoms from anywhere around late winter to early summer, depending more on the climate.

26. Zinnia

Purple Annual Flowers Bucket

Botanical Name: Zinnia

There are purple zinnias that appear from early summer through fall. Their long-lasting, daisy-like flowers attract butterflies and other pollinators in the garden.

27. CalibrachoaPurple Annual Flowers in wooden Box

Botanical Name: Calibrachoa parviflora

You can call calibrachoas “miniature petunias” because they are more compact and smaller; another similarity is their growing requirements are the same as petunias.

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