The Best Annual Flowers in Winter

Flowers bursting up through the snow and showing life in an otherwise lifeless garden; it's the hope of many gardeners. With annual winter flowers you can have blooms when others don't. The best annual flowers in winter are ones that have been shown to be best-suited for those cold conditions. Plant a full season garden with winter flowers.

Common Snapdragon

The common snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) is from the figwort family. It is easy and fast to grow, and attracts hummingbirds. They grow between 2 to 3 feet for the tall varieties to 4 to 9 inches tall for the dwarf varieties. Flowers are widely varied in color. Plant a snapdragon in well drained soil in full sun or partial shade. Propagate via seed.

Iceland Poppy

The Iceland poppy (Papaver nudicaule) is from the poppy family. It has blue green leaves 1 to 6 inches long and bowl-shaped fragrant flowers. Plant an Iceland poppy in full sun in well drained soil with medium humidity conditions. Propagate via fall or spring seed. It has a medium growth rate and can be harmful if ingested by pets.

Sweet Alyssum

The sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima) is from the cabbage family. It is a fragrant perennial that is commonly grown as an annual. It will only get 9 inches tall. Flowers are pink, white or purple in terminal clusters. Leaves are 1 inch long and hairy. Plant a sweet alyssum in enriched soil and full sun. Propagate by seed.

Hoary Stock

The hoary stock (Matthiola incana) is from the mustard family. It is an annual of cream white (usually) flowers. Other flowers are in the pink to purple range. It is fragrant and does well in medium humidity and full sunlight. Pests that come to this plant are spider mites and white flies.