6 Easy Flower Seeds you can Plant with your Kiddos Today

Growing plants… especially from seeds… is hard! Nitrogen levels, drainage, seed stratification… those are all a bunch of scary and complicated words… and who has time for that?

But on the other hand… imagine you and your kiddo(s) planting seeds in fresh soil, the anticipation and excitement when it sprouts, and the joys of it blooming! Your family watches with pride as the beautiful blooms you grew from seed feed a butterfly as she dances through your yard. Who doesn’t want to do that?

So then… how do you get the most of the second scenario with the least of the first one? Well, you’re in luck! I’ve been planting seeds and succeeding (and failing) for years! I know what works easily… and what to avoid. Below you’ll find some of my favorite, easy flower seeds you can plant today to enjoy blooms and butterflies all Summer, plus the satisfaction that comes from growing them with your kiddo!

Blanketflower (Gaillardia pulchella)

Why plant this one: Super-easy to grow, blooms last ALLLL Summer and into Fall, can be perennial, Short and compact (1-2ft tall), helps bees and butterflies, makes lots of seeds you can gather and plant some more or give away! Oh, and it’s pretty!

How to plant it: Sprinkle seeds on surface of soil on bare ground/in a pot in a sunny spot. Very lightly cover seeds with sprinkles of dirt. Keep moist until seeds sprout (takes around 10-15 days). Do not fertilize.

Where to get it: Find it HERE from Ohio Prairie Nursery, a local seed business I’ve worked with often!

Plains Coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria)

Why plant this one: Super-easy to grow, light/airy structure helps it fit-in anywhere, grows to about 3ft (bush-like), can be perennial, helps bees and butterflies, makes lots of seeds you can gather and plant some more or give away! Oh, and it’s pretty!

How to plant it: Sprinkle seeds on surface of soil on bare ground/in a pot in a sunny spot. DO NOT cover seeds with any sprinkles of dirt. Keep moist until seeds sprout (takes around 10-15 days). Do not fertilize.

Where to get it: Find it HERE from Ohio Prairie Nursery

Lemon Beebalm (Monarda citriodora)

Why plant this one: Super-easy to grow, unique, exotic-like look, grows to about 1-2ft, delightful scent, helps little green native bees you may have never seen before… and butterflies, makes lots of seeds you can gather and plant some more or give away!

How to plant it: Sprinkle seeds on surface of soil on bare ground/in a pot in a sunny spot. DO NOT cover seeds with any sprinkles of dirt. Keep moist until seeds sprout (takes around 10-15 days). Do not fertilize. This one likes to stay a bit more moist than the first two, fyi.

Where to get it: Find it HERE from Everwilde Farms Inc. (Not local, but excellent quality!)

Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)

Why plant this one: Super-easy to grow, garden classic, grows to about 2-3ft, helps butterflies (including Monarchs), makes lots of seeds you can gather and plant some more or give away!, flowers can be picked and petals picked off and thrown for the best nature confetti (my daughters love doing this)

How to plant it: Sprinkle seeds on surface of soil on bare ground/in a pot in a sunny spot. lightly cover seeds with sprinkles of dirt. Keep moist until seeds sprout (takes around 10-15 days). Do not fertilize.

Where to get it: Find it HERE from Everwilde Farms Inc. (Not local, but excellent quality!)

*NOTE: there are a TON of Zinnia hybrids… if you want to attract butterflies, you need the straight species that look like the picture above. If you get the varieties that look more like a pom-pom, those flowers unfortunately don’t have almost any pollen/nectar and won’t bring the butterfly party you want.

Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus)

Why plant this one: Super-easy to grow, garden classic, grows to about 3-5ft, helps LOTS of bumblebees and butterflies, makes lots of seeds you can gather and plant some more or give away!, blooms well into Fall.

How to plant it: Sprinkle seeds on surface of soil on bare ground/in a pot in a sunny spot. DO NOT cover seeds with any sprinkles of dirt. Keep moist until seeds sprout (takes around 10-15 days).

Where to get it: Find it HERE from Everwilde Farms Inc. (Consider Sulphur Cosmos as well… my Oma’s favorite!)

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

Why plant this one: Super-easy to grow, cheerful, grows to about 3-5ft, Sunflower pollen is actually anti-viral for bumblebees… so planting sunflowers is actually like setting up a cute little minute-clinic for our buzzy friends! Also, in Fall these flowers attract gorgeous little Goldfinch birds! (And this is a birdfeeder you never have to clean!)

How to plant it: Chipmunks like to dig-up and eat sunflower seeds, so I’d recommend planting these in pots first, then transplanting to the ground once they get about 2” tall… OR just dig a shallow1-2’ trench and plant A LOT of seeds, cover, and pray for the best!

Where to get it: Here’s our secret at my house… you can just plant birdseed! Buy a bag of pure blackoil sunflower seeds from a hardware/bird-supply store. Then just plant those! I’ve got an entire hill we plant each year with these seeds and they work… really well!

One last thing…

If you have a bigger, sunny area in the ground to plant and would like a variety of flowers… you don’t have to buy each packet individually! Checkout this seed mix from OPN. We’ve used this with great success at several of our locations! Definitely choose this mix or any of the flowers above INSTEAD of those “wildflower mixes” at the big stores. Why? Those mixes usually include invasive plant species that actively hurt the environment AND their seeds are typically treated with pesticides etc that hurt the butterflies… and you!

So there you have it! Plant some of these seeds soon with your family and enjoy the blooms together… and make some bumblebee/butterfly friends while you’re at it! Be sure to share pics and stories of your flower-growing adventures with me on Instagram @jaredthenatureguy

P.S. another groovy option is Seed Paper! Check it out from local business Return To Sender and while you’re at it, checkout my earlier blog when I interview RTS’ founder, Laura Oldham!