A New Survey Reveals the Most Popular Flowers Grown in Each State

Jennifer Aldrich
·2 min read
1

About 40 years ago, my parents moved into their current house, and my mom told my dad that her favorite flower is the daffodil. So, of course, he planted bulbs upon bulbs of several varieties all around their house, and every year, right around my mom's birthday in early spring, their garden is filled with shades of yellow, orange, and white. I love daffodils, too, but I'm more fond of colorful roses or petal-packed peonies. Well, it turns out people's preferences in their blooms can be just as different as how they take their cup of coffee, and a recent survey showcases exactly that; Spring Hill Nurseries, an online plant shop, just revealed the most common flower grown in every state.

Courtesy of Spring Hill Nurseries

For their survey, Spring Hill Nurseries produced a list of 20 popular flower varieties and asked people in every state and Washington, D.C., to pick which flower they plant in their gardens the most. The top flower varies state by state, though some regions appear to have similar preferences. For example, hydrangeas seem to be a favorite in the middle section of the country and daffodils get lots of love along the East Coast.

Related: How to Build a New Flower Bed for All Your Favorite Blooms

But far and away the fan-favorite flower is the rose (these people have good taste!), with 19 states choosing it. The next most planted variety is the sunflower, which is listed for six states. On the other end of the popularity spectrum, several options tied for the least-planted bloom with just one state each: the daylily, geranium, iris, lilac, lily, orchid, and tulip. Out of the 20 flowers in the survey, only five varieties weren't selected at all: the gerbera daisy, petunia, gardenia, dahlia, and violet.

According to Spring Hill Nurseries, there doesn't seem to be a strong reason why certain flowers aren't planted as much. (For example, it reports that the gerbera daisy is one of the most popular cut flowers globally, and the petunia is affordable and grows quickly.) Maybe everyone just plants more roses. Whatever your floral favorites may be, you can't go wrong growing any of the flowers in this survey.