If you’re a gardener or even just a lover of flowers, you know that there are dozens of different types of flowers that start with the letter S. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the most popular “S flowers”, including sunflowers, snapdragons, and stargazers.
You’ll also learn a little bit about the history and meaning behind each type of flower. So whether you’re looking to add a little bit of color to your garden, or you’re just curious about the different types of flowers that start with S, read on!
1. Sabra Spike Sage
Grown for its bright-colored flowers, the Salvia confertiflora or Sabra Spike Sage is a tender herbaceous perennial perfect for the late-season garden. Sabra Spike Sage grows 3-4 feet with ovate scalloped green leaves that have a pungent smell. From midsummer to Autumn, terminal spikes of small red-orange flowers appear above the evergreen foliage, attracting hummingbirds. The dazzling 2-lipped flowers in whorls provide a flood of color in fresh cut and dried arrangements.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Summer (Mid, Late), Fall
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low, Average
2. Sacred Datura
The enormous trumpet-shaped flower of the Datura wrightii or Sacred Datura is the most striking feature of this herbaceous perennial. Often grown as an annual, the eye-catching flowers bloom from late spring until frost. The showy white trumpet flowers are 6-7 inches tall and sometimes have a purple tint. They open up in the afternoon with a sweet fragrance and close in the morning.
Sacred Datura has evergreen foliage of large dark green-greyish leaves that are velvety. It has an abundance of nectar often enjoyed by hawkmoths. However, all parts of the plant are poisonous to humans and animals.
Annual or Perennial: Annual, Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun, Partial sun
Water: Low
3. Sacred Lotus
Nelumbo nucifera, or Sacred Lotus, defines poise and elegance with its impeccable structure. This exotic beauty is an emergent aquatic perennial native to Asia but graces North American water gardens. Resembling water lilies, Sacred Lotus is recognized by its large round funnel-shaped or cup-shaped leaves that grow up to 6 feet above the water on long petioles.
The flowers are pink to white with a golden yellow receptacle at the center for a lovely contrast. The cupped flowers start to bloom in summer with a sweet fragrance. They Open up in the morning and close at night.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Summer (Early, Mid)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: High
4. Saffron Crocus
Crocus sativus or Saffron Crocus brings a unique kind of beauty to gardens in fall. Blooming from early to mid-fall, the plant produces 2 to 4 large lavender to violet-blue flowers resembling a goblet with a red stigma for contrast. The foliage consists of narrow grasslike green leaves.
Asides from its striking beauty, Saffron Crocus has been grown since ancient times for use as dye, spices, perfumery, and medicine. These valuable properties are harvested from the stigma.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Fall (Early, Mid)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low
5. Sage
Salvia officinalis, commonly known as Sage, is an ornamental garden plant native to the Mediterranean and naturalized around the globe. This perennial herb grows 2 feet tall with a profusion of beautifully colored flowers ranging from bluish to pinkish-lavender, white, pink, red, and purple. Flowers are two-lipped, blooming in late spring or summer in whorls on short spikes, attracting bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
The camphor-scented flowers blend nicely against the backdrop of grey-green to whitish-green oval leaves. As a member of the mint family, sage has a history of fresh or dry use in teas, medicine, and culinary activities.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer (Early)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low, Average
6. Sago Palm
Bring the tropics indoors with the Sago Palm. This slow-growing plant has ornamental quality with its long green fronds resembling a palm tree. The symmetrical ring of the Sago Palm resembles a crown with glossy dark green leaves. The trunk is low and multibranched, producing several crowns of leaves.
This plant grows slowly, taking several years to reach a height of 2-3 feet. It rarely has flowers except for the golden-brown flowers that bloom in summer on mature plants.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall (Early)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Partial sun
Water: Average
7. Salad Burnet
A member of the rose family, the Salad Burnet is an attractive plant grown for its beautiful crimson flowers and edible leaves.
From early summer through fall, a dense cluster of knobbly spherical flowers blooms in a peculiar crimson color. The flowers appear on thin stems over the evergreen to semi-evergreen foliage of rounded-toothed leaves.
The leaves have a clean cucumber-like scent and taste, used in salads and flavoring for sauces. The red flowers against the backdrop of tender, beautiful leaves create a striking garden vision.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Mid, Late), Summer)Early, Mid, Late), Fall
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun, Partial sun
Water: Average
8. Salmon Queen
Adored by butterflies and humans alike, the Salmon Queen produces a profusion of glowing flowers in salmon-pink hues. This compact and bushy annual features large fashionable semi to fully double blooms.
From early summer to fall, the showy flowers grow on sturdy stems, appearing above the evergreen foliage of attractive, glossy green leaves. The Salmon Queen is an excellent cut flower, coming alive in a bouquet arrangement.
Annual or Perennial: Annual
Growing Season: Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Average
9. Salt Heliotrope
Salt Heliotrope is a sprawling perennial native to North and South America. However, it can also grow as an annual in cold regions.
This plant is structurally designed to be captivating with multibranched stems that bear tiny bell-shaped white flowers with yellow to purple throats. Flowers bloom on uncoiling stalks from spring to fall in pairs of threes.
The flowers blend nicely above the bluish-green foliage of thick oval or spade-shaped leaves. The shower flowers that this plant features attract butterflies.
Annual or Perennial: Annual, Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Early, Mid, Late), Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low, Average
10. Saltmeadow Cordgrass
This thick, mat-forming perennial is native to the Atlantic Coast of North America and found along brackish and salt marshlands.
It has drooping and wiry dark green leaves glossy above and rough at the bottom, creating a whorled pattern.
The stems bend under wind and water action, appearing like a field of hay and cowlicks.
From June to October, Saltmeadow Cordgrass produces short spikes of deep purple florets that turn brown in winter. It is used as a weed-free mulch in the landscape and vegetable trade. It also purifies the air and creates a buffer against erosion.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall (Early, Mid)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: High
11. Sam Hopkins
As a member of the Decorative Dahlias, Sam Hopkins is prized for its beauty. From midsummer to frost, a profusion of fully double flowerheads blooms in a luminous, velvety deep red color that appears almost black. The backdrop of attractive foliage with lush and rich dark green leaves creates a stunning contrast.
This showy flower remains upright no matter the weather, and its sturdy stems make excellent cut flower arrangements. Deadheading spent flowers will continually encourage impressive blooms.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Summer (Mid, Late) Fall
Maintenance: Average
Sun: Full sun
Water: Average
12. Samba
A profusion of rose pink daisy-like flowers is guaranteed with the Chrysanthemum ‘Samba’. From late summer to fall, multibranched stems produce an abundance of romantic rose pink flowers with a warm yellow center.
This color combination comes to life against the mound of glossy green leaves. The showy Samba will brighten a fall garden and make an excellent cut flower arrangement.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Summer (Late), Fall
Maintenance: Average
Sun: Full sun
Water: Average
13. San Francisco
The lush and glossy foliage of the Croton or San Francisco makes it a must-have decorative ornamental plant. This evergreen shrub grows 9.8 feet tall, with large, thick, and leathery leaves that are either ovate, elliptic, lanceolate, oblong, or violin-shaped. Bring the tropics indoors and outdoors with this striking variegated foliage covered in a splash of yellow, green, orange, and red.
In addition to the explosion of contrasting colors is a cluster of white to yellow flowers that bloom all year round except in plants grown indoors. All parts of the San Francisco plant are poisonous.
Annual or Perennial: Annual
Growing Season: Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall
Maintenance: Average
Sun: Full sun, Partial sun
Water: Average
14. SandHill Sage
Sand Hill Sage is the softest perennial shrub with a sweet fragrance native to North America. It grows 4-5 feet tall with stems covered in a mound of narrow, thread-like silvery grey-green leaves.
Although grown primarily for its foliage, this delicate herbaceous perennial is a flowering plant in the Aster family. In late spring, clusters of yellow flower heads with multiple discs and ray florets grow atop arching stems.
The SandHill Sage loves coastal climates; pinching the branch stems will keep it looking fresh for a long time.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low
15. Sand Phlox
This perennial produces colorful blue-purple flowers in a charming garden display. The Sand Phlox forms thick mats of low-spreading bright green leaves. Above the attractive foliage is a profusion of lavender to white flowers that resemble snowflakes. Flowers bloom from mid-spring to early summer with a slight fragrance and cleft lobes that appear starry. The flowers are showy, attracting butterflies and moths. Sand Phlox is the perfect ground cover and makes a charming container plant.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Mid, Late), Summertime (Early)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low, Average
16. Sand Violet
Otherwise known as Viola adunca, hooked spur violet, or western dog violet, this sand violet is a popular species of the violet family. Native to the meadows and forests of western North America, this hairy perennial grows between 0.5 to 4 cm long. It is a compact plant that grows from a rhizome system and features heart-shaped leaf blades that remain narrow in spring and become larger in summer. Habitats include sandy woodland, sandy savannas, abandoned sandy fields, thinly wooded slopes, and sand prairies.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Mid, Late), Summer (Early)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun, Partial sun
Water: Average
17. Santa Cruz
Also known as Holocarpha macradenia, Santa Cruz is an annual wildflower renowned for its bright color and long flowering season. Although often petite, the plant can grow up to 50 CM tall. Most species of Santa Cruz have rounded and variously notched waxed-coated leaves on long stalks. With the stalks containing many airspaces, they float in freshwater habitats. Santa Cruz belongs to the Nymphaeaceae family, which I’d native to the tropical and temperate parts of the world. They provide food for wildlife and fishes and are incredibly easy to grow. The plant features male and female flowers borne separately on the same plant. Water the plant well for best results when growing and feed fortnightly with the right fertilizer for a more prolonged flowering period.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Average
Water: Full sun, Partial sun
18. Santa Cruz Water Lily
Victoria cruziana (water planter, Santa Cruz water Lily) is a tropical species of flowering plant in the Nymphaeaceae family of South American water lilies. The relatively popular water garden plant typically thrives in botanical gardens where its large leaves can grow to their fullest. The plant’s flowers are considered as thermogenic because they create their heat during the budding period, allowing the plant to release its fragrance more efficiently to surrounding beetles. The plant can grow up to 2 meters wide, with its huge leaves helping it in the competition for sunlight. The plant remains smaller when kept in a smaller container but grows quite large to its full potential in a large pot with the right fertilization level.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Summer (Early, Mid, Late)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Average
19. Santa Fe Phlox
Often considered one of the finest Western native perennials, Santa Fe Phlox grows in a tidy mound of stems with narrow, blue-green deciduous foliage. Although easy to grow, this plant is almost always non-available because of its difficult propagation process. It blooms in late spring but typically reflowers in late summer as a response to summer rain. The flower colors range from pink to purple (rarely yellow or white) with small white eyes. Natural habitats include rocky slopes, canyons, and roadsides. Santa Fe Phlox is an effective ground cover in borders and rock gardens.
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer (Early).
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun
Water: Low
20. Satin Flower
Otherwise called Clarkia Amoena, Satin flowers are annual native wildflowers that belong to the Onagraceae family. The plant’s colors include pink, purple, white, and red. Satin flowers are also called spring farewell and appear on the rugged hills of the pacific coast in early summer. The grasslike annual produce multiple spikes of small, pale yellow blooms. It grows up to 24-30 in. in length and is great for beds and borders, cutting gardens, cottage gardens, and containers. The plant is generally pest free and pretty easy to grow, although you’ll need to keep an eye out for stem rot and foot rot.
Annual or Perennial: Annuals
Growing Season: Spring (Late), Summer (Early, Mid)
Maintenance: Low
Sun: Full sun, Partial sun
Water: Average
