19 Purple Flowers for Bold Garden Color

!Vibrant purple flowers blooming in a dramatic garden border Purple flowers bring depth, drama, and royal elegance to any garden design

Purple is the color of royalty, creativity, and mystery—and in the garden, purple flowers create an atmosphere of luxury and depth that no other color can match. From soft lavenders to deep, velvety violets, purple blooms span the entire spectrum, offering options for every garden style and growing condition.

Whether you’re designing a cottage garden bursting with color, a formal border with sophisticated hues, or a pollinator garden that attracts bees and butterflies, this collection of 19 stunning purple flowers will help you create a garden that makes a bold statement.

1. Lavender

The quintessential purple plant—fragrant, beautiful, and endlessly useful.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

English lavender produces fragrant spikes of purple flowers atop silvery-green foliage. This Mediterranean herb thrives in hot, dry conditions and poor soil, making it perfect for low-maintenance gardens. Beyond its beauty, lavender attracts pollinators, repels pests, and provides flowers for crafts, cooking, and essential oils.

Key Features:

• Intensely fragrant flowers and foliage
• Drought tolerant once established
• Attracts bees and butterflies
• Excellent for dried arrangements
• Requires excellent drainage

2. Russian Sage

A cloud of lavender-blue flowers that blooms for months.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Russian sage is a workhorse of the late summer garden, producing airy sprays of lavender-purple flowers on silvery stems from midsummer until frost. Despite its common name, it’s not a true sage, but it shares that plant’s toughness and pollinator appeal. The tall, wispy habit adds texture and movement to the back of borders.

Key Features:

• Extremely drought tolerant
• Long bloom period
• Deer and rabbit resistant
• Silvery foliage provides multi-season interest
• Cut back hard in early spring

3. Clematis ‘The President’

Stunning violet-blue blooms on a vigorous climbing vine.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

This classic clematis variety produces enormous royal purple flowers with contrasting red anthers on vigorous vines. ‘The President’ has been a garden favorite for over 100 years thanks to its reliability, heavy blooming, and long flower life. Plant it where the roots stay cool and the tops reach for the sun.

Key Features:

• Large 6-8 inch flowers
• Reliable rebloomer
• Long-lived perennial vine
• Plant where roots stay cool
• Prune after first bloom to encourage rebloom

4. Salvia ‘May Night’

Spires of deep purple-blue flowers that attract hummingbirds.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

‘May Night’ salvia is one of the most reliable perennials for the garden, producing dense spikes of deep purple flowers that seem to glow. This compact variety fits perfectly in borders, and the long bloom period attracts hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies throughout the season. Deadhead to encourage rebloom.

Key Features:

• Long blooming period
• Attracts hummingbirds and pollinators
• Deer and rabbit resistant
• Compact habit fits small spaces
• Drought tolerant once established

5. Allium ‘Globemaster’

Dramatic purple spheres that make a architectural statement.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

‘Globemaster’ alliums produce enormous 8-10 inch spheres of star-shaped purple flowers atop tall, sturdy stems. These dramatic blooms make a bold statement in the garden and excellent cut flowers. Even after blooming, the dried seed heads provide architectural interest for months.

Key Features:

• Spectacular spherical blooms
• Deer and rodent resistant
• Dried heads provide winter interest
• Plant bulbs in fall (6-8 inches deep)
• Perennializes well in most climates

6. Butterfly Bush ‘Black Knight’

Deep purple blooms that live up to their name, attracting butterflies by the dozens.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

‘Black Knight’ produces the darkest purple flowers of any butterfly bush—so deep they appear almost black from a distance. The honey-scented blooms attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees from midsummer until frost. Prune hard in early spring to encourage vigorous new growth and maximum blooming.

Key Features:

• Attracts butterflies and hummingbirds
• Sweet fragrance
• Long bloom period
• Fast growing
• Can be invasive in some regions—check local guidelines

7. Purple Coneflower

A native beauty that combines toughness with stunning blooms.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Purple coneflower is a prairie native that has become a garden staple for good reason. The daisy-like flowers with raised coppery-orange cones attract butterflies, bees, and goldfinches (who love the seeds). Extremely drought tolerant and long-lived, this is one of the easiest perennials to grow.

Key Features:

• Native plant supports pollinators
• Drought tolerant once established
• Seed heads attract goldfinches
• Excellent cut flower
• Medicinal properties

8. Verbena bonariensis

Tall, airy clusters of purple flowers that dance in the breeze.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

This tall, see-through perennial produces clusters of tiny purple flowers on wiry stems that seem to float in the garden. The airy habit allows you to plant it at the front of borders without blocking views. Butterflies and bees adore the nectar-rich blooms, and it self-seeds gently for naturalistic plantings.

Key Features:

• See-through habit perfect for layering
• Attracts butterflies and bees
• Self-seeds for naturalized look
• Drought tolerant
• Annual in cold climates but readily self-seeds

9. Catmint ‘Walker’s Low’

A mound of lavender-blue flowers that blooms for months.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Despite its name, ‘Walker’s Low’ is actually a fairly tall catmint that produces masses of lavender-blue flowers from late spring until frost. The aromatic gray-green foliage is deer-resistant, and the long bloom period makes this a workhorse for sunny borders. Cut back after first flush for rebloom.

Key Features:

• Extremely long bloom period
• Deer and rabbit resistant
• Drought tolerant
• Attracts bees and butterflies
• Gray-green foliage provides contrast

10. Hardy Geranium ‘Rozanne’

The ultimate long-blooming perennial with purple-blue flowers.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

‘Rozanne’ is widely considered the best hardy geranium, producing large purple-blue flowers with white centers from late spring until hard frost. The sprawling habit makes it perfect for ground cover or spilling over walls, and it combines beautifully with almost any other garden plant.

Key Features:

• Blooms all season
• Easy to grow
• Attractive mounding habit
• Excellent ground cover
• 2008 Perennial Plant of the Year

11. Liatris (Blazing Star)

Unique vertical spikes of purple flowers for late summer.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Liatris produces unique vertical spikes of fluffy purple flowers that open from the top down—unusual for a spike flower. These native prairie plants attract butterflies and make excellent cut flowers. The unusual vertical form provides contrast in borders filled with round flower shapes.

Key Features:

• Unique top-down blooming pattern
• Native plant attracts butterflies
• Excellent cut flower
• Drought tolerant
• Vertical accent in borders

12. Aster ‘Purple Dome’

A mounded cloud of purple that extends the season into fall.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

‘Purple Dome’ New England aster produces masses of deep purple daisy-like flowers in late summer when many other blooms are fading. The compact, mounded habit is perfect for front of borders, and the late-season blooms provide crucial nectar for migrating monarch butterflies.

Key Features:

• Extends garden season into fall
• Attracts butterflies, especially monarchs
• Compact habit
• Native plant
• Divide every 3 years to maintain vigor

13. Baptisia (False Indigo)

A long-lived native shrub with dramatic pea-like flowers.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Baptisia is a tough-as-nails native perennial that produces dramatic spikes of indigo-blue, pea-like flowers in late spring. The blue-green foliage remains attractive all season, and the plant develops a shrub-like presence in the garden. Extremely long-lived—don’t plan on moving it once established.

Key Features:

• Extremely long-lived (decades)
• Deep taproot makes it very drought tolerant
• Attractive seed pods for fall interest
• Native plant
• Deer resistant

14. Balloon Flower

Unique puffy buds that burst into star-shaped purple blooms.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Balloon flowers delight gardeners with their unique balloon-like buds that slowly inflate before popping open into star-shaped purple flowers. This low-maintenance perennial blooms throughout summer and makes an excellent cut flower. The compact varieties are perfect for front of borders.

Key Features:

• Fascinating balloon-like buds
• Long bloom period
• Low maintenance
• Excellent cut flower
• Deer resistant

15. Monkshood

Dramatic hooded flowers for the back of shady borders.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Monkshood produces dramatic spikes of deep purple, hooded flowers that resemble medieval monks’ cowls. This tall perennial is perfect for the back of borders and extends the flowering season into fall. All parts are extremely toxic—handle with care and plant away from children and pets.

Key Features:

• Unique hooded flower shape
• Late-season blooms
• Excellent for cutting
• Thrives in partial shade
• All parts highly toxic

16. Heliotrope

Intoxicating vanilla fragrance and clusters of purple blooms.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Heliotrope is grown primarily for its intoxicating vanilla-cherry fragrance, but the clusters of tiny purple flowers are lovely too. This tender perennial is typically grown as an annual, perfect for containers and bedding schemes. The scent is strongest in the evening.

Key Features:

• Intoxicating vanilla fragrance
• Attracts butterflies
• Excellent for containers
• Tender perennial (annual in cold climates)
• Flowers smell like vanilla and cherry pie

17. Petunia ‘Supertunia Royal Velvet’

Non-stop purple blooms for containers and borders.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

This deep purple petunia produces velvety blooms all season long without the need for deadheading. The vigorous, trailing habit makes it perfect for hanging baskets, window boxes, and ground cover. The rich purple color is one of the truest purples available in annuals.

Key Features:

• Blooms continuously all season
• No deadheading required
• Deep, velvety purple color
• Excellent for containers
• Drought tolerant once established

18. Morning Glory ‘Grandpa Ott’

Heirloom climbing vine with deep purple trumpet flowers.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

‘Grandpa Ott’ is a beloved heirloom morning glory with deep purple, heart-shaped leaves and velvety purple trumpet flowers marked with a pink star throat. These fast-growing annual vines climb quickly to cover fences, arbors, and trellises, opening their blooms at dawn.

Key Features:

• Fast-growing climber
• Heirloom variety
• Self-seeds readily
• Deep purple velvety blooms
• Heart-shaped leaves

19. Pansy ‘Majestic Giants Purple’

Early spring purple faces that brave the cold.

Attribute
Botanical Name
Sun Requirements
Height
Hardiness Zones
Bloom Time

Purple pansies bring cheerful color to the garden in early spring and again in fall. These cold-tolerant annuals can be planted weeks before the last frost and often survive light snow. The deep purple ‘Majestic Giants’ series produces extra-large blooms with the classic pansy face.

Key Features:

• Cold tolerant (can plant early spring)
• Long blooming in cool weather
• Edible flowers
• Excellent for containers
• Wide range of purple shades available

Design Tips for Purple Flower Gardens

Combining Purple Hues

Purple spans from red-purple to blue-purple. For harmony:

• Analogous schemes: Combine purple with blue and pink
• Complementary contrast: Pair purple with yellow or chartreuse
• Monochromatic: Layer light lavender with deep violet

Best Companion Colors

• Yellow: The classic complement—try purple coneflower with black-eyed Susan
• Silver: Softens bold purples; lavender with artemisia
• White: Makes purple pop; creates elegance
• Orange: Bold and contemporary; purple with marigolds

Creating Depth

• Use light purples (lavender, lilac) in the background
• Deep purples (violet, indigo) come forward visually
• Medium purples work anywhere

Frequently Asked Questions

Do purple flowers attract pollinators?

Yes! Many purple flowers are specifically adapted to attract bees, which see purple very well. Lavender, salvia, and coneflowers are pollinator magnets.

Can I grow purple flowers in shade?

Some purple flowers like hellebores, astilbe, and monkshood thrive in shade. Others like lavender and salvia need full sun.

What’s the difference between purple and lavender flowers?

Lavender is a light, pale purple with more blue tones. Purple encompasses the full range from reddish-purple to blue-purple.

Do purple flowers fade in sunlight?

Some deep purples can appear darker or fade slightly in intense sun. This is normal and doesn’t harm the plant.

Are there any true blue-purple flowers?

True blue is rare in flowers; most “blue” flowers are actually purple. Delphiniums, some hydrangeas, and certain salvias come closest to true blue.

Final Thoughts

Purple flowers bring a sense of luxury and sophistication to the garden that other colors simply can’t match. Whether you prefer the soft pastels of lavender and catmint or the bold drama of alliums and butterfly bushes, there’s a purple flower for every garden situation.

My advice: Start with reliable performers like purple coneflower, salvia, and lavender, then branch out into more unusual varieties as you gain confidence. The key to a successful purple garden is combining different shades and textures while ensuring you have blooms from spring through fall.

Here’s to creating a garden fit for royalty!

What’s your favorite purple flower? Do you prefer soft lavenders or deep violets? Share your purple garden combinations in the comments! Related Articles:

• 21 White Flowers for a Peaceful Garden – Perfect companions for purple
• Salvia Growing Guide – Master these pollinator favorites
• Lavender Care Guide – Grow the classic purple herb

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