Best Flowers to Winter Sow: Beginner-Friendly Picks That Actually Work

Add me to see the latest gardening from me.

Best flowers to winter sow for beginners, including reliable favorites and cool-season experiments, based on years of gardening experience in Zone 6b.

If you’re new to winter sowing, choosing the right seeds makes all the difference. Some flowers are naturally suited to cold conditions, while others struggle or perform better when started another way.

I’ve been gardening for many years in a Zone 6b climate, and winter sowing has become one of my favorite ways to start flowers. It’s simple, low-maintenance, and works with nature instead of forcing seedlings under artificial conditions. If you are new to winter sowing and want to learn how to do it, please visit my winter sowing guide here.

Over time, I’ve tested winter sowing with a wide range of flowers — some with great success, and others that taught me valuable lessons. Below are the flowers I’ve found to be the most beginner-friendly, along with a few experiments I’m excited to try this season.

(Posts on stacyling.com may contain affiliate links. Click HERE for full disclosure.)

A plastic milk jug with its cap removed, used for winter sowing with milk jugs, sits among green leafy plants near a green wooden fence. Handwritten text is visible on the jug. — Winter sowing sweet peas in the garden in 2022

Watch: My Favorite Easy Flowers to Winter Sow

I just finished sowing my winter sowing containers this week, and these are some of the flowers I reach for every single year — plus a few new varieties I’m excited to try this season.

If you’d like to see exactly what I’m planting and why these flowers do so well with winter sowing, I walk through everything in the video below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo0s3qZac5g

Why Winter Sowing Is Great for Beginners

Winter sowing involves starting seeds outdoors in winter using simple containers like milk jugs or plastic bins. Cold temperatures, moisture, and time work together to naturally prepare seeds for germination.

This method is especially beginner-friendly because:

You don’t need grow lights or heat mats
Seedlings harden off naturally
Plants tend to be sturdier and less leggy
There’s less daily maintenance than indoor seed starting

If you’re brand new to the process, you can find a detailed explanation in my winter sowing guide, but below I’ll focus on what to grow.

n the list below, flowers I’ve labeled as reliable are ones I’ve winter sown successfully for multiple seasons, while experimental flowers are plants I’m currently testing or refining in my garden. These have worked well for me in a Zone 6b garden, but winter sowing results can vary depending on climate, timing, and local conditions.

Transparent plastic containers filled with young plants, perfect for winter sowing seeds, line a stone path next to a green picket fence. A small building with a wooden door stands in the background, while trees stripped of leaves stretch beyond the fence. — My winter sowing set up in Winter 2024

Reliable, Beginner-Friendly Flowers for Winter Sowing

These are flowers I’ve winter sown successfully for years and have found to be especially forgiving for beginners.

Sweet Peas

Sweet peas are excellent candidates for winter sowing because they tolerate cold well and benefit from early growth in cool conditions.

I’ve had good results starting them this way, especially since they prefer cooler temperatures early on. My sweet peas performed better in my gardens using winter sowing versus indoors under grow lights.

Just be sure to use a deeper container, as sweet peas develop long roots quickly.

To learn more about winter sowing sweet peas, please visit my guide: How to Winter Sow Sweet Peas

A green trellis supports purple and pink sweet pea flowers growing in a garden bed. The background features a wooden footbridge and lush greenery, indicating a garden or park setting.

close up of first sweet pea flowers from the garden — Sweet Peas

Larkspur

Larkspur is one of the easiest flowers to winter sow and one I’ve grown successfully this way many times.

It needs cold stratification to germinate well, which winter sowing provides naturally. Once established, it’s low-maintenance and blooms beautifully in late spring to early summer.

I’ve started larkspur both indoors under grow lights and outdoors via winter sowing and found the flowers grow and bloom much better using the winter sowing method.

To learn more about winter sowing larkspur, please see my winter sowing larkspur guide

close up of purple pink and white flowers of larkspur

Snapdragons

Snapdragons grow slowly at first, which makes winter sowing a great option.

Starting them outdoors gives them a head start without taking up indoor space, and they handle cool temperatures well. They’re a good choice for patient beginners who want sturdy transplants by spring.

I’ve started them both indoors under grow lights and winter sowing, and do a hybrid approach yearly to save seed starting space indoors while ensuring I still have a crop.

To learn more about growing snapdragons from seed, please visit: How to Grow Snapdragons From Seed

A hand holding a vibrant bouquet of multicolored snapdragons, with shades ranging from soft pink to rich yellow, set against a lush garden backdrop featuring a classical fountain and terracotta pots, highlighting the beauty and serenity of a well-maintained garden.

Calendula

Calendula is extremely forgiving and one of the most beginner-friendly flowers you can grow.

It germinates easily, tolerates cold, and blooms early. If you want quick, confidence-building success with winter sowing, calendula is a great place to start. I have grown these from seed both with winter sowing and direct sowing and found I get a longer bloom time through when starting them outdoors in winter.

To learn more about how I start calendula from seed, please visit: How to Grow Calendula

Vivid calendula with layers of white-tipped, yellow petals and a fiery red center, standing out among green leaves and buds in a garden. Calendula is a great plant for attracting ladybugs to your garden. — Calendula flowers in my zone 6b flower garden

Statice

Statice is a tough, drought-tolerant flower that handles cooler conditions well, but it’s one I struggled with when starting indoors under grow lights. The plants took a long time to flower and never performed as well as I hoped in the garden.

When I switched to winter sowing, the difference was noticeable. The seedlings established more easily, grew stronger once planted out, and flowered better overall. After seeing how much better statice performed when winter sown, this is now the only way I plan to start it from seed.

Pink and purple larkspur and statice flowers grow closely together among green leaves and stems, supported by a green metal garden trellis in a lush outdoor setting. — Larkspur and statice flowers I started from seed using the winter sowing method in zone 6b

Yarrow

Yarrow is a tough, cold-hardy perennial that benefits from winter exposure, making it well-suited to winter sowing. While it’s easy to find as a nursery plant, it was one of the first perennials I tested with winter sowing to see how well it would establish when started from seed.

What’s kept me growing yarrow from seed is the range of colors that simply aren’t available at local nurseries. Winter sowing has been a reliable way for me to establish those seedlings in the garden with minimal transplant stress, and it’s now how I prefer to start yarrow when growing specific varieties.

To learn more about how I grow yarrow in my gardens, please visit: How to Grow Yarrow

A cluster of delicate flowers, predominantly white with shades ranging from pale pink to light purple, seen in a garden setting. The yarrow blooms are densely packed, creating a lush and vibrant floral display. Green foliage is visible beneath the blossoms, adding to the charm of this drought-tolerant plant. — Yarrow in my zone 6b garden

Flowers I’m Experimenting With This Year to Winter Sow

These are cool-season annuals and perennials I’m experimenting with through winter sowing this year. Some are plants I’ve grown before with mixed results as transplants, while others are new to me and ones I’m excited to try.

I don’t start every flower from seed. When it comes to perennials that are easy to find locally, I usually prefer to plant established nursery plants. I began experimenting with starting perennials from seed through winter sowing when certain flowers struggled for me as transplants or when I wanted varieties I couldn’t find at the nursery.

I approach annuals with the same level of intention. I grow annuals from seed when I’m looking for specific varieties I can’t find at the nursery, especially flowers grown for my cut flower garden. Many nursery-grown annuals aren’t selected for long, sturdy stems, so starting from seed allows me to grow better varieties for bouquets.

A vibrant field of purple lupine flowers stands tall against a backdrop of lush green foliage and a cloudy sky. The flowers, with their distinctive spikes and hues of purple, create a striking and colorful scene.

Lupines

I’ve always planted lupines as nursery transplants, but they tend to peter out after planting.

Since lupines are perennials that dislike root disturbance, I’m testing winter sowing this year to see if seedlings establish better when started this way. Allowing them to grow undisturbed from the beginning may lead to stronger plants long-term.

Lupines with purple flowers: Gardening for Hummingbirds — Lupines with purple flowers after planting in my former zone 6b garden

Hollyhock

I began winter sowing hollyhocks because nursery transplants have never performed well for me here.

When I tried winter sowing them last year, the seeds germinated easily and showed strong early growth. Unfortunately, rabbits got to the seedlings, so I’m trying again. Wildlife issues aside, winter sowing gave me much better early results than transplants ever did. So I’m trying them again!

Hollyhocks getting ready to bloom in my jersey garden — Hollyhocks preparing for bloom in my former zone 6b New Jersey garden

A lush cottage garden bed with colorful flowers like bee balm and green foliage, bordered by a row of rocks, sits under large, leafy trees. Sunlight filters through the branches, creating a peaceful, vibrant outdoor scene. — My former zone 6b garden in 2021 with hollyhocks, bee balm, border dahlias, nepeta and more

Delphiniums

Delphiniums are another perennial I’ve struggled with as transplants, similar to my experience with hollyhocks.

They grew, but never thrived the way I hoped. Because they prefer cool conditions, I’m experimenting with winter sowing to see if starting them this way improves their overall performance.

Vivid blue delphinium flowers bloom amidst rich, dark soil with green foliage, creating a striking contrast in a garden setting. — China blue delphiniums with pretty blue flowers

Stock

Stock is a cool-season flower that doesn’t love heat, which is where I’ve run into problems with it in the past.

When I started stock indoors, it grew well at first but struggled once planted out as temperatures warmed. Since it prefers cool conditions, I’m trying winter sowing this year to see if it performs better when grown this way from the start.

Clusters of vibrant purple stock flowers with green leaves fill the image, bathed in bright sunlight, creating a lively and colorful garden scene.

A vibrant cool season flower garden scene with various flowers in full bloom. Bright pink, red, orange, and yellow blossoms are surrounded by lush green foliage. A wooden pathway leads to a gate in the background, creating a serene and colorful outdoor setting.

Nigella (Love-in-a-Mist)

This is my first time growing nigella, and I’m really excited to try it.

One of the things I love about gardening, and winter sowing in particular, is the opportunity to experiment. Testing different plants and methods is how I’ve learned what works best in my garden over time.

Nigella is cold hardy and well-suited to cool conditions, which makes it a great candidate for winter sowing. I’ll be updating this section later in the season as I see how it performs.

Dara (Queen Anne’s Lace)

Seed packets often recommend direct sowing Dara, but I haven’t had much luck with it that way.

Since Dara is a cool-season flower that benefits from cold exposure, I’m trying winter sowing this year to see if it leads to stronger, more reliable plants.

Feverfew

Feverfew is a flower I’ve never grown before, but it’s one I’m excited to try through winter sowing. It’s a cool-season annual or short-lived perennial in zones 5–10 and tolerates cold well, which makes it a good candidate for this method.

Because feverfew can self-sow once established, I’m curious to see how winter-sown seedlings perform in the garden and whether starting it this way leads to stronger, more resilient plants from the beginning.

An array of colorful larkspur and snapdragons (Antirrhinum) in full bloom, showcasing tall spikes of purple, pink, and yellow flowers, creating a vivid tapestry in a lush deer resistant garden with scattered terracotta pots overhead." — Snapdragons and Larkspur I started from seed via winter sowing

A Quick Note About Warm-Season Annuals

Not every flower is a good candidate for winter sowing.

Warm-season annuals generally need warm soil and consistent heat to grow well, even if they germinate outdoors. I learned this lesson the hard way with China asters.

I knew they perform best when started indoors under lights, but during a busy planting session I accidentally put the packet in the wrong pile and winter sowed them. The seeds did germinate, but the plants were weaker and the flowers were much smaller than China asters I’ve started indoors.

It was a good reminder that germination alone doesn’t mean a plant is suited to winter sowing. Warm-season annuals like China asters are best started indoors or direct sown once the soil warms.

A sweet pea flower clinging to a green garden trellis, its pink and white petals speckled with raindrops, demonstrating the beauty of fresh cut flowers even on a rainy day - sweet pea streamers chocolate — Sweet Pea ‘Streamers Chocolate’ Flowers

Final Thoughts on the Best Flowers to Winter Sow

One of the things I enjoy most about winter sowing is the opportunity to experiment and see how different flowers grow when they’re given a natural start. Some plants quickly become reliable favorites, while others surprise me or teach me something new each season. That process of learning and refining is one of the reasons this method has become such an important part of my garden.

Before discovering winter sowing, most of my seed starting happened indoors under lights or by direct sowing in the garden. Using the winter sowing method opened up a whole new door for me and allowed me to grow more flowers from seed than I ever dreamed possible, especially flowers that benefit from cool conditions or don’t love being transplanted later on. It’s been a game changer for both my cut flower garden and my cottage-style garden beds.

If you’re new to the method, starting with reliable, cold-tolerant flowers makes winter sowing far less intimidating. Once you understand the basics, experimenting becomes part of the fun and each season brings new possibilities. If you’d like a step-by-step explanation of the process, you can find it in my winter sowing guide. And for flowers that prefer warmer conditions, my indoor seed starting guide walks through when and how to start seeds under lights instead.

Winter sowing perennials isn’t necessary for most gardens, but it can be useful in specific situations – especially when you’re growing hard-to-find varieties or trying to improve long-term establishment. Most of the time, I prefer purchasing perennials from the nursery or getting divisions from friends.

Even with the right flowers, winter sowing can take time. If your containers haven’t sprouted yet, this guide on why winter-sown seeds don’t germinate right away explains what’s normal and when to keep waiting.

And remember, you don’t need to try all of these — starting small is part of learning what works in your garden.

Thank you for visiting the blog today!

Enjoy your day! xo