I Asked Experts What Flowers I Should Plant Right Now — Here Are Their 4 Picks

If you’re planning a move this spring, you’re probably in the middle of frantically tackling your punch list, aka the small things you need to handle before you can list your home. You’re painting the garage door, swapping out mismatched doorknobs, and finally patching the cracks in the drywall that have been nagging you for years. And, as the weather starts to show its first signs of warming up, you realize that the most important part of pre-listing tasks is now upon you — sprucing up the curb appeal.

Flower beds, or even just flowers in potted plants around the exterior of your home, are a low-stakes, high-impact way to give your home major spring curb appeal, but most of them rely on bulbs that are planted in the fall. From tulips to hyacinth to daffodils, these flowers require planning months ahead … but there’s a workaround so you don’t feel like you’ve missed the boat on everyone’s favorite spring flowers when your house hits the market.

“Pre-planted bulbs are a seller’s secret weapon,” says Chenise Freidus, home stager and real estate agent with ZFC Real Estate.

Whether you’re adding vibrant color to your garden beds or creating a thriller, spiller, and filler situation in your planters, these are the five flowers to have on your radar before your home hits the MLS this spring. (And if you do decide to plant in the soil or planters, if you leave them behind, your future buyer will appreciate it.)

Daffodils and Tulips

“Daffodils and tulips can be purchased pre-sprouted at nurseries and planted immediately for instant cheer,” Freidus says.

That means you can fill a planter with springy red tulips or bright yellow daffodils without worrying that you missed the boat because you didn’t plant bulbs back in the fall.

Pansies

To infuse color and classic blooms into your curb appeal, pansies are the early spring must-have. Plant them in early March as seeds or pre-planted bulbs, either in the ground or planters by your front door, and you’ll have continuous blooms until it gets too hot. “For quick results, pansies are my go-to,” Freidus says. “Pansies thrive in cooler mornings and bloom in jewel tones like cobalt and plum.”

To keep the pansy blooms coming, however, make sure you deadhead them regularly.

Snapdragons

Snapdragons, which you can buy from seeds or as pre-planted bulbs, are reliably easy-to-grow annuals that are perfect for adding color and height to your spring listing. You can plant snapdragons in early spring, and you don’t need to worry about temperatures heating up before they go into full bloom.

These blooms thrive in cooler temperatures. Laura Janney, CEO at The Inspired Garden, adds, “Snapdragons are cold tolerant, but if you keep watering well and deadhead, I have seen them go all season and into summer.”

Ranunculuses

You’ve probably seen ranunculuses’ lush blooms in a garden before, but you may not have been able to put a name to these vibrant flowers that are somewhere between a rose, a dahlia, and peony. You should buy these as pre-planted bulbs in the spring. With layers of papery thin petals that come together in an abundant bloom, they’re the perfect cheerful flower to plant for curb appeal.

“Coming in a variety of heights, ranunculus is one of the very few early spring annuals that gives height to your garden. It is sensitive to heat and humidity, but if you’re in a cooler climate, you’ll have blooms for much longer,” Janney explains.

Ranunculuses do best in well-draining soil, and they can thrive in a planter.

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