Small Blue Flowers Names | Identifying Your Blues

Small blue flowers are an umbrella term that covers dozens of annuals, perennials, and wildflowers, and knowing their exact names matters when you’re buying seed packets or plant tags. The blue-flower world spans the creeping, mat-forming baby blue eyes to the upright spires of speedwell, and several favorites share similar common names across regions.

The Most Common Small Blue Flowers

The plants below show up again and again in U.S. garden guides, either as compact cultivars or as wild species with a low-growing habit.

• Forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica): Clusters of tiny, sky-blue blooms with yellow centers; a short-lived perennial that self-seeds readily in part shade.
• Lobelia (Lobelia erinus): A trailing annual with masses of small blue flowers, ideal for containers and edging in full sun.
• Blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium): A petite wildflower with grass-like foliage and star-shaped blue blooms in late spring.
• Grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum): Spring bulbs with dense, vivid blue flower spikes that naturalize well.
• Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus): Also called bachelor’s button; a hardy annual with bright blue, fringed blooms on slender stems.
• Baby blue eyes (Nemophila menziesii): A low, spreading annual with cup-shaped, soft blue flowers; a California native that loves full sun and cool weather.
• Speedwell (Veronica umbrosa ‘Georgia Blue’): A compact groundcover with small, intense blue flowers above evergreen foliage.
• Blue star creeper (Isotoma fluviatilis): A fine-textured groundcover that tolerates light foot traffic and spreads gently.
• Wild blue phlox (Phlox divaricata): A woodland perennial with fragrant, lavender-blue flowers that thrives in part shade.
• Brunnera (Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’): A shade plant with airy clusters of tiny sky-blue blooms above silver-veined foliage.

Native Wildflowers With Small Blue Blooms

If you’re planting for pollinators or want species that support local ecosystems, these North American natives deliver the same delicate blue color in a wilder form.

• Common bluets (Houstonia caerulea): Tiny, four-petaled blossoms that form a blue carpet in spring; native throughout most of eastern North America.
• Blue-eyed Mary (Collinsia parviflora): A delicate annual with miniature blue-and-white flowers, common in moist, shady woodlands across western and northern North America.
• Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica): Nodding, trumpet-shaped blue flowers on tall stalks; a spring ephemeral for moist woodland gardens.
• Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia): Bell-shaped blue flowers on wiry stems; found in western and southwestern U.S. meadows and rocky slopes.

Why “Blue” Isn’t Always True Blue

Pure blue flowers are comparatively rare in nature, according to U.S. wildflower guides, and many blooms marketed as blue are actually purplish-blue, lavender-blue, or sky-blue. The National Park Service’s pink-purple-blue wildflower guide groups these colors together precisely because they blur at the edges. When you shop for plants, match the botanical name on the tag to the exact look you want—Lobelia erinus ‘Blue Carpet’ reads differently in the garden than Lobelia siphilitica, whose great blue spikes reach two feet tall and bloom in late summer.

That naming precision matters for another reason: common names collide. “Bluebell” means Virginia bluebells in the eastern U.S. but refers to a completely different plant in the U.K., and several unrelated species share the forget-me-not label. The botanical name is the only reliable identifier when you’re comparing seed packets or searching a nursery catalog.

Growing Conditions That Deliver The Best Color

Light and moisture largely determine how the blues perform, and the group splits into two camps. Full sun suits compact annuals and groundcovers—dwarf cornflower, baby blue eyes, and creeping speedwell all bloom most heavily with six or more hours of direct light. The woodland natives, including brunnera, forget-me-not, and wild blue phlox, prefer part shade with consistently moist soil; Collinsia parviflora specifically likes the cool, damp floors of shady woods.

Bloom timing stretches the season if you plant a mix. Blue-eyed grass and cornflower start in late spring, speedwell and lobelia carry through summer, and great blue lobelia finishes the show from late summer into early fall. If you’re ready to compare top-rated cultivars side by side, our roundup of the best small blue flowers breaks down the standouts for sun and shade.

FAQs