Flowers of Tennessee

• The Great Smoky Mountains house a wide variety flowers, trees and shrubs throughout eastern Tennessee. landscape of Smoky Mountains image by louloua asgaraly from Fotolia.com

  Tennessee's diverse terrain and environment makes it home to hundreds of different types of flowers. Tennessee covers two USDA plant hardiness zones -- 6 and 7, where the average annual low can drop to -10 F and 0 F respectively. Wetlands in the southern portion of Tennessee offer humid, moist conditions, while mountainous regions offer cool, dry climates for certain species of flowers to thrive.

Cardinal Flower

• The Cardinal Flower, known as Lobeliaceae campanulaceae, Lobelia cardinalis, or Lopelia, is a floral plant that produces tall stalks of velvety, red clusters of tiny flowers. Flowers bloom on the plant from mid August until mid September. Stalks average between 2 to 4 feet high with pointy, elongated leaves that position around the stalk bases. The cardinal flower prefers very moist soil conditions and often grows near waterways and swamps. It's throughout the state of Tennessee as well as 39 other states.

False Foxglove

• The slenderleaf false foxglove, or Agalinis tenuifolia, is a wild floral plant that produces light to medium purple flowers. The flowers, at touch, have a fuzzy texture due to the tiny hair-like fibers covering the inside and outside of petals. Tiny deep purple dots are scattered inside the bottom of flowers. The weedy floral plant is generally about 1 foot high and grows near roadways and along forests; it does not grow around wet environments.

  The plant is also classified as a hemiparasite, making it a parasitic plant. According to Duke University, "The roots of this plant attach themselves to neighboring plants and steal nutrients. A slenderleaf false foxglove plants provide foods for butterflies and caterpillars in Tennessee as well as states in the south, north and Midwest.

Virginia Sweetspire

• The Virginia sweetspire, also known as Henry's Garnet or Itea virginica, is a dense deciduous flowering bush that produces small, white flowers. Flowers grow in clusters and produce a very fragrant aroma from the end of June through the middle of July. Mature bushes reach around 7 feet tall and can grow to be as large as 7 to 8 feet in width.

  Virginia sweetspire prefers moist, well-drained, full-sun soil conditions with a slight acidic pH; however, the flowering bush is able to tolerate other soils as well. During the fall season leaves on Virginia sweetspire bushes turn a vibrant shade of burgundy. The bush grows throughout Tennessee but mostly in southeastern regions of the state.