Random Flower Generator

One press, one flower, drawn from 126 species. Each card gives the botanical name, bloom season, sun, USDA zones, height, a growing tip, the Victorian meaning, and an ASPCA pet toxicity check.

Set the draw

Type
Color
Season
Sun

126 flowers in the draw.

Pink form, stylized

Perennial · Peony family

Peony

Paeonia lactiflora

Toxic to cats and dogs

Blooms
Spring, Summer
Sun
Full sun
Hardiness
Zones 3 to 8
Height
24 to 36 in (60 to 90 cm)
Colors
Pink, Red, White
Meaning
Bashfulness, wealth in China

Growing tip.Set the eyes no deeper than 2 inches, or the plant gives leaves and no buds.

Worth knowing.A healthy clump outlives most gardeners, flowering for 50 years or more.

Drawn so far

    Filter settings for six real jobs

    A blank draw suits a sketch prompt. Every other job goes better with a filter or two.

    Your jobSet thisWhy
    Fill a dark cornerSun: ShadeMost flowers on a seed rack want 6 hours of sun. This filter cuts the list to the few plants built for less.
    Plant around a cat or dogASPCA non-toxic onlyRemoves every flower with a toxic listing and every flower missing from the ASPCA lists.
    Get color before springSeason: WinterReturns the hellebores, snowdrops, and camellias most beds lack.
    Daily sketch promptAll filters on AnyCopy the shape and color from the plate, then look up a photo of the real plant.
    Name a story characterType: Wildflower or BulbNames such as Yarrow, Freesia, and Hellebore sound less worn than Rose or Lily. The Meaning line gives you a trait to write toward.
    Choose a single-color bedColor, plus SeasonDraw five times and you have a shortlist of one color across one season.

    All 126 flowers, sorted by how they live

    The type label tells you more than the name does. Pay for a perennial once. Pay for an annual every spring.

    Annual 21

    Lives one season from seed to seed. Cheap color for pots and gaps. You buy or sow again next year.

    Sunflower, Marigold, Zinnia, Petunia, Impatiens, Cosmos, Snapdragon, Sweet Pea, Nasturtium, Pansy, Calendula, Ageratum, Trailing Lobelia, Sweet Alyssum, Wax Begonia, Zonal Geranium, Crested Celosia, Morning Glory, Love-in-a-Mist, Stock, Madagascar Periwinkle

    Perennial 26

    Roots survive winter and the plant returns. Slower to fill out, then cheaper every year after.

    Lavender, Peony, Bearded Iris, Shasta Daisy, Daylily, Bleeding Heart, Foxglove, Delphinium, Lupine, Garden Phlox, Chrysanthemum, Carnation, Hellebore, Hosta, Astilbe, Columbine, Coral Bells, Bee Balm, Gerbera Daisy, Lily of the Valley, Primrose, Hollyhock, Blanket Flower, Forget-Me-Not, Balloon Flower, Japanese Anemone

    Bulb 21

    Food stored underground carries the plant through its dormant months. Most go in the ground in fall. This group includes corms and tubers such as gladiolus and dahlia.

    Tulip, Daffodil, Oriental Lily, Hyacinth, Crocus, Dahlia, Gladiolus, Giant Allium, Snowdrop, Freesia, Ranunculus, Amaryllis, Grape Hyacinth, Calla Lily, Canna, Siberian Squill, Crown Imperial, Agapanthus, Florist Cyclamen, Tuberose, Winter Aconite

    Wildflower 22

    Native or naturalized species found outside gardens. Good for meadow patches and pollinators, and some spread hard.

    Black-Eyed Susan, Purple Coneflower, New England Aster, Goldenrod, Cornflower, Corn Poppy, California Poppy, English Bluebell, Oxeye Daisy, Yarrow, Queen Anne's Lace, Texas Bluebonnet, Common Milkweed, Joe Pye Weed, White Trillium, Virginia Bluebells, Blue Flax, Indian Paintbrush, Red Clover, Chicory, Edelweiss, Dandelion

    Shrub 18

    Woody stems stay above ground all year. This group also holds flowering trees and climbers. The biggest plants here, and the slowest to replace if you pick wrong.

    Garden Rose, Dog Rose, Bigleaf Hydrangea, Common Lilac, Camellia, Gardenia, Azalea, Butterfly Bush, Forsythia, Southern Magnolia, Oleander, Mountain Laurel, Witch Hazel, Rose of Sharon, Clematis, Japanese Wisteria, Yoshino Cherry, Woodbine Honeysuckle

    Tropical 18

    No frost tolerance in most cases. Grow outdoors in warm zones, or in a pot you move indoors.

    Moth Orchid, Tropical Hibiscus, Bird of Paradise, Plumeria, Sacred Lotus, Bougainvillea, Anthurium, King Protea, Passion Flower, Water Lily, Lobster Claw Heliconia, Christmas Cactus, African Violet, Cattleya Orchid, Poinsettia, Arabian Jasmine, Clivia, Flaming Katy

    Lilies kill cats. Check before you bring flowers home.

    True lilies and daylilies cause kidney failure in cats. A cat grooming pollen from its fur, or drinking from the vase, is exposed. Dogs do not react the same way, which is why the card splits the two.

    Every pet line on the card comes from the ASPCA plant lists, checked November 2026.

    Toxic to cats and dogs 42

    Lavender, Peony, Bearded Iris, Shasta Daisy, Foxglove, Delphinium, Chrysanthemum, Carnation, Hellebore, Tulip, Daffodil, Hyacinth, Dahlia, Gladiolus, Giant Allium, Ranunculus, Amaryllis, Yarrow, Bigleaf Hydrangea, Gardenia, Azalea, Bird of Paradise, Trailing Lobelia, Wax Begonia, Zonal Geranium, Morning Glory, Madagascar Periwinkle, Hosta, Lily of the Valley, Primrose, Calla Lily, Florist Cyclamen, Common Milkweed, Oleander, Mountain Laurel, Clematis, Japanese Wisteria, Yoshino Cherry, Anthurium, Poinsettia, Clivia, Flaming Katy

    Toxic to cats, non-toxic to dogs 2

    Daylily, Oriental Lily

    Listed non-toxic 25

    Sunflower, Zinnia, Petunia, Impatiens, Snapdragon, Nasturtium, Calendula, Cornflower, Garden Rose, Dog Rose, Camellia, Moth Orchid, Tropical Hibiscus, Crested Celosia, Coral Bells, Gerbera Daisy, Hollyhock, Grape Hyacinth, Canna, Forsythia, Rose of Sharon, Christmas Cactus, African Violet, Cattleya Orchid, Arabian Jasmine

    Not listed does not mean safe. The other 57 flowers, among them marigold, lupine, and snowdrop, have no entry on either ASPCA list. The filter leaves them out on purpose. Sweet pea seeds and lupine seeds poison animals, so ask your vet before planting anything your pet chews.

    Non-toxic has limits too. Rose thorns still injure a curious mouth, and any plant eaten in bulk upsets a stomach. Autumn crocus, a different plant from the spring crocus on this list, is dangerous to both pets and people.

    If your pet ate a plant, call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435. The US line charges a consultation fee. See the full ASPCA plant database.

    Three lines on the card to check before you buy

    Hardiness

    USDA zones run on average winter lows. Zone 5 bottoms out between -20°F and -10°F, zone 9 between 20°F and 30°F. Look up your zone, then compare. A dahlia marked zones 8 to 11 still grows in Chicago, but you lift the tubers each fall. A peony marked zones 3 to 8 sulks in Miami, since the plant needs a cold winter to set buds.

    Sun

    Count direct sun on the actual spot in midsummer. Full sun means 6 hours or more, part sun 3 to 6, shade under 3. Bright shade under a tree is still shade. Most failed flower beds come down to one mismatch here.

    Blooms

    Seasons assume a temperate Northern Hemisphere garden. South of the equator, flip them. In warm climates, spring bulbs often need a chill in the fridge first, and winter bloomers run earlier.

    Flower meanings to avoid on a gift card

    Victorian flower dictionaries gave lovers a code. Many entries read as insults today, and the books disagree. Four to check before you write the note:

    Petunias show the problem. Some lists say anger and resentment. Greenaway's says your presence soothes me. Treat the Meaning line as a story to tell, not a fact.

    Where this generator falls short

    Flower questions

    How does the generator pick a flower?

    The server lists every flower matching your filters and picks one with a secure random number. If a flower comes in several colors, the color is random too, unless you set one. The last 12 flowers you drew sit out while anything else matches.

    Why did I get no flower?

    Your filters ruled out all 126 species. Blue tropical flowers for shade in winter do not exist in this list, for example. The message under the Draw button says so. Set one filter back to Any and draw again.

    What flowers are safe for cats and dogs?

    These 25 appear on the ASPCA non-toxic lists: Sunflower, Zinnia, Petunia, Impatiens, Snapdragon, Nasturtium, Calendula, Cornflower, Garden Rose, Dog Rose, Camellia, Moth Orchid, Tropical Hibiscus, Crested Celosia, Coral Bells, Gerbera Daisy, Hollyhock, Grape Hyacinth, Canna, Forsythia, Rose of Sharon, Christmas Cactus, African Violet, Cattleya Orchid, Arabian Jasmine. Switch on the ASPCA non-toxic filter to draw from those only.

    What flowers bloom in winter?

    Set Season to Winter. Outdoors you get hellebore, snowdrop, winter aconite, witch hazel, camellia, and pansy. Indoors you get amaryllis, poinsettia, Christmas cactus, cyclamen, and moth orchid.

    What flowers grow in shade?

    Set Sun to Shade. Impatiens, wax begonia, astilbe, hosta, hellebore, bleeding heart, primrose, and English bluebell all handle under 3 hours of direct sun. Few bright flowers manage deeper shade than this.

    What is the meaning of the flower on my card?

    The Meaning line comes from Victorian flower dictionaries, mainly the 1884 Language of Flowers illustrated by Kate Greenaway, unless the card names a culture. Those books disagree with each other, so treat the line as one reading of the flower. Many plants, tropical ones above all, never made those lists, and their cards say No Victorian entry.

    Are the illustrations accurate enough to copy?

    Only as a color and shape prompt. The drawings are simple shapes generated by code, one of eight bloom forms tinted with the drawn color, so a tulip and a crocus look alike. For botanical accuracy, draw from a photo or a live plant.

    Does the list of past draws save?

    No. Drawn so far holds your last 10 flowers until you leave or refresh the page. Press Copy card on any flower you want to keep, then paste the text into your notes.