Growing Angelonia (Summer Snapdragon): A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · July 18, 2026
Angelonia (summer snapdragon) is a tender perennial in zones 9b-11, but almost everywhere else it’s grown as a heat-loving annual, and it’s specifically called out by Growing In The Garden as a strong choice for low-desert summer heat. Upright 1- to 2-foot stems carry small spurred spikes of orchid-like blooms in purple, white, or pink.
Seed treatment that varies by source
Start indoors about 7 weeks before your last frost, with transplants going out 2 weeks after. Seed treatment is a bit inconsistent across sources. Most call for a surface sow with light exposure to trigger germination, though some list a shallow 1/8 inch covering, so err toward barely covering it rather than burying it deep. At 2 per square foot, it’s dense enough to use as a solid block planting, with its longest, latest daysToMaturity on this list at 98 days. Plan for a late-season payoff rather than quick color.
Nearly 100 days means patience, not troubleshooting
Slow or absent germination is usually a light and temperature issue. If seed was buried too deep or the soil stayed cool, give it more time or restart under warmer, brighter conditions. Because it takes nearly 100 days to mature, impatience is the biggest practical risk: don’t judge the planting a failure before it’s had the season it needs.
The slowest of this group to reach maturity
Angelonia has no well-established companion pairings, and nothing it needs to be kept away from. Its upright habit and 2-per-square-foot density make it a straightforward block or border choice in the Garden Designer, best planned early since it’s the slowest of this group to reach maturity.
Companion planting guide for Angelonia (Summer Snapdragon) · Find your planting dates
Typically viable in USDA zones 2-11. Not sure your zone? Look it up by ZIP code.
Mature height: 1-2 ft
Method: Start indoors: Start indoors from seed, then transplant outside. It needs a head start most zones can't give it by direct-sowing alone.
When to plant angelonia (summer snapdragon), by zone
Every zone angelonia (summer snapdragon) grows in. Pick your zone in the header and it will be highlighted here. Each zone links to its full page.
| Zone | Start indoors | Sow or plant out | Bloom |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2a & 2b | Apr 1–Apr 8 | Jun 3–Jun 10 | Sep 9–Sep 16 |
| 3a & 3b | Apr 11–Apr 18 | Jun 13–Jun 20 | Sep 19–Sep 26 |
| 4a & 4b | Mar 27–Apr 3 | May 29–Jun 5 | Sep 4–Sep 11 |
| 5a & 5b | Mar 22–Mar 29 | May 24–May 31 | Aug 30–Sep 6 |
| 6a & 6b | Mar 7–Mar 14 | May 9–May 16 | Aug 15–Aug 22 |
| 7a & 7b | Feb 20–Feb 27 | Apr 24–May 1 | Jul 31–Aug 7 |
| 8a & 8b | Feb 4–Feb 11 | Apr 8–Apr 15 | Jul 15–Jul 22 |
| 9a & 9b | Dec 28–Jan 4 | Mar 1–Mar 8 | Jun 7–Jun 14 |
| 10a & 10bSpring window | Jan–May | Mar–Jul | ~98 days after transplanting |
| 11a & 11b | Nov 13–Nov 20 | Jan 15–Jan 22 | Apr 23–Apr 30 |
Bloom dates are about 98 days after the sow or plant-out date, not after starting seeds indoors.
Zone 2 sows before zone 3 here, which looks wrong and is not. USDA zones rank winter cold, not season length, and zone 2 is mostly interior Alaska, where hard winters come with warm summers. More on what a zone measures.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Angelonia (Summer Snapdragon) plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: 2 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 1-2 ft.
Varieties worth considering
- Serena series: Named a Louisiana Super Plant for 2019 by the LSU AgCenter, one of the few angelonia series that can be grown from seed rather than requiring cuttings, which is why it's the option worth looking for by name at seed racks. (source) Buy seeds: True Leaf Market
- Angelface series: A Proven Winners line offered in blue, pink and white, propagated from cuttings rather than grown from seed. Since it isn't seed-grown, buy it as a started plant rather than expecting to sow it the way Serena's seed packets work. (source)
- Serenita Raspberry: An LSU AgCenter Louisiana Super Plant, bred from the Serena line to be even more compact at 12-14 inches while keeping Serena's heat performance, with intense pink and lavender flowers. The pick for a low carpet of color at the front of a bed rather than Serena's taller stems. (source)
Why each variety is listed comes from the source shown next to it. We haven't grown these ourselves yet, so treat this as a research-backed starting point, not a personal endorsement. The buy links are separate from those sources: they go to seed suppliers that sell that exact variety, and we may earn a commission on some of them.
Where to buy angelonia seeds
True Leaf Market (each supplier's angelonia seeds)
The varieties we recommend above each have their own buy links, for the suppliers that sell that exact variety.
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Some links on this page also go to other retailers we may earn a commission from as an affiliate, at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products with a clear consensus of positive, independent reviews, or ones we bought and use ourselves. Each item on our gear page says which.
See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing angelonia (summer snapdragon)" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Angelonia (Summer Snapdragon): A tender perennial grown as an annual almost everywhere, bred specifically to keep blooming through brutal summer heat.
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