Petunias for Partial Shade

Grandifloras

• Grandifloras are the oldest petunia class. They have the largest flowers, up to 4 inches on 12-inch plants in single or ruffled, double cascade or upright forms. They come in a wide range of colors and markings including the unique contrasting white star.

  Cultivars include Dreams Fuschia, Storm White and Double Wave Blue Velvet, which has a carnationlike flower. They all grow in partial shade. Pirouette Rose is a double flowered cultivar with a bicolored picotee pattern that is not heat tolerant and needs shade at midday or the afternoon.

Multiflora

• Multifloras are compact petunia plants with smaller 2-inch single and double flowers, but they produce more of them than grandifloras. They tolerate harsh weather and are used in beds and borders in sun and partial shade.

  Floribunda petunias were introduced as a class in 1983. (ref 4) They are multifloras with improved disease resistance. A range of colors is available in the Madness, Celebrity and Carpet series, which are popular for flowerbeds in sun and partial shade.

Milliflora

• Millifloras were introduced as a class of petunia in 1996. Marketed as Fantasy petunias, they are miniature petunias with 1-inch flowers produced in such profusion they cover the foliage. They are popular for containers and baskets and tolerate hot or wet weather well. They grow in sun and partial shade.

Spreading

• Wave petunias became the popular spreading or hedgiflora class in 1995 with the hit "Purple Wave" cultivar. They grow long, flower-covered stems that cover a large area in a 6-inch mat of blooms during a summer season.

  Marketed as Wave, Ruffles and Tidal Wave cultivars, their continuously blooming stems trail up to 6 feet and are used in containers and hanging baskets. They bloom in partial shade from spring to frost.

Calibracoa

• Calibracoa is a genus of the nightshade family commonly called a trailing or seaside petunia. It looks like a miniature petunia with trailing flower-covered stems that make it popular in baskets.

  Calibracoas flower continuously without deadheading and are heat tolerant. They need a half day of sun and tolerate shade for the rest. Introduced in 1997 as Million Bells, Calibracoas are also sold under the name Superbells and other trade names.