Since orange is my favorite color, I tend to gravitate toward orange blossoms that are bright and vibrant. Orange cosmos are one such flower. They are wide and sprawling flowers atop long stems, looking very much like spread-out ball gowns with tiny yet prominent stamens peeking out from their centers. Though these gorgeous flowers are native to Central America, they are particularly popular in the far East as well as all regions of the United States and Mexico.
New Orleans is perhaps one of the most vibrant, colorful cities in America—if not the most vibrant of all. Though many of the flowers in the New Orleans area are just as bright and lovely, many are simple and elegant. Plenty of pretty flowers are native to the area, from spiky, tubular foxglove to diverse shades of geranium.
Coneflowers, those tall, daisy-like flowers with mounded centers, are found naturally in the New Orleans area, as are the bright, leafy green to blue-tinged hostas that grow quickly in both sun and shade. Delicate oriental poppies, a favorite of many people, are also common in the area.
When I do a quick search for "New Orleans flowers" on Google - a TON of floral companies hit me like a sack of bricks. This is not really that surprising, because after all, when most people are searching for flowers along with the name of a city the thought by the search engine algorithm is that you want to buy some. What happens in the off chance you are just wanting to know what flowers are native to New Orleans? You will have to go a few pages down to find that information - or be more specific in your search. I guess that is a little beside the point though.
Why am I bringing this all up , anyway? Well, its simple - in a few short weeks we will be having one of the most romantic US "Holidays" there is - Valentine's Day, and on this special day many people will both give and get flowers as a gift. If you are one of those people then you will have to dig through literally hundreds of places online to find the best company but I am hoping we can make that search a little easier.
I am hoping that everyone can pitch in and recommend a few great places to get flowers in the New Orleans, LA area. Can anyone think of any right off the top of their heads? Where do you go when you need flowers in New Orleans?
A common garden plant of Louisiana, the Russelia, or Firecracker Plant, has bright, brilliant red or yellow flowers. Each flower is shaped like a tall, thin vase and grows in clusters up to ten inches in length. An individual flower may grow up to 1.5 inches, while each flower’s stamen does not grow farther than the length of the petals. The shrubs grow up to nearly six feet in height and can live in partial shade or full sunlight.
Also known as the Coralblow, the Firecracker is usually used in ornamental gardens. Homeowners like to use it to hide unsightly fences, retaining walls, or other features that might be considered an eyesore in the garden. Since the plant is fast-growing and is made up of very thick, dense foliage, it works well as a cover. They are also somewhat drought resistant, making them a hardy, healthy garden addition that’s easy to care for. As evergreens, they also bloom for most of the year, keeping the yard attractive through each season.
Another benefit of having a Firecracker Plant in your garden is that it will attract local animals and insects. Bees and birds especially enjoy the flowers’ nectar, and will populate any yard containing Firecracker plants. This will help enhance the yard’s aesthetics as well as maintain a ready source of pollination for the other plants in the area.
A member of the hippocastanaceae, or horse chestnut, family, Russelia is also known as Red buckeye or Scarlet buckeye. Its scientific name is Aesculus pavia.
In addition to Louisiana, Firecracker plants are also native from North Carolina to Florida, as well as areas westward, including Illinois and Texas.
One of the things I noticed about New Orleans historic districts is that the houses have flower boxes; 
not just the houses on Bourbon Street with the lovely balconies and rows of planters but even the more modern urban houses. The residents keep those boxes filled with blooming flowers, too, even in February. New Orleans is so flower-friendly that it has an official Garden District. That's right; second only to the French Quarter in terms of historical importance, tourist dollars, and lovely aristocratic homes and gardens, the Garden District has enough lovely homes with exquisite gardens that there are tours. You can also just walk around on your own using a New Orleans Garden District map. There are flowers and houses to admire everywhere, and lots of them have posted signs with scheduled tours of the gardens. There are also a number of heritage gardens that offer tours, many of them in the French Quarter and other New Orleans neighborhoods.
In particular, you should make time for a tour of Longue Vue's house and gardens, both. The gardens were specifically designed to be attractive, and in bloom, during all four seasons. 
You can check ahead of time to see what's in bloom at Longue Vue. The heritage roses, some of them developed in New Orleans, are stunning. Most people, even now, still don't know about the 1,300 acres of New Orleans City Park. Once the site of the Allard Plantation, across from Bayou St. John, City Park houses the New Orleans Museum of Art, landscaped gardens, and the largest live oak groves in the world; there are trees there, even after Hurricane Katrina, that are over 600 years old. The New Oreleans Botanical Garden is there as well, behind the Museum of Art (look for the roses!). You can find the hours listed here. You can see what's in bloom before your visit here and take a virtual tour here. The Lord and Taylor Rose Garden and the Camellia collection are especially lovely.
Although the official flower of New Orleans, since 1923, 
is the Oleander (Nerium oleander). 
Oleander cuttings were brought from Havanna, during the "Spanish Domination" and planted in balcony planters and patios in the eighteenth century, I'm personnally partial to the majestic magnolias, the honeysuckle growing in large vines along wrought iron fences, and the wisteria vines draped over walls and roofs. There are magnolias everywhere, even after the devastation of Katrina. There are two basic types; the Japanese pink varieties, which start blooming in January and bloom until early spring, and then the more traditional lovely and very large white blossom Magnolia that is the official state flower of Louisiana.
New Orleans Wild Flowers: by bitzcelt
New Orleans - French Quarter Flowers: by David Paul Ohmer