We love perennials that come back each year in the garden. Perennials are considered to be ornamental plants that reappear for more than one growing season. This does not mean they live forever, but they do offer a repeat performance for many seasons! The term perennial is generally reserved for plants with showy flowers, excluding ornamental grasses, trees, shrubs and other woody stemmed plants. Perennials are great planted in the landscape or in containers. With so many varieties to choose from, there is one that is perfectly suited for your garden. Here's our top summer perennials...
FOR SUNNY SPOTS:
- Mexican Petunia (Ruellia Purple Showers) is a long blooming perennial that thrives in hot, sunny conditions. Deep green foliage with hints of burgundy provide the perfect backdrop for the scores of vibrant blue-purple flowers. Works well in combination plantings and in beds.
- Sedum Angelina is a drought tolerant, moderate-growing groundcover with fleshy green/yellow leaves in the spring and summer and fiery orange/red foliage in the fall and winter. Angelina makes an excellent groundcover and looks great as a spiller plant in container combinations.
- Stella D'Oro Daylilies boasts fragrant, ruffled, buttercup-yellow flowers with an apricot throat. It's blooms measure about 2-½ inches across. Stella loves the heat and thrives in containers on patios or planted together in large numbers. Attracts hummingbirds and butterflies.
- Miss Huff Lantana puts on a colorful show with vibrant yellow, pink & orange blooms. You simply can't beat lantana for summer-long blooms and heat tolerance. This easy to grow perennial attracts butterflies too. We recommend putting this in the ground and reserving 8-10 inches for it to grow.
FOR SHADY SPOTS:
- Autumn Ferns are a bold and beautiful choice for shady borders and woodland gardens. Thse dwarf-growing ferns with young papery fronds display coppery-red color, maturing to deep green.
- Hostas are hardy, easy-to-grow and care for and aren't troubled by pests. Leaf colors come in green, gold and blue to variegated and sizes range from miniature to colossal. Smaller varieties (up to 12 inches tall) make good edgers along paths or in beds; medium varieties are excellent ground-covers; and large hostas are terrific in the background or as dramatic accent plants.
Check out more of our favorite plants! OUR PLANTS OF THE WEEK >>