5 perennial garden ideas to make your garden POP! You HAVE to plant these in your garden this year!
Mother Nature finally decided she was tired of wearing her winter boots, so she donned her cute strappy sandals and flipped the switch on spring this weekend. I got to get out and dig in the dirt a little, which always rejuvenates me.
So I put together a fancy list of my five favorite perennials, in case you are starting to plant too and you're thinking "Wonder what kind of perennials, Pam would recommend?"
Warning, I'm a 6A myself (that could be my bra size too), so if you are silly enough to live in Hawaii rather than Ohio, these might not work for you. If you are unsure of your zone, you can go to the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map and type in your zip code and it will give you your zone.
Bleeding Heart (Dicentra) - great for partial to fully shaded areas. Comes in pink, red, white and yellow and are hardy in zones 3-9.
I love to see the little hearts come out when most of my other plants haven't started blooming yet. They do not bloom all summer here though (might be different in your area). I have mine planted right beside a hosta, so by the time the hosta is getting full, this one is dying back. Sort of like a tag team of perennial planting.
Coral Bells (Heuchera) - can take anything from sun to part shade and are hardy in zones 3-9, depending on the variety (this is where reading the tags comes in handy).
I grow them mainly for the leaf coloring. This one's leaves vary from green to puple-ish, but they come in pretty shades of gold and chocolate brown also. They do have flower spikes that come up, but they are pretty dainty. Most people are like me and grow them for the foliage, I believe.
Hellebore (Helleborus) - zones 4-9. They are supposed to be part sun to shade loving, but I have my Hellebore in full sun for 80% of the daylight hours and it does just fine.
It's a low growing, mounding type perennial and the flowers are gorgeous and a little exotic looking.
Astilbe - part sun to shade and are hardy in zones 4-8.
I can't say enough about these plants. Love them!
They have the prettiest flower plumes in gorgeous shades of red, white, pink or purples. It is a light airy plant that looks great with ferns and hosta.
Speedwell (Veronica) - they like full sun and are hardy for zones 4-8.
They are known for being low maintenance. I have some planted at the end of my driveway and I haven't watered them in 5 years. OK, it rains on them occasionally, but I haven't had to drag a hose out there.
And best of all, bees and butterflies absolutely love Speedwell!
Do you have any perennials that you just can not live without?
Other Gardening Ideas you might enjoy:
How To Grow Peonies Your Neighbors Will Envy
10 Best Shade Plants For Your Garden
Old Fashioned Flowers For Your Garden
(This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience. You can read my full disclosure policy here.)
TracyMB @ Crows Feet Chic
Gorgeous... most are our staples as well. Except the Hellebore. Zone 3 here. Dang. Does make for some lovely peonies though! 😀
Designs By Pinky
Hi Pam, we had every one of those perennials in our old house. We lived on a VERY wooded lot so didn't have much sun. I adore bleeding hearts too. Have you ever tried Columbine? It is GORGEOUS! XO, Pinky
Vickie @ Ranger 911
Our zone has recently changed from Zone 3 to Zone 4, so I need to plant me a Hellebore! I have luck with the same perennials as you, but throw in purple coneflowers, Black Eyed Susan's, and Annabelle hydrangeas for good measure.
Robin
Great roundup Pam! I love speedwell (have it in pale pink) and astilbe (I only have one plant but hope for more). Haven't tried corabells but my mom is a big fan, and I adore bleeding heart but for some reason don't have one. Mom used to have several when I was growing up. I'm thinking this year I may have to plant one for old time sake.
Terry Maloney
Have to say that Agastache is one of my favorite perennials. I planted three different varieties and am so please with them. They go strong through the hottest periods of summer and hummingbirds love them. They also go great with shasta daisies and bee balm. I prune them back a bit in late summer and let them die off for winter and cut way down in spring. LOVE THEM and your blog!
Maureen
The first flower that caught my attention as a little girl was a bleeding heart. I remember running through a yard, stumbling upon one and standing transfixed by it. It was like something the fairies left behind!
danielle @ 2 Little Superheroes
This is such a great post, I'm dying for Spring to arrive. Speedwell will be on my list to buy for sure. Thanks!
[email protected] at the Crossroads
Hi Pam, your post is very timely as I'm getting ready to plant some perennials this coming week. I will look for the speedwell as I think it will probably tolerate our sun and humidity. Pinning and sharing! 🙂
Mrs. R
PEONIES! Gigantic, mature clusters came with the 100 year old house we bought last year. They are mostly doubles/bomb types, with one that is more the Japanese anemone kind. I wish I knew their specific names. The old-fashioned, tall German Bearded Irises were also here and overcrowded, so I divided them last Fall. Daylillies are another favorite, and I happened to buy some starts this summer of orange Toad lilies from a neighbor. I planted Pow Wow Wildberry cone flowers as well as Goldsturm Rudbeckia this spring. These would be great ones to add to your list. 😉
Andrea
I'm late to the party, but I'll add my favorites. Roses, peonies, irises and clematis are the mainstays in my garden, but besides those, I love, in no particular order, Lady's Mantle, tall garden Phlox, perennial Baby's Breath, Speedwell and lilies. All of these look fabulous with roses, in the ground and in the vase. I found a new-to-me annual this year that I will grow every year henceforth - Royal Queen purple violet Tubeflower. Tall, stately, blooms like crazy and beautiful in the rose garden. I agree with you about Black Eyed Susan Vine. So dependable! And, so cheery.
Capri
I would have to say my favorite perennial is brunnara, not to be confused with annual forget me not. I have it in shade, partial shade, and a bit of direct sun, does well in all areas. First year i
t does like a bit of water, but after being established, grows to a wonderful mounding plant with big green leaves and airy blue flowers in the spring. There is also a variegated which is nice too. Seeds randomly and transplants well. 🙂
Pam
Oh, that's another good one!!! Great choice!
Florence
This is an interesting post Pam! Gardening is my 2nd love, but I haven't been able to get out into the yard in the last 2 years. My favorite flowers are day lilies, pink cone flowers, portaluca, and red hyacinths. I think we have Astilbe down here, but I didn't know they came in several colors. Not sure we have Speedwell either. We have the Heuchera and Helleborus, which we call Lenten Rose. I'm zone 8
Florence
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Wen Mikulcik
I really love my purple Silvia, it does great in full sun. I'm in Zone 5b
Helen
I like astilbe in my garden easy to grow even in tubs . Not had a lot of success with hostas easy to grow in the ground and pots but the slugs love them and hard to keep them under control especially if we get a wet summer..