Perennials For Sale, Grown in Tennessee Since 1959

Every perennial on this page comes from our own Tennessee fields, dug fresh and shipped bare root to your door. We carry 110 varieties across USDA hardiness zones 3 through 10, from spring ephemerals that carpet a shaded woodland to sun-loving prairie natives that feed monarchs through August. Prices start at $7.99 because you are buying grower direct, with no garden center markup in between.

Below you will find a hardiness zone chart, a bloom calendar so you can plan for color from March through September, and straight answers about what bare root plants look like when they arrive. If you would rather talk it through with a person, call us at 931-692-4252.

Find Perennials For Your Hardiness Zone

Hardiness zone is the single most important thing to get right. A plant rated for zone 7 will not survive a zone 4 winter no matter how well you plant it. Use the zone filter at the top of this page to see only what will overwinter where you live, or start with the table below.

These are typical ranges. Most perennials need a period of winter chill, so gardeners in zone 10 and warmer should check the individual product page before ordering. A few of our selections run a zone wider or narrower than their relatives.

What Blooms When

The point of a perennial border is that something is always happening. 69 of the varieties in this collection bloom their first year, so you are not waiting three seasons to see results. Plan across the table below and you will have color from March through September.

Want the longest possible show from the fewest plants? Start with our long blooming perennials, which hold their flowers for weeks rather than days.

Perennials For Sun and For Shade

Match the plant to the light and most of the work is already done. Count the hours of direct sun a bed receives in midsummer, then choose accordingly.

• Six or more hours of direct sun. Prairie and meadow natives thrive here. Coneflower, Liatris, Milkweed, and Daylily all want full exposure and will flop or bloom poorly in shade. Browse perennials for full sun.
• Three to six hours, or dappled light. Woodland edge conditions. Wild Geranium, Foam Flower, and Indian Pink are happiest in this middle ground.
• Less than three hours. True shade, usually under a canopy. This is where trilliums, Bloodroot, Wild Ginger, and Jack In The Pulpit belong. We carry 62 shade hardy varieties, all collected in perennials for shade.

If deer browse your property, start with our deer resistant perennials. No plant is truly deer proof in a hard winter, but these are the ones they walk past first.

What Bare Root Perennials Look Like When They Arrive

This surprises first time customers, so it is worth saying plainly. Your plants will arrive dormant: roots, crowns, and often little or no top growth, packed in moist material rather than potted in soil. They will not look like the flowering specimens in the photographs above. That is normal and it is the point.

Bare root has real advantages over potted stock. The plant puts its energy into establishing roots in your soil rather than recovering from transplant shock out of a nursery pot. Shipping weight drops, which is why our prices can start at $7.99. And there is no risk of importing pests or disease that came along in a pot of foreign soil.

Plant them promptly. If you cannot get to it within a day or two, keep the roots moist and cool, and get them in the ground within a week. Full instructions come in the box and are also on our planting instructions page. There is more detail on the method itself in our guide to bare root plants, and you can see exactly how we pack for transit before you order.

Perennials That Feed Pollinators

Native perennials do work that ornamental annuals cannot. Milkweed is the only plant monarch caterpillars can eat, which makes it the single highest impact thing you can put in a garden in the monarch flyway. Cardinal Flower is shaped for hummingbird bills and blooms in late summer when other nectar sources are thinning out. Liatris and Coneflower carry native bees through the heat of midsummer.

If attracting wildlife is the goal, we have grouped plants by what they bring in: pollinator plants, butterfly plants, and plants for birds.

How Many Plants Will You Need?

The most common mistake is buying too few and spacing them too far apart, which leaves bare soil for weeds all season. As a working rule:

• Upright perennials such as Coneflower, Liatris, and Milkweed: space 12 to 18 inches apart. A 10 foot by 3 foot bed takes roughly 15 to 20 plants.
• Groundcovers and low spreaders such as Wild Ginger, Foam Flower, and Lily Of The Valley: space 8 to 12 inches apart. The same bed takes 30 to 40 plants, and they will knit together within two seasons.
• Woodland specimens such as trilliums and Jack In The Pulpit: plant in loose drifts of 5 to 7 rather than rows. They look wrong in straight lines.

Planting a larger area? Our perennial package deals price out considerably better than buying individually.

Common Questions

When is the best time to plant perennials?

Fall and early spring are ideal, while the plants are dormant and soil moisture is reliable. Roots establish before the plant has to support top growth. Many of our varieties ship year round, and each product page lists its own shipping window.

Will these bloom the first year?

69 of the 110 varieties in this collection do. Use the "Blooms First Year" filter above to see only those. The rest, particularly slow woodland species like trillium, typically need a season to settle before flowering well.

Do perennials really come back every year?

Yes, provided the plant is rated for your hardiness zone. That is the whole distinction between a perennial and an annual. Most also spread or clump up over time, so a planting gets fuller each year rather than needing replacement.

Can I grow these in containers?

71 varieties here are suited to patio containers. Filter by "Plantable in Patio Containers" to see them. Container plants need one zone of extra hardiness to survive winter, since roots are more exposed than they would be in the ground.

What if a plant does not grow?

We stand behind what we ship. See our warranty terms for the details and the claim process.

Are any of these toxic to pets?

Several are. Lily Of The Valley is toxic to dogs, cats, and people if eaten, and Bloodroot, Jack In The Pulpit, and Milkweed are all toxic if chewed or swallowed. If you have animals or small children with run of the garden, read the individual product pages before ordering and place anything questionable out of reach.

Do you ship nationwide?

We do, to all 48 contiguous states. Timing depends on your zone, since we ship into your planting window rather than into frozen ground. See our shipping policy for specifics.

Can someone help me choose?

Yes. Call 931-692-4252 and you will reach someone who grows these plants for a living, or send your questions through our free plant advisor. Tell us your zip code, how much sun the bed gets, and what you are hoping for, and we will put a list together.

Why Buy Perennials From TN Nursery

We have been growing in Tennessee since 1959 and we are on our third generation of the same family. We are not a reseller shipping from a distribution center. The plants you order were grown in our fields, dug for your order, and packed by people who know what they are handling. That is how we can sell mature, field grown perennials at grower direct prices and stand behind every one of them.

Browse the full collection above, and use the hardiness zone filter at the top of the page to see only what will thrive where you garden