Perennials

Perennial Benefits In Flower Gardens

The Many Advantages of Planting Perennials

Perennial is a Latin word meaning "through the year," and perennial plants are ones that live throughout the year and return the next. These plants typically grow and bloom in the spring and summer, die back in the fall and winter, and return the next year to complete the process again. Perennials can be short-lived and only last for about two years, or long-lived like trees.

How Perennials Work

Perennial plants have adapted particular structures which allow them to survive through changing climates and return for the next growing season. Some of these structures include bulbs, tubers, and rhizomes. These structures protect the plant and act as a food source during times of drought or dormancy and then when optimal conditions have returned, they provide the foundation for regrowth.

Benefits of Perennial Plants

The main advantage of perennials is the fact that they don't have to be replanted every year like annuals and biennials. Most flowering perennials have short bloom periods, so the required maintenance and pruning are not as tedious as some annuals. When planted carefully and strategically, flower beds with perennials can have blooms all season long if one's blooming period ends as another begins.

Types of Perennials

Flowering Perennials
Flowering perennials are plants that produce flowers at some point in their blooming season. Examples of these are poppies, hibiscus, peonies, and daylilies. Many perennial fruits and vegetables also deliver flowers like strawberries, grapes, and eggplants.
Non-Flowering Perennials
Non-flowering perennials are mostly trees and shrubs. Evergreen plants typically fall into this category too. Some examples of non-flowering perennials are ferns, conifers, and shrubs like the various types of boxwood hedges. Ferns can be used as flower bed fillers.

Both types of perennials can either be shade perennials or sun perennials. Shade perennials like ferns, hostas, and Virginia Blue Bells all need less sun exposure than most other plants to thrive. True shade perennials should have the least amount of sun exposure as possible. Some species are classified as sun/shade, and these plants can tolerate about 2 to 4 hours of sunshine per day. Sun perennials like reblooming daylilies, hibiscus, perennial tulips all require at least 4 to 6 hours of direct sunlight daily.

How to Plant your Perennial Garden

Choose appropriate plants for your garden- shade or sun perennials depending on the amount of sun exposure, and types of plants depending on what you need-ground cover, background fillers, or flowering plants.
Prepare the soil. Make sure it has good drainage and is a high-quality soil.
Plant your seeds or bulbs at appropriate times according to the recommendations for the specific plant and for the planting zone in which you live.
Water properly to promote proper in-depth root development.

Fertilize regularly

After perennials have bloomed, "deadhead" or remove the spent buds to promote regrowth.
To generate more massive blooms, remove smaller buds so energy can be concentrated on the larger buds.
In the fall, remove dead leaves and foliage. Apply winter mulch to protect the roots or bulbs so that your plants will return next year!

Extreme Plants Part I: Shade-Loving Perennials for your Landscape

Are you having some difficulty getting plants to grow in the shady areas of your yard? Most plants do require a lot of suns, so what do you do if you live in a heavily wooded area? Compiled from "Taylor's Guides: Perennials," by Barbara Ellis, below is a rather comprehensive list of perennial plants that do well in the shade across most of the United States. As soil requirements vary, be sure to double-check with a local nursery for planting recommendations for your area.

Perennial plants that are tolerant of partial shade include: Monkshood, Bane berry, Lady bells, Maidenhair Fern, Bishop's Weed, Bugle weed, Alpine Lady's Mantle, Anemone, Columbine, Goat's Beard, Wild Ginger, Astilbe, most ferns, Begonia, Bell flower, Lady's Smock, Sedge Grass, Lead wort, Turtle head, Golden star, Clematis, Lily of the Valley, Mouse-ear or Pink Coreopsis, Corydalis, doll eyes, Sea Kale, Umbrella Plant, Tufted Hair Grass, Bleeding Heart, Fairy Bells, Shooting Star, Epimedium, Ageratum, Joe-Pye Weed, Wood Spurge, Blue Fescue Grass, Sweet Woodruff, Wintergreen, many geraniums, Hakone Grass, Stinking Hellebore, trilliums, Coral Bells, Heuchera hybrids, Foamy Bells, Hosta, Iris, Yellow Wax Bells, Sea Lavender, Ligularia stenocephala, Yellow Flax, Big Blue Lilyturf, Jerusalem Cross, Rose Campion, Loose strife, Creeping Jenny, Mazus repens, Lemon Balm, Virginia Bluebells, Purple Moor Grass, Creeping Forget-me-not, Ophiopogon planiscapus, Allegheny Spurge, Japanese Spurge, bane berry , Phlox, False Dragon head, Jacob's Ladder, Solomon's Seal, Primrose, Lungwort, Bethlehem Sage, Buttercup, Chinese Rhubarb, Rodgersia pinnata, Bloodroot, Strawberry Geranium, Silene schafta, Silene virginica, Solomon's Plume, Betony, Celandine Poppy, Comfrey, Meadow Rue, Lavender Mist, Foam flower, Spider wort, Toad lily, Wood Lily, Merry bells, American Barren wort, Indian Poke, Speedwell, Culver's Root, Vinca, Horned Violet and Barren Strawberry.

Perennial plants that do well in full shade include: Bishop's Weed, Bugle weed, Wild Parsnip, Angelica Grass, Angelica Gigas, Raven swing, Wild Ginger, most ferns, Lady's Smock, Lily of the Valley, Bleeding Heart, Epimedium, Wood Spurge, Sweet Woodruff, Stinking Hellebore, Lenten Rose, Hosta, Iris, Big Blue Lilyturf, Virginia Bluebells, Allegheny Spurge, Japanese Spurge, Trillium, Phlox, Solomon's Seal, Lung-wort, Bethlehem Sage, Buttercup, Rodgersia Pinnata, Blood root, Strawberry Geranium, Solomon's Plume, Celandine Poppy, Foam-flower, Spider wort, Toad lily, Wood Lily, Merry bells, Horned Violet and Barren Strawberry.

Hardiest Of All Perennial Plants

If you live in a boiling part of the United States and need shade-tolerant plants, here are some to try: Bear's Breech, Sweet Flag (requires very wet soil), Bugleweed, Wild Parsnip, Angelica , Mottled Wild Ginger, Begonia, Sedge Grass, Leadwort, Colewort, Sea Kale, Umbrella Plant, Delphinium, Tufted Hair Grass, Bleeding Heart, Fairy Bells, Ageratum, Wood Spurge, Blue Fescue Grass, Hakone Grass, Stinking Hellebore, Lenten Rose, Iris, Sea Lavender, Big Blue Lilyturf, Loosestrife, Lemon Balm, Virginia Bluebells, Purple Moor Grass, Creeping Forget-me-not, Ophiopogon planiscapus, Allegheny Spurge, Japanese Spurge, Penstemon, Petasites Japonicus, Phlox, False Dragonhead, Chinese Rhubarb, Bloodroot, Strawberry Geranium, Solomon's Plume, Comfrey, Spider wort, Toad lily, Merry bells, Vinca and Horned Violet

Perennials lifespan reaches a decade or more. Perennials also help prevent soil erosion from water and winds. Planting perennials also help improve the structures of soil as roots grow and spread after a few years of growth. They develop a healthy, deep root system allowing them to get many more soil nutrients than annuals.

Perennials & Wildflowers are an excellent investment for your landscaping design since they live for years, unlike annuals which die after each summer season. They are easy to care for and brighten up your yard with various shades of purple, yellow, pink, blue, and even orange. Why purchase new plants annually when you can enjoy the same beautiful blooms year after year? In fact, perennials often produce more color as they persist because their roots spread out very freely. With a minimal amount of effort, you can grow healthy, bright flowers in your garden.

Perennials return every year and live for decades.

Perhaps the longest-living flowering plant is the Virginia bluebells. Although some people claim that it can live as long as its owner, most Virginia bluebells are good for about 20 years. The flowers can be grown in nearly every color (except blue) and occasionally reach an enormous size. You don't have to be overly cautious about cold weather with Virginia bluebells since they need temperatures under 40 degrees Fahrenheit to prepare for the spring. They should have full sunlight for at least half of the day. Our perennials for sale online are mature and blooming age.

Other perennials with extremely long lifespans - Our perennials For Sale are mature blooming age

Cone flowers, day-lilies, and irises. Perennials commonly bloom in late spring and early summer. Some species, such as Cat mint, are planted in bunches along a driveway or path to create a luscious row of lavender-blue hedges. In some climates, the flowers stay open and fragrant into the fall months. Cat mint makes an excellent filler plant when placed among roses and late-blooming flowers. If you want an extremely hardy perennial, try yarrow. This species can survive both heat and cold in addition to drought. Other perennials that are in high demand are daffodils and tulips. Bearded Iris flowers maintain their color late in the season when their counterparts are beginning to fade. For flashy fall colors, plant chrysanthemums, but remember that they last for only a few seasonal periods. All perennials live for more than ten years.

 Best Selling Perennials

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