SUN LOVING PERENNIALS
The backbone of the flower garden
While planting annuals often gives a sense of instant gratification there is a joy that comes with growing perennial flowers too. Perennial plants (found in House 2) are ones that come back year after year when they are planted in the correct climate. The life cycle of the plant repeats itself each year, often dying back to the ground in the late summer or fall and then reemerging to signal the start of a new season.
They are reliable happy messengers, not unlike fruit trees letting you know when a new chapter of spring or summer has begun but only blooming when the conditions feel right. Perennials also serve as the staples of your flower garden, supplementing annual plants. By planting a combination of both you can create a consistent yet ever changing landscape using complementary colors in each group.
Lovely Lupines
Lupines are just one of many favorite plants in the Sun Loving Perennial House, but we wanted to highlight it for several reasons. The first is that Lupines are nitrogen fixing. They belong to the pea family and as such don’t require too many amendments and provide nitrogen for their plant neighbors. Second, they attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds which we would all love more of and third, because they are deer-resistant! They of course also produce beautiful tall clusters of flowers and full lush leaves.
Lupines grow anywhere from 1-5 feet tall and prefer slightly acidic soil.
Parade Roses
What flower garden would be complete without roses? One of our favorite types is the miniature or parade roses like the Parade Gigi (pictured) because they are hardy prolific bloomers compared to tea roses. Miniature roses are well-suited for your yard boarders and flower beds and will provide healthy color and foliage all summer long. Of course, Gigi with her unique and eye-catching color would also be very happy in a container to be admired on her own. Roses will be roses after all.
For the Wild(flower) Child
A lot of perennials are known for their wildflower like character and English Daisys are no exception. If you want boarders or beds that will take care of themselves these little babies could be the plant for you. They are happy to announce the arrival of spring and will return year after year spreading by seed.
