Care & Guidance
Whilst you enjoy your perennials for their fantastic foliage or beautiful blooms, it's really the roots you're buying - because the roots allow the plants to come back every year. Use these tips to make sure your perennials get off to the right start.
Container grown perennials are easy to plant and commonly available. Start digging a hole that's a little wider but no deeper than the pot your new perennial came in. Loosen the roots, and spread them out if the plant has become rootbound* (*when roots start to grow in circles around the edge of the pot). Then firm the soil in around the roots and water well.
Planting Tips: water your perennials well after you plant them. Then lay a 2-3 inch deep layer of mulch over the soil around your new plants. The mulch will help the soil hold moisture and prevent weeds from growing. Give taller perennials such as delphiniums, holihocks and peonies support by staking them. Anchor single stems by inserting a rod or sturdy stick into the ground and tying the stem to it. Keep clump forming plants with multiple stems standing, by growing through a hoop. Regularly deadhead and divide your perennials to keep them healthy and looking beautiful.
Deadheading: simply means cutting the faded flowers off your plants. It makes your plants look better and it prevents them from setting seed so you don't have a mass of seedlings popping up in your garden.
Dividing: One of the best things about perennials is that they grow bigger and better each year. But many start to crowd themselves out if they get too big. Keep them performing well by digging them out of the ground and splitting them into smaller chunks every 3 or 4 years. Early spring and autumn are the best times to divide most perennials. A couple of exceptions include bearded iris and hosta: split these perennials in summer.
Watering: There's no one-size fits all rule for watering perennials. Some varieties stand up to drought and others need to be kept moist all the time. Keep your plants healthier and make watering a breeze by grouping plants in acccordance with their watering needs. No matter what perennials you're growing, be sure to keep them all well watered in the first year - that allows them to become well established.
Feeding: If you have rich soil or improve it with garden compost or other forms of organic matter on a regular basis, you probably won't need to feed your plants, But if you're burdened with poor soil, fertilising can be helpful. Take care not to over fertilise - this may make your plants flower less, suffer root injury, or even kill your perennials.
Winter Care: Perennials that are reliably cold hardy in your region shouldn't need any special winter care. But spreading a layer of mulch over them after the soil freezes can help prevent winter damage during an especially cold season. Many gardeners like to leave the dead stems of their perennials standing all winter, providing food for birds. Perennials can help to catch snow, which is one of the best winter mulches.
Vigorous, erect perennial with mid green leaves. Single white flowers. Pink tinged on reverse with golden yellow stamens. Height 1.2 - 1.5 m.
Windflower. Erect perennial with pale pink double flowers. Height 80cm. Flowers from August to September. Herbaceous.
Herbaceous - vigorous, erect, woody-based perennial with suckering shoots. 3-palmate, toothed, mid-green leaves. Basal leaves are 10-20cm (4-8in) long. Stem leaves are 5-12cm (2-5in) long. Flowers to 9cm (3in).
Clump-forming perennial with grey leaves. Semi-double pure white flowerheads. Height 60cm. Spread 60cm. Flowers from May to September. Semi-evergreen. Hardy.
Creamy yellow daisy flowers, with glorious yellow eyes, attract numerous pollinators such as bees and hoverflies. The foliage is slightly aromatic as you would expect from the Chamomile family, green and finely dissected.
Branching stems of attractive lemon-yellow flowers. Clump-forming. Free flowering perennial. Leaves mid-green above and grey beneath. Height 80cm. Spread 80cm. Flowers from May to September. Semi Evergreen. Hardy.
Ox-eye chamomile. Clump-forming, free flowering perennial, leaves mid-green above and grey beneath. Branching stems of pale cream, almost white flowerheads. Height 80cm. Spread 80cm. Flowers from May to September. Semi-evergreen. Hardy.
Cow Parsley. Queen Ann's Lace. Clump-forming perennial with attractive purple leaves umbels of white flowers April to July. Height 80cm. Spread 80cm.
Dwarf form short-lived upright perennial with spurred with lovely deep purple black Columbine is a real jem and florists favourite. This variety of Aquilegia flowers from May to July and makes an ideal companion for late tulips and cottage garden plants.
Mildew tolerant series, produces loads of up-facing blooms held just above a bushy, compact mound of lacy leaves. The plants are uniform in habit and height with strong stems. This variety features double red and white flowers, blooming spring to early summer.
Herbaceous perennial with striking, golden-green foliage and sprays of white flowers in mid and late summer. It prefers a moist, well drained soil in partial shade, and the bold architectural form and bright colour of the foliage adds life to shady areas.
Sandwort. Low-growing evergreen, greyish, green leaves, cup-shaped white flowers. Height 5cm. Spread 40cm. Flowers from May to June. Evergreen. Hardy.
Sea Pink. Thrift. Cushion-forming with linear dark green leaves, bright pink flowerheads. Height 20cm. Spread 30cm. Flowers from May to June. Evergreen. Hardy.
Woody-based perennial with feathery. Silver-grey leaves. Panicles of silver yellow-tinged flower-heads. Height 60cm. Spread 80cm. Flowers from July to August. Semi-evergreen. Hardy.
Thread-like, silvery leaves. Foliage is soft and feathery, quickly growing into a billowy mound about 24" tall and 36" wide.
Dwarf, evergreen perennial with green/white variegated, deeply incised leaves. Useful in rockeries & winter tubs or baskets. Sun or light shade. Any soil.
Perennial with deeply cut mid-green leaves. Attractive loose panicles of creamy white flowers. Height 40cm. Spread 40cm. Flowers from May to July. Herbaceous. Hardy.
Goatsbeard. Perennial with very finely divided, fern-like leaves. Nodding creamy white flowers on arching stems. Height 90cm. Spread 45cm. Flowers from May to July. Herbaceous. Hardy.
An erect clump-forming perennial prized for its brilliant clusters of vanilla-scented rose-pink flowers, which bloom continuously for weeks from midsummer to early autumn. Low maintenance, this perennial plant is generally pest and disease free. Deer resistant.
Beautiful deep rose flowers on tall strong stems. Good size flower heads which are loved by butterflies. USA native. Vanilla scented flowers.
Kings Spear. Clump-forming with narrowly triangular blue-green leaves. Attractive yellow flower spikes of yellow, striped green. Height 1.4m. Spread 30cm. Flowers from June to July. Herbaceous. Hardy.
Large, soft, lilac-blue, daisy-like flowers with a summer sunshine, yellow centre. This is a real zinger, a good addition where space is at a premium but impact is essential. Prefers full sun with free-draining soil or compost.
Clump forming perennial with green leaves. Height 25cm. Spread 45cm.Flowers from May to July. Herbaceous.
Brilliant turquoise blue flowers with sunshine yellow centres over compact green foliage. Ideal Conditions: Prefers full sun, or partial shade with free-draining soil or compost. Possible Situation: Best used as a central feature in a tub or container, or for the mid border or raised bed.
Beautiful lavender jade blooms with sulphur yellow centers. Superb in September. Prefers full sun, or partial shade with free-draining soil or compost.
Brilliant purple flowers and compact green foliage. Prefers full sun, or partial shade with free-draining soil or compost.
Strong rose-purple blooms with a fine, almost filament looking properties to the petals. Prefers full sun or partial shade with free-draining soil or compost.
Also known as Michaelmas Daisies, these old favourites bloom from late summer into autumn with a multitude of elegant white, long lasting, daisy-like flowers.
'Jenny' forms a compact clump of narrow leaves and clusters of reddish-purple, semi-double flowers.
Michaelmas Daisy. Clump forming bushy perennial with green leaves. Stems of mauve-blue flower heads. Height 30cm. Spread 45cm. Flowers from August to September. Herbaceous.
Upright, perennial with dark green leaves. Bears long lasting clear lavender-blue flowerheads on stout stems. Height 60cm. Spread 40cm. Flowers from July to September. Herbaceous. Hardy.
Rosy-pink daisy flowers on upright green foliage. Ideal Conditions: Prefers full sun, or partial shade with free-draining soil or compost. Possible Situation: Best used as a central feature in a tub or container, or for the mid border or raised bed.
Rich bright-blue flowers in late summer. Pinch plants before July to maintain a cushion effect. A strong colour. Bushy growth, forms a bushy clump, bearing loads of small daisy flowers.
Growing to less than 2 feet tall and wide, 'Purple Dome' covers itself with semi-double, deep purple, daisy-like flowers from late summer to midfall. In addition to being mildew resistant, it attracts butterflies. It's great as a border specimine and as a cut flower. Noteworthy Characteristics: Mounds of purple flowers with yellow eyes. Great late season butterfly plant.
Michaelmas Daisy. Clump forming perennial with green leaves. Stems of semi-double, dark pink flowerheads. Height 90cm. Spread 45cm. Flower colour Pink. Flowers from July to September. Herbaceous. Foliage colour Green. Hardy.
Michaelmas Daisy. Clump forming perennial with green leaves. Stems of double white flowerheads. Height 90cm. Spread 45cm. Flowers from July to September. Herbaceous. Hardy.
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