Perennials - All

Tops in Mt. Cuba Center's first Echinacea trials in 2009 and was still one of the top ten in the 2020 trials! It also garnered the most pollinator visits in their 2018-19 trial years likely due to its strongly fragrant flowers. Pure white rays surround the dark orange tipped rounded cones of disk flowers on the 3-5" wide flowers atop sturdy 24-30" high stems beginning in late spring and continuing into early fall. PRAIRIE PILLARS™ Fragrant Angel Coneflower is a hybrid Coneflower selected for its exceptionally long flowering season that lasts from late spring or early summer often into fall, briliant color, extra large flowers, and improved branching habit over the original Mac-N-Cheese as well as its perennial reliability as a garden plant. Coneflowers are clump forming perennials whose often fragrant flowers are adored by butterflies, bees, and other pollinators that can be enjoyed as part of the sunny garden garden and landscape as well as container specimens. Leave seedheads for fall and winter songbirds to enjoy. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in an average moist, well-drained, fertile soil for optimum vigor and flowering. Photos courtesy of TERRA NOVA® Nurseries, Inc. www.terranovanurseries.com, all rights reserved. Item# 12787

Clusters of 2" wide primrose yellow fragrant 4-petalled flowers are produced in mid to late spring into early summer atop the low growing spreading stems adorned with deep green fuzzy foliage of this native perennial wildflower. Prairie Sundrops, a.k.a. Meadow Evening Primrose, is a dayflowering species of Evening Primrose with a low somewhat bushy habit and it does spread somewhat by rhizomes which is great for naturalistic settings like meadows, prairies and roadside plantings and it is reportedly relatively easy to control in garden settings as well. An adaptable native perennial that is tolerant of wet to dry soils including clay but it seems to prefer an acidic pH. The flowers attract butterflies and larger native bees. Item# 11662

Primrose yellow, trumpet shaped flowers to 2" across are often blushed on the outside of the flower with peachy pink. The Primrose Yellow Rainlily produces its flowers singly on sturdy stalks over a long period beginning in late spring and may last into fall. This is an easy to grow and drought tolerant perennial that readily multiplies from offsets as well as seeds. Multiple plants per pot. Item# 10395.

Loads of tall dense spikes of 1" long, lavender-violet, nectar-rich, tubular flowers emerge from slightly darker colored calyxes from late spring or early summer to fall attracting a wide array of pollinators including bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Prince's Plume Hummingbird Mint is a moderately vigorous growing Agastache with a mounding and spreading habit growing to 30" high and wide so be sure to give this flowering machine a little elbow room. Use it en masse in the garden or landscape to provide summer long color in sunny gardens and landscapes or as low maintenance, full sun container specimens to bring the pollinators in close. Provide a full to mostly sunny location with excellent drainage and good air circulation for the best results. Moderately drought resistant once well-established. Deer and rabbit resistant. Photos courtesy of TERRA NOVA® Nurseries, Inc. www.terranovanurseries.com, all rights reserved. Item# 13583

Hundreds of 1" wide lavender-blue, semi-double daisies with a showy yellow eye literally cover these plants for weeks beginning in late summer and continuing into mid fall. Professor Anton Kippenburg New York Aster or Michaelmas Daisy is a clump forming, densely branching, perennial growing to just 12-18" high and wide and while this is a small growing plant it never seems to lack for flower power once late summer arrives. Dr. Allen Armitage in his Herbaceous Perennial Plants, 4th edition states that "This excellent cultivar has withstood the test of time." No pinching or staking is required to enjoy these beauties. Use these perennials where you would normally buy Chrysanthemums whether as part of the perennial border, in the landscape, or even as container plants. The flowers attract bees, butterflies, hover flies, and numerous other garden beneficials. Item# 12018

This multiple award winning Iris produces pale bluish-lavender falls and standards, accented with darker veining, and are topped by a trio of pale green to cream and light lavender style arms. Professor Paul Louisiana Iris grows to about 30-32" high and flowers in late midseason. Louisiana Irises are easy and adaptable, rhizomatous perennials with fans of deep green sword-like foliage and seem as at home in standing water as they do in average moist garden soils. Remember that these plants do most of their growing in fall and winter and so this is when they should be fed and fall is also a great time to divide plants if desired. Provide a full to mostly sunny site for optimum vigor and flowering. Professor Paul was awarded an Honorable Mention in 1984 and the Award of Merit in 1988. Item# 13451

Deep blue to purple tubular, 1" long flowers emerge from the center of the purple, rounded, chinese hat-shaped calyces typically throughout summer and in to fall. The Purple Chinese Hat has a naturally upright to vase shaped habit. We have seen it return from the roots after experiencing 24F if the base of the plant is mulched with a breathable but insulative organic mulch. Easily grown as a medium sized container plant where not hardy. Item #574

TThe large 2" deep bluish-purple trumpets are born freely from late spring or early summer until fall on upright to arching burgundy stems with deep bronzy green glossy foliage. Purple Showers Mexican Petunia is sterile and so it can spend more energy on an endless supply of beautiful purple trumpets instead of adding unwanted seedlings to the garden. It does spread via rhizomes creating a tall ground covering mass of foliage and stems. This wonderful and vigorous selection produces larger flowers and foliage than most other Mexican Petunias. Item# 9610

Small clusters of lightly fragrant purple and lavender flowers are born from summer to frost on this easy and adaptable perennial. With a low, naturally spreading to weeping habit Purple Trailing Lantana makes an excellent choice for the garden or as a spiller in mixed containers. Excellent for butterflies, bees and other pollinators. Hardy and considered to be non-invasive. Item# 10506.

Loads of upward facing deep orange-red tubular buds open to show off thier contrasting starry yellow petals in spring atop a neat rounded mound of foliage. Ragin' Cajun Indian Pinks, a Plant Delights introduction that originated near St. Francisville, Louisiana, was selected for its neat and compact rounded habit, high bud count, orange-red flowers, and long flowering season. This is an easy and reliable long-lived clump forming, native perennial that is tolerant of full sun to light or bright shade. It goes fully dormant in winter dying back to near ground level then returning in early spring. Indian Pinks, Spigelia marilandica, will do best in a fertile, acidic, well-drained soil with average moisture. The flowers attract hummingbirds and other long tongued pollinators. Images courtesy of Walter's Gardens, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 13100

Rounded clusters of raspberry colored buds open to 2" long tubular, nectar rich, raspberry wine colored flowers in summer. Raspberry Wine Monarda is a disease resistant selection with strongly fragrant, deer and rabbit resistant foliage that can be used to flavor teas. Bee Balm is a clump forming, slowly spreading perennial well suited to moist, well-drained soils in a sunny garden setting whether in the herb garden or in mass as an informal groundcover. Item# 11400

Masses of 1" wide yellow-eyed bluish purple daisies absolutely cover this plant for weeks in late summer and fall. Raydon's Favorite Aromatic Aster, a selection of Symphyotrichum oblongifolium and the big brother of the slightly more compact October Skies, is a medium-sized, herbaceous, densely mounding shrub-like perennial that matures to about 3' x 3' at the time of flowering. Excellent fall color for the garden as well as drought tolerance and pest and disease resistance make this an excellent addition to the perennial or wildflower border and landscape. The flowers attract a variety of pollinators but seems to be especially popular with bees. Caterpillar host: Field Crescent, Pearl Crescent, Texan Crescent, Roadside Checkerspot, Hoffman's Checkerspot, and American Lady. Prefers good to excellent drainage and a full to mostly sunny site for optimum vigor and flowering. Named the 2016 Plant of the Year by the Garden Club of America and selected for the 2003 Theodore Klein Award. Images courtesy of North Creek Nurseries, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 13164

The Red Butterfly Ginger produces large deep reddish orange to red flowers that emerge from a darkened flower spike atop the sturdy stems of rich green smooth tropical looking foliage. It very much resembles the White Butterfly Ginger when in flower other than the flower color but has darker foliage a more compact habit. The Red Butterfly Ginger is one of the earliest gingers to flower in our collection. Provide a semi-shaded location where it receives shade during the hottest portion of the day although it is fairly tolerant. The Red Butterfly Ginger will prefer an average moist, well-drained, moderately fertile soil. Item# 11521

Clusters of deep red, long-lasting, saucer-shaped calyxes are centered by deep red, 1" long, slightly curved tubular flowers and are produced along the arching stems beginning in late summer and early fall just in time for the fall hummingbird migration. Flowering may continue throughout winter and into spring in warm winter climates or will continue until the first hard frost or freeze in colder winter regions. The Red Chinese Hat, a relatively rare color form of Holmskioldia sanguinea, is a naturally evergreen, arching or scandent, tropical shrub growing to about 6-8' high and up to 8-12' wide, even as a dieback perennial in our zone 8B garden. It can utilized as a specimen planting, as an informal hedge, espalier it along a fence or on a trellis, and even as tree form or standard. Provide the Chinese Hat Plant with a full to mostly sunny site, in an average moist, fertile soil with average or better drainage for optimum vigor and flowering. See our Growing on the Edge Growing Guide for more on growing root hardy tropicals as perennials in the garden and landscape. Item# 11486

1" wide, deep red, Hibiscus-like flowers are produced from spring to fall to potentially year-round under warm tropical conditions attracting hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. Red Dragon Rockrose, potentially a hybrid between the native Pavonia lasiopetala and the South American P. missionum, is a multi-stemmed, clump forming, naturally evergreen to semi-deciduous, tropical shrub adorned with deep green, lance-shaped foliage and growing to about 3-4' high and 2-3' wide. It is considered hardy in zones 9-11 and may act like a die-back perennial in areas that experience hard freezes. Where not hardy plants can be enjoyed as container plants or summer annuals. Provide a full sun to partly shaded site in a well-drained, average moist, fertile soil for optimum vigor and flowering. Item# 13648

The Red Firecracker Fern produces loads of 1" showy red tubular flowers that are born in large loose clusters along the arching ferny stems throughout the warmer months of the year or nearly year round where winters are mild. Excellent for Hummingbirds! This is a durable and long-lived, clump forming perennial that requires little additional care once well-established. The Firecracker Fern has excellent heat and sun tolerance as well as moderate drought resistance once well-established. It is even listed as being suitable for xeriscaping. Firecracker Fern, Russelia equisetiformis, is listed as a Texas A&M Outstanding Coastal Plant as it has excellent resistance to soil and wind born salts, though it could use some protection from harsh, drying winds. It is also an RHS Award of Garden Merit selection. It can be used as a low informal hedge, allow it to spill over walls, enjoy it as a hanging basket, window box, or container specimen, as well as in mixed container gardens. Item# 417

Huge deep scarlet red, 10" wide, widely flaring flowers with overlapping petals are borne from summer to fall on this beautiful perennial Hibiscus cloaked in rich apple green foliage. Red Flare Hardy Hibiscus is a showstopper with its continuous display of massive cranberry red flowers thanks in no small part to being nearly sterile and rarely producing seed. The Flare Hibiscus series have been selected as Texas Superstar© Plants due to their toughness, reliability, and performance in the garden and landscape throughout the state. These root hardy, 4-5' high and 4-6' wide herbaceous perennials will die-back to the ground in fall returning from the crown the following spring. Provide a richly fertile, moist, wet, to average moist soil in a full to mostly sunny site for optimum vigor and to maximize flowering. Easy and reliable! Caterpillar host: Gray hairstreak. Item# 13129