Garden Topics:
June is Perennial Gardening Month
Now that you’ve gotten your annuals and vegetables planted,
it’s time to look toward adding perennials to your garden. While
they are more expensive than their annual relatives, perennials
are more economical because they come back to life each spring
with their beautiful, colorful blooms and foliage. Perennials
bloom at different various times during the season, so the key
to successful perennial use is to plan your gardens so that
there is a constant rotation of color and bloom. Don't overlook
the importance and value that contrasting colors and shades of
green, yellow, blue, cream and variegated foliage offer.
Consider also what the differences in height make in creating a
well proportioned garden.
On average, most perennials
bloom for three weeks, although some also flower sporadically
through the season, especially if spent blooms are removed. With
proper care, a few bloom through most of the season. Examples
include: Rozeanne Geranium, Purple Coneflower, Thread Leaf
Coreopsis, Sedum Autumn Joy, Corydalis, lutea, Fringed Bleeding
Heart, and Stella D’Oro Daylily.
As a group, perennials
offer great diversity in form, size, texture, season of bloom,
flower color, foliage, uses, and level of attraction to birds
and butterflies.
Plant producers have improved many perennial
plants through the years, making them even more attractive and
useful in landscapes. Some of the most amazing work has been
done with coral bells. Heuchera Caramel, pictured above, is an
example.
Combining plants that have different characteristics,
increases interest in, and adds to the enjoyment of the garden
throughout the season.
It's possible to create a bed that's in continuous bloom from
early spring to fall as different plants bloom and fade. When
properly designed for continuous bloom, the garden will change
and be attractive each month, May through November. Although
many gardeners are attracted to perennials for their blooms, as
mentioned above, foliage also contributes structure and interest
with leaf color, size and shape.
Although most gardeners
focus their attention with planting during May, a visit to your
garden center should be scheduled each month so you can see what
perennials are naturally blooming during that month. (Fall
blooming plants often are not offered during the early season)
Consider installing plants now that will flower from late summer
into fall. This is an important time when many gardens lack
interest.
Some of the late-blooming perennials are aster, black-eyed
Susan, blanket-flower, false sunflower, goldenrod, Japanese
anemone, Joe-Pye Weed, plumbago, Russian sage and sedum.
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