1. ALCHEMILLA MOLLIS
Also referred to as ‘lady’s mantle’, Alchemilla Mollis has become a hugely popular choice among garden designers in recent years for its abundance of zesty lime flowers and soft, fan-shaped leaves. Frothy clouds of flowers sit atop fairly short stems, making it a wonderful plant for ground cover, and one of the best front yard plants when used to edge a path, raised bed, or border.
Alchemilla Mollis pairs very well with the purple shades of verbena, providing a pleasing contrast to its statuesque stems. Native to southern Europe, plants will tolerate most soil types, however be warned it is a voracious self-seeder and may need some attention if it starts appearing where you’d rather it didn’t.
Alchemilla Mollis looks particularly pretty after a rain shower, when small, glistening droplets of water can be seen all over its scalloped foliage. It also works well as a cut flower, especially if teamed with peach and lilac blooms.
2. ASTILBE
Astilbe’s elegant, feathery blooms and fern-like foliage are a glorious sight in any garden. Flowering from late spring and throughout summer, it comes in magenta, burgundy, pastel pink and white, and is sometimes referred to as ‘false goat’s beard’. Astilbes like acidic soil and are found naturally in shaded spaces, often near water, so it’s a good idea to recreate these conditions as far as possible to give your plants the best chance of producing their stunning blooms.
These plants are heavy feeders, so try to fertilize them twice a year with an organic compound in spring and a high nitrogen fertilizer in fall. Astilbes can take a little longer than some perennial plants to establish, but once happy they can spread quickly. Butterflies are attracted to their arrow-like flowers, and if you’re considering what to plant with your hydrangeas, Astilbe can work really well.
3. BLACK EYED SUSAN
Black Eyed Susans, also known as rudbeckia hirta, are native to North America. They produce distinctive, bright yellow and gold petals with striking black centers. They typically bloom from midsummer until the first frosts, and provided they are planted in a sunny spot, they are incredibly low maintenance.
Some cultivars can grow to more than 45 inches in height, making them an ideal plant to add color to the back of a border. You can cut back Black Eyed Susans hard at the base of the stems after all the flowers have faded, and they will return fresh and strong the following year.
4. COLUMBINE
Columbine, or aquilegia, is a spring-flowering perennial. It does best in part-sun, part-shade, and will give beautiful interest in your garden before the louder blooms start to compete for attention.
Also known affectionately in some parts of the world as ‘granny’s bonnet’ for its bell-shaped flower heads atop thin stems, it gives wonderful movement to a flower bed. Columbines love to self-seed, and can also be grown successfully in containers. There are a huge variety of Columbine seeds available to buy at Walmart.
Once planted, aquilegias can sometimes take a couple of years to bloom, explains gardening expert John Pegus. ‘Normally, when this plant is raised from seed it takes two years for flowers to appear,’ he says. ‘Aquilegias usually only flower when the plants are large enough. Interestingly, they are incredibly resilient to weather vagaries and happily survive long dry spells.’
5. CONEFLOWER
With its long flowering season, statement flower heads and attractiveness to pollinators and birds, it’s easy to see how coneflowers, or echinacea, made it onto this list. Even in winter after their bold petals have fallen, their large central seed heads remain, offering drama and structure to a flower bed.
Coneflowers are hardy perennial plants and belong to the Asteraceae or daisy family. They are native to the central and eastern US, and these days there is a vast array of coneflower varieties to choose from. Knowing when to cut back plants and how to harvest coneflower seeds will give you even more from these diligent flowers.
Our top picks are Echinacea Sombrero ‘Balsomador’, for its fiery pumpkin hues, and the statuesque Echinacea purpurea ‘Ruby Star’, both available to buy from Nature Hills.
6. HELENIUM
With their masses of dainty, fiery red, orange and yellow petals and dark centers, Helenium – or sneezeweed as it is commonly known – are a unique combination of whimsy and splendor; their presence in a garden will not go unnoticed.
They are native to the US and Canada, and their smaller flower heads make them a lovely fall flower for pots. Some of the taller varieties may require staking in the summer when they reach full height. They enjoy moist soil and will thrive in full sun. You can pinch out the plants in spring to encourage branching, and get more flower heads on each plant.
7. HYDRANGEA
There are a myriad varieties and cultivars of hydrangea plants to choose from, all in different colors and flower shapes – from lacecaps to paniculatas. These shrubby plants grow large and loud in the garden, with bombastic flower heads that demand center stage. They work in borders and as informal hedging, and can even thrive in pots.
Hydrangeas prefer shady conditions to full sun. If they are looking a little wilted after a hot day, remember to water them from the top as well as at their roots, because they drink from their large flower heads. It’s important to know when to prune hydrangeas – and how to prune them – to ensure you don’t restrict next year’s growth. The right time can depend on the type of hydrangea you have in your yard. There are also steps you can take to winterize them, to protect them from snow and frost.
A favorite of ours is Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’, available at Perfect Plants, with its cone-shaped, acid green flowers, which turn to ivory and pink in the fall. It is a true showstopper.
8. JAPANESE ANEMONES
These late-flowering herbaceous perennials love partial shade, and tend to thrive beneath trees or tall hedges. Growing to lofty heights themselves of up to 4ft, they are a great choice if you’re looking to add fall plants for privacy to your planting schemes.
Once established, Japanese anemones can multiply fast, developing new shoots from their roots. Plants can be easily propagated at this time of year to thin out dense areas. This is done by root division: digging up a plant and dividing the rootball using a sharp spade to create new, individual plants.
We love the Anemone x ‘Whirlwind’ at Nature Hills, for its breathtaking white and yellow blooms.
9. LAVENDER
This ancient, fragrant herb is an all-round wonderful addition to any yard, large or small. You can spend hours watching the bees buzzing around its purple flowers in summer. Then in the fall cut back where you see new foliage emerging, and harvest the flowers for use in baking, soap, room sprays, essential oils or simply hang dried decorative bunches in your home. You can of course harvest the seeds to create even more plants for next year. Its evergreen foliage provides year-round color and coverage in the garden.
Lavender will grow in poor quality soil, and aside from pruning requires very little care and attention. Most varieties are drought-tolerant and it grows very well in pots too. Early fall, or mid-to-late spring are the best times to plant lavender, and cuttings can also be taken in fall.
One of our favorite varieties is Lavandula angustifolia ‘Silver Mist’, which is available at Nature Hills.
10. PEONIES
An absolute favorite as a cut flower, garden-grown peonies may be fleeting, but they are worth it for their voluptuous, heavily scented, and romantic blooms. Bare root herbaceous peonies are best planted in fall and like full sun. It’s a good idea to add organic matter to your soil before planting, and make sure they have good drainage. Also remember to fertilize peonies at the right time for optimum blooms.
When planting, don’t put them too deep into the soil, as this could cause fewer flowers to appear, says John Pegus. ‘The buds emerging from the crown should be just below the soil surface. Remember this when applying a layer of mulch and do not cover the crown of peonies,’ he says.
Blooming in May and June, peonies can sometimes attract ants owing to a sticky secretion by their flower buds. If cutting to arrange in the home, simply rinse under cold water to ensure no ants remain on the stems.
11. SALVIA
It’s impossible to look at Salvia in the summer months without seeing the uplifting sight of bees and butterflies eagerly buzzing around its tubular flower spikes. Growing these intensely colorful flowers that are nectar-rich will pay dividends, as they can bloom for months on end, especially if you keep up the deadheading. The foliage is aromatic and attractive, and like lavender they can also grow on poor soil.
Salvias enjoy full sun, and would work well in a coastal or Mediterranean planting scheme. If you live in a colder climate, prune salvias in the spring rather than fall, as the foliage will give the plants some added protection from frost over winter.
We love Salvia nemorosa ‘Blue Marvel’, available at Nature Hills, for its intense color and tolerance to heat and cold.