Perennials are a gardener’s best friend: They return every year looking bigger and better than ever and, once established, can be very low-maintenance. When planning your perennial garden, keep these ideas and tips inmind to build the garden of your dreams—or at least one that will make your neighbors green with envy.
1. Pick a Star
Whether you have one perennial bed or 10, your garden plan should account for a true botanical showstopper. This might be an ornamental evergreen, a dwarf flowering tree, or a glorious hydrangea. Not every bed needs to have a showstopper, but you should give your garden at least one larger, established focal point.
2. Group Your Plants
When shopping for perennials, always consider buying more than one of the same plant to give that natural robustness to your perennial bed. For instance, instead of planting one beautiful fountain grass, plant three together in a group so they have enough room to grow and pack a bigger punch visually.
Place groups of the same plant together, maybe around a showstopper shrub or tree, and you’ve got a master gardener formula for your own yard. Planting in groups also makes a bolder statement and is more appealing to the eye from a visual perspective.
3. Pay Attention to the Sun
One of the biggest mistakes gardeners make in their perennial beds is planting full sun plants in the partial shade, or partial shade plants in full sun.
Before you invest in a lot of new blooms, take some time to record your yard’s sun-shade ratio: Does your bed get morning sun only? All-day sunshine? The time of year, leaf coverage of nearby deciduous trees, and your garden hardiness zone will all also affect the light patterns.
“It’s also important to note afternoon sun and morning sun,” says Tara Dudley, Angi Expert Review Board member and owner of Plant Life Designs. “Morning sun is a lot less harsh on plants than afternoon sun, so when planning your garden, be sure not to put any partial sun plants in the full afternoon sun.”
4. Arrange by Height
Because most homeowners purchase perennials early in the flowers’ life, it’s hard to tell what they will look like in a year, two years, or even 10. An easy solution: read those labels!
Height variation can make a perennial bed genuinely fabulous, but not if the tall plants obscure the beauty of the smaller ones. So place taller plants toward the back or center of the beds and keep the shorties up front.
5. Add Containers
Photo: Kirill Gorlov / Adobe Stock
Another fantastic way to add instant height to any garden is to include containers within a planted bed. Try adding one or two taller planters as focal points with something striking inside, like tall grasses and trailing plants.
6. Have Fun With Texture
Planting various plants with different textures gives your perennial garden a dynamic element—without even relying on blooms!
Reedy grasses look great next to broad-leafed perennials; dark purple leaves are a striking contrast with silvery foliage. Play around and see what combos you love.
7. Ensure Year-Round Color
Photo: Smadar / Adobe Stock
If everything in your garden blooms at once, you’re left with a primarily green bed for the rest of the season, which is no fun. Planting flowers that vary blooms from early spring (daffodils, Narcissus) and summer (coneflowers, Echinacea) to late summer (dahlias) extends the beauty of your garden.
And don’t forget plants that put on a fabulous show in the fall, like grasses that turn red (Prairie Fire red switchgrass, Panicum virgatum) and shrubs that show off their autumnal colors (Ninebark, Physocarpus).
8. Plant Pollinator-Friendly Plants
Whether these are native plants or just big bloomers, planting flowers that attract butterflies and bees not only ensures more blooms but deters pesky insects that destroy your foliage.
Some pro-pollinator plants include purple coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea), bee balm (Monarda didyma), Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia), and Yarrow (Achillea millefolium).
9. Add a Few Annuals
Photo: Ronstik / Adobe Stock
The secret to a perennial garden isn’t only relying on perennials: Well-placed annuals can add instant color and can help fill in the gaps while your perennials grow, helping to prevent overcrowding. This contributes to the overall health of your perennial garden. Just remember to pick annuals that have the exact light requirements as your perennial bed!
10. Experiment
Chances are, you inherited some existing plants with your home garden. Don’t be afraid to move, transplant, divide, and just completely change out plants if they don’t work. Take a walk around your neighborhood, too, to see what does well—just be sure to factor in light patterns when you do.
11. Use Your Pruners
Did you know that cutting back blooms encourages more to blossom? Taking the time to do light pruning and deadheading during the blooming season will help your flowers last longer. And proper perennial and shrub pruning in the fall results in more significant, healthier growth come spring.
12. Mulch and Fertilize
Those truly fantastic perennial gardens you see, whether they are native plants or exotic cultivars, all likely have one thing in common: They are adequately fertilized and mulched.
Mulching your bed in spring can help combat weeds and retain moisture, and mulching in fall can help insulate plants from harsh winter weather. Fertilizing at least once in early spring and again during the growing season ensures your plants get the nutrients they need.
13. Accents and Hardscaping
Photo: Elenathewise / Adobe Stock
Perennial gardens aren’t just about plants. Having a few beautiful pieces in your garden like a birdbath, sundial, or even statuary (garden gnome, anyone?) will lend your garden personality. Likewise, well-placed hardscaping such as stone paths lends an enchanted feel to any homeowner’s yard.
Insights, advice, suggestions, feedback and comments from experts
As an expert in gardening and horticulture, I can provide you with information related to the concepts mentioned in the article about perennial gardening. Here are the key points to consider:
1. Pick a Star
- When planning your perennial garden, it's important to choose a true botanical showstopper as a focal point. This could be an ornamental evergreen, a dwarf flowering tree, or a glorious hydrangea .
2. Group Your Plants
- To create a visually appealing and robust perennial bed, consider planting multiple specimens of the same plant together in groups. This allows the plants to grow and have a bigger impact visually.
3. Pay Attention to the Sun
- It's crucial to consider the sunlight requirements of the plants you choose for your perennial bed. Make sure to plant full sun plants in areas with full sun and partial shade plants in areas with partial shade. Factors such as morning sun, afternoon sun, leaf coverage of nearby trees, and your garden's hardiness zone should also be taken into account .
4. Arrange by Height
- To create a visually pleasing perennial bed, arrange the plants by height. Place taller plants towards the back or center of the bed, and keep shorter plants towards the front. This ensures that the beauty of smaller plants is not obscured by taller ones.
5. Add Containers
- Including containers within a planted bed can add instant height and visual interest to your garden. Consider adding one or two taller planters as focal points, with striking plants such as tall grasses and trailing plants.
6. Have Fun With Texture
- Planting perennials with different textures can add a dynamic element to your garden. Experiment with combinations of reedy grasses and broad-leafed perennials, or contrasting colors and foliage types.
7. Ensure Year-Round Color
- To extend the beauty of your garden throughout the seasons, choose perennials that bloom at different times. Plant flowers that vary in bloom time from early spring to late summer, and consider adding plants that display vibrant colors in the fall .
8. Plant Pollinator-Friendly Plants
- Including flowers that attract butterflies and bees in your perennial garden not only ensures more blooms but also helps deter pests that can damage your plants. Some examples of pollinator-friendly plants include purple coneflowers, bee balm, Russian sage, and yarrow.
9. Add a Few Annuals
- While perennials are the mainstay of a perennial garden, strategically placed annuals can add instant color and fill in gaps while your perennials are growing. Make sure to choose annuals with the same light requirements as your perennial bed.
10. Experiment
- Don't be afraid to experiment with your garden. If certain plants don't work well in a particular spot, feel free to move, transplant, divide, or replace them. Take inspiration from other gardens in your neighborhood, but consider the specific light patterns in your own garden.
11. Use Your Pruners
- Regular pruning and deadheading of blooms during the flowering season can encourage more blooms and help your flowers last longer. Proper pruning of perennials and shrubs in the fall can also promote healthier growth in the following spring .
12. Mulch and Fertilize
- Adequate mulching and fertilizing are essential for maintaining healthy perennial gardens. Mulching in spring helps combat weeds and retain moisture, while mulching in fall insulates plants from harsh winter weather. Fertilizing in early spring and during the growing season provides the necessary nutrients for your plants.
13. Accents and Hardscaping
- Perennial gardens can be enhanced by incorporating accents and hardscaping elements. Consider adding birdbaths, sundials, garden statuary, or stone paths to add personality and create an enchanting atmosphere in your garden.
I hope these tips help you create a beautiful and thriving perennial garden! Let me know if you have any further questions.
