Sunny gardens demand praiseworthy perennials
There are so many praiseworthy perennials for sunny gardens available at local garden centers; how can gardeners choose when planting a small space? If forced to choose just 10 perennials to design a sunny border, I would select these tried-and-true performers.
• Planted at the front of the border, Phlox subulata wakes up the garden in spring with a burst of color. It awakens to pink, lavender or white, depending on the cultivar chosen. They grow 6 inches tall and up to 2 feet wide.
• Euphorbia epithymoides "Bonfire" is another front-of-the-border beauty. Growing 12 to 18 inches tall and slightly wider, its chartreuse flowers (botanically bracts) are prominently displayed against dark burgundy leaves in late spring.
• Nepeta faassenii "Purrsian Blue" takes over front-row duty for the summer. It boasts sweet sky blue flowers on compact plants similar in size to Bonfire. Cut it back after its first round of flowers for a second go around.
• Fill the middle of the border with plants that are not only beautiful in bloom but also offer textural interest. I would never have a sunny perennial garden without Coreopsis verticillata "Zagreb." Small, bright yellow, daisylike flowers bloom over fine foliage all summer long.
• Partner the soft, fine foliage of Zagreb with the bold, purplish-green leaves of sedum "Matrona." The sedum will begin showing off its rosy flower clusters on sturdy, red, 30-inch stems when coreopsis Zagreb begins winding down.
• Geranium "Rozanne" is a blooming machine, displaying periwinkle flowers nonstop from late spring to early fall. She grows up to 20 inches tall and spreads at least 2 feet wide, mingling amiably with other perennials.
• Beginning in midsummer, lavender globes of allium "Summer Beauty" glow as they hover over upright, dark green leaf stalks. This ornamental onion grows 18 inches tall, is a little wider and is loved by bees, butterflies and other pollinators, but not rabbits or deer.
• I think there is a law about including coneflowers in a sunny perennial border, and if there isn't, there should be. Echinacea purpurea "Magnus" has been a favorite of gardeners for many years. Its large, vibrant pink, daisylike flowers bloom from midsummer to early fall; the butterflies love them as much as gardeners do and they are easy to grow.
• Toward the back of the garden, eupatorium "Little Joe" stands up to 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide. Domes of light rosy-lavender flowers top stiff, straight stems from mid to late summer.
• Another must-have is chrysanthemum "Becky." Also referred to as leucanthemum Becky, she's an old-fashioned favorite loved for her large, yellow-centered, pristine white flowers and all summer bloom. Plants grow at least 3 feet tall and nearly as wide.
• Panicum virgatum "Northwind" stands 4 to 6 feet tall to provide a lovely backdrop for earlier-blooming perennials and gets its chance to star in the garden when its airy flower panicles glisten in autumn sunlight.
For all those mathematicians who have counted the perennials mentioned, I realize there are 11 listed. Gardeners know when it comes to plants, there is always room for one more!
• Diana Stoll is a horticulturist, garden writer and the garden center manager at The Planter's Palette in Winfield. She blogs at gardenwithdiana.com.