Who doesn’t like to have a garden full of blooms from spring until the first frost, which ones do you choose?

Having a yard full of booms is something that anyone can have with a little time and effort but with so many different varieties of plant species, where do you start?

Annuals are known to bloom all season long until the first frost while only some perennials will do the same.

They can be planted together to create a stunning garden that you can change the look of every year or replant the same annuals for a consistent look year after year.

PERENNIALS

Perennials are plants that go into dormancy during the winter and return the following spring.

Most will bloom for a few short weeks each year but our curated list of perennials will bloom throughout summer and into the fall.

Perennials are more costly than annuals because they live for many years and they can also be cloned with root tone to propagate more plants.

These plants may need some pruning for them to keep a certain shape and they also may need to be divided to keep their vitality.

1. RED HOT POKER

Red hot pokers are native to South Africa with more than 70 different species most being available as hybrids.

In colder climates, they prefer a bed of mulch or a protective covering and should be pruned back in the spring.

• Plant size – grows to about 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 5 through 9
• Soil pH – 6.6 through 7.5
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full
• Blooming colors – red, orange, yellow, white, and bicolored blooms that appear in mid to late summer
• Bloom attract – butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees
• Foliage – thin green leaves that can grow to about 2 feet
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pest – slugs, snails, and thrips
• Also known as – torch lily, torch flower, and African flame flower

3. BELLFLOWERS

Bellflowers are native to Southern Europe and the Mediterranean area.

They are fast-growing ground cover plants that are often used to cascade over a rock or brick wall.

• Plant size – grows to about 8 inches tall and 2 feet wide
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 4 through 7
• Soil pH – 5.5 through 6.5
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full to partial sun
• Blooming colors – purple and blue star-shaped blooms that appear in spring to early summer with tons of blooms
• Bloom attracts – bees
• Foliage – small green spade-shaped leaves with a pointed tip and spike-like points on the edges of the leaves
• Deer resistant – no
• Pests – aphids, slugs, snails, spider mites, and vine weevils
• Diseases – Powdery mildew, rust, ramulari leaf spot, seporia, and southern blight

4. FRINGED BLEEDING HEART

Fringed bleeding hearts are native to the Eastern United States in the Appalachian mountains where it prefers rocky soil.

• Plant size – grows to about 2 and a half feet tall and 2 and a half feet wide
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 3 through 9
• Soil pH – 6.0 through 6.5
• Drought tolerant – no
• Sun exposure – full sun to partial shade but they will not produce as many blooms
• Blooming colors – red, pink, and white
• Bloom attract – hummingbirds
• Foliage – fern-like leaves
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pests – aphids, snails, slugs, and scale
• Disease – powdery mildew, leaf spot, and root rot

5. EVERBLOOMING DAYLILIES

Daylilies are native to China, Korea, and Japan where it has been cultivated for hundreds of years.

• Plant size – grows to about 4 feet tall and 4 feet wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 3 through 9
• Soil pH – 6.0 through 6.5
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full sun
• Blooming colors – large red, orange, purple, pink, yellow, white, and multi-colored blooms that appear in the early spring and they stick around until the first frost
• Bloom attracts – bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds
• Foliage – long thin green leaves
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pests – aphids, cutworms, Japanese beetles, cucumber beetles, cicadas, and grasshoppers
• Disease – powdery mildew, leaf spot, and root rot

6. PENSTEMON

Penstemon is native to Central and North America where they are related to snapdragons and foxglove.

• Plant size – grows to about 6 feet tall and 20 inches wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 3 through 9
• Soil pH – 5.5 through 6.5
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full to partial sun
• Blooming colors – blue, yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, white, and bi-colored bell-shaped blooms that appear in late May and last into the middle of June
• Bloom attracts – bees and hummingbirds
• Foliage – long needle-like green or blueish-green leaves with some varieties having oval-shaped leaves
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pests – aphids, leafhoppers, froghoppers, root-maggot flies, lygus bugs, and thrips
• Disease – powdery mildew, white mold, and southern blight
• Also known as – beardtongue

ANNUALS

Annuals are plants that die off every year with the first frost and they have to be reseeded in order for them to come back the next spring.

Their blooms appear in spring and last or continue blooming until the last frost.

Growing annuals can be a fun experiment using different color schemes and the ability to grow a wide variety of different flowering plants in a single growing season.

They can also be a good choice for filling in empty spaces because they are quick to bloom and they can add some color to any space while attracting pollinators.

7. AGERATUM

Ageratum is native to Central America and has four varieties that are native to the United States.

• Plant size – grows to about 3 feet tall and 1 and a half feet wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 10 through 11
• Soil pH – 5.8 through 6.2
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full sun to partial shade with fewer blooms
• Blooming colors – a ball of spiky-like blooms that are red, blue, purple
• Bloom attracts – butterflies and bees
• Foliage – spade-shaped leaves that grow to about 2 inches long
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pests – aphids, spider mites, and thrips
• Diseases – Powdery mildew, gray mold, pythium, and damping off

8. CORNFLOWER

Cornflower is native to Europe and Asia.

• Plant size – grows to about 4 feet tall and 1 foot wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 2 through 11
• Soil pH – 7.2 through 7.8
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full to partial sun
• Blooming colors – button-like blooms that are blue, red, purple, pink, and white blooms that appear in spring
• Bloom attracts – butterflies and bees
• Foliage – lance-shaped leaves that grow to about 1 inch long
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pest – aphids and mealybugs
• Diseases – powdery mildew, stem rot, and stem rust
• Also known as – bachelor’s button

9. GOMPHRENA

Gomphrena is native to Central America and belongs to the family of amaranth plants that has about 5 species with various varieties.

• Plant size – grows to about 2 feet tall and 1 foot wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 2 through 11
• Soil pH – 5.8 through 6.2
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full
• Blooming colors – showy globe-shaped blooms that are white to yellow but cultivars have bread varieties that have purple, pink, red, and white that appear in June
• Bloom attracts – butterflies and bees
• Foliage – lance-shaped leaves that grow to about 4 inches long
• Deer resistant – yes
• Diseases – powdery mildew, gray mold, and leaf spot
• Also known as – globe amaranth and globe flower

10. PETUNIA

Petunias are native to South America with about 35 species that are greatly diverse.

• Plant size – grows to about 1 and a half feet tall and 4 feet wide depending on the variety.
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 9 through 11
• Soil pH – 5.4 through 6.0
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full sun
• Blooming colors – blue, purple, pink, red, yellow, white, and bi-colored blooms that appear in spring and continue into the fall.
• Bloom attracts – bees and butterflies
• Foliage –
• Deer resistant – yes
• Pests – spider mites, thrips, and caterpillars
• Diseases – crown rot, root rot, power mildew, botrytis blight, and verticillium wilt

11. NIGELLA

Nigella is native to Southern Europe, North Africa, South, and Southwest Asia as well as the Middle East with 18 species.

• Plant size – grows to about 2 feet tall and 1 foot wide depending on the variety
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 2 through 11
• Soil pH – 6.0 through 7.0
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full sun
• Blooming colors – blue and purple
• Bloom attracts – bees, butterflies, and hoverflies, and their larvae will eat aphids, thrips, and scale
• Foliage – thread-like lacy bright green leaves that look like the leaves of fennel.
• Pest – aphids, thrips, and whiteflies
• Deer resistant – yes

12. STOCK FLOWER

The stock flower is native to Europe and the Mediterranean area.

• Plant size – grows to about 3 feet tall
• U.S.D.A hardiness zone – 7 through 10
• Soil pH – 6.8 through 7.5
• Drought tolerant – yes
• Sun exposure – full sun
• Blooming colors – orange, purple, pink, blue, and white blooms that appear in spring and stay around into the late summer, with some varieties having double blooms
• Bloom attracts – bees and bees
• Foliage – lance-shaped green leaves
• Deer resistant – no
• Also known as – gillyflowers

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