Perennial borders: choosing plants

Top five robust perennials

Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all year round, while less hardy types need protection over winter. The term herbaceous perennial is used to describe long-lived plants without a permanent woody structure (they die back to ground level each autumn), distinguishing them from trees, shrubs and sub-shrubs. :

With such a wide range of perennials

Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all year round, while less hardy types need protection over winter. The term herbaceous perennial is used to describe long-lived plants without a permanent woody structure (they die back to ground level each autumn), distinguishing them from trees, shrubs and sub-shrubs. to choose from, the task may seem insurmountable. Our list should well help with ideas for plants for specific conditions as well as giving a guide to flowering times. Some may start flowering earlier than the month indicated, depending on season, area and situation. Similarly, others may continue blooming well into the following months. In a mild autumn, colour could be maintained through to October.

• Planting in September or March is ideal, but most container grown plants can be planted any time the soil is not frozen or waterlogged
  Describes soil or potting compost that is saturated with water. The water displaces air from the spaces between soil particles and plant roots can literally drown, unless they are adapted to growing in waterlogged conditions. Waterlogging is common on poorly drained soil or when heavy soil is compacted.
• Avoid planting slightly tender plants in autumn – wait until March
• Ensure the area to be planted is free of perennial weeds before planting
• If the area has not been planted before, dig in or rotovate 1 to 2 bucketfuls per sq m of well-rotted farmyard manure or garden compost
  Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own.
• After planting, apply a 5-7cm (2-3in) layer of the above organic matter to the whole border, keeping the crowns of plants clear to avoid risk of rotting

An indication of flower colour is given as a broad grouping and is intended as a guide only:-

Key:
a White or cream flowers
b Yellow or orange flowers
c Red or pink flowers
d Blue or mauve flowers

AGM Denotes plants which have received the Society's Award of Garden Merit.

May

Aurinia saxatilis(syn. Alyssum saxatile) AGM (b)
Anchusa azurea ‘Loddon Royalist’ (d)
Bergenia cordifolia (c)
Brunnera macrophyllaAGM (d)
Crambe cordifoliaAGM (a)
Lamprocapnos spectabilisAGM (c)
Doronicum ‘Little Leo’ (b)
Eremurus stenophyllusAGM , E. robustus AGM (a)
Euphorbia griffithii ‘Dixter’ AGM, E. myrsinitesAGM, E. characias subsp. wulfenii(b)
Geranium macrorrhizum ‘Ingwersens Variety' AGM, G. renardiiAGM (c)
Geum ‘Mrs J. Bradshaw’ AGM (c), G. ‘Lady Stratheden’ AGM (b)
Lamium maculatum ‘White Nancy’ (a),L. ‘Beacon Silver’ (c)
Libertia chilensis Formosa Group (a)
Polygonatum × hybridumAGM (a)
Pulmonaria saccharata ‘Mrs Moon’ (c)
Ranunculus aconitifolius ‘Flore Pleno’ AGM (a)
Saponaria ocymoidesAGM (c)
Tiarella cordifoliaAGM (a)
Trollius chinensis ‘Golden Queen’ AGM, T. × cultorum ‘Orange Princess’ AGM (b)
Veronica austriaca subsp. teucrium ‘Royal Blue’ AGM (d), V. gentianoides(d)

June

Acanthus spinosus (d)
Achillea ptarmica (The Pearly Group) ‘The Pearl’ (a), A. ‘Coronation Gold’ (b)
Ajuga reptans ‘Burgundy Glow’, A. ‘Multicolor’ (d)
Alchemilla mollis AGM (b)
Alstroemeria aurea(A. aurantiaca) (b)
Anthemis tinctoria ‘E.C. Buxton’ (a)
Astrantia major(a/c), A. maximaAGM (c)
Campanula portenschlagianaAGM (d), C. poscharskyana 'Stella' AGM (d), C. persicifolia(a/d), C. latifolia ‘Alba’ (a), C. lactiflora ‘Prichard’s Variety' AGM (d)
Centaurea dealbata ‘Steenbergii’ (c)
Centranthus ruber var. coccineus(c)
Coreopsis grandiflora ‘Early Sunrise’ AGM (b)
Delphinium ‘Galahad’ (a), D. King Arthur Group (d)
Dianthus (Allwoodii Group)‘Doris’ AGM (c), D. ‘Mrs Sinkins’ (a)
Dictamnus albus var. purpureusAGM (c)
Echinops ritroAGM (d)
Erigeron 'Dunkelste Aller' (d)
Geranium × oxonianum ‘Wargrave Pink’ (c), G. ‘Johnson’s Blue’ (d), G. sanguineum(c), G. sanguineum ‘Album’ AGM (a)
Heuchera villosa ‘Palace Purple’ (a), H. cylindrica ‘Greenfinch’ (a), H. ‘Red Spangles’ (c)
Iris ‘Party Dress’ (c)
Leucanthemum × superbum ‘Wirral Supreme’ AGM (a)
Lysimachia punctata(b)
Oenothera macrocarpa(syn. O. missouriensis) AGM (b)
Paeonia lactiflora ‘ Duchess de Nemours’ AGM (a), P. lactiflora ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ AGM (c)
Papaver ‘Perry’s White’ (a), P. ‘Aglaja’ AGM (c)
Penstemon barbatus ‘Coccineus’ (c)
Potentilla ‘Gibson’s Scarlet’ AGM (c), P. nepalensis ‘Miss Willmott’ (c)
Rheum palmatum ‘Rubrum’ (c)
Salvia × sylvestris ‘Mainacht’ AGM (d), S. nemorosa ‘Caradonna’
Sisyrinchium striatum(b)
Stachys byzantina(c)
Thalictrum aquilegiifolium(d)
Tradescantia (Andersoniana Group) 'Osprey' (d) and other cultivars
Verbascum (Cotswold Group) ‘Cotswold Beauty’ AGM, V. (Cotswold Group)‘Gainsborough’ AGM (b)
Veronica austriaca subsp. teucrium ‘Crater Lake Blue’ AGM (d)

July

Aconitum ‘Bressingham Spire’ AGM (d)
Agapanthus campanulatus var. albidus(a)
Catananche caerulea ‘Major’ AGM (d), C. caerulea ‘Alba’ (a)
Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ AGM (c)
Dictamnus albus var. purpureus AGM (c)
Echinacea purpurea(c)
Eryngium × oliveranumAGM, E. variifolium(d)
Galega × hartlandii ‘Lady Wilson’ AGM (d), G. × hartlandii ‘Alba’ AGM (a)
Gypsophila paniculata ‘Bristol Fairy’ (a)
Helenium ‘Butterpat’ AGM (b)
Helianthus ‘Loddon Gold’ AGM (b)
Heliopsis helianthoides var. scabra ‘Goldgefieder’ (b)
Hemerocallis ‘Golden Chimes’ (b), H. ‘Pink Damask’ (c), H. ‘Stafford’ AGM (c)
Hosta e.g. H. ‘Royal Standard’ AGM (d)
Hylotelephium spectabile (Brilliant Group)‘Brilliant’ (syn. Sedum spectabile (Brilliant Group)‘Brilliant’) AGM (c), H. ‘Ruby Glow’ (syn. Sedum ‘Ruby Glow’) AGM (c)
Iris ‘Perry’s Blue’ (d)
Kniphofia ‘Royal Standard’ AGM (b)
Liatris spicata ‘Kobold’ (d)
Ligularia przewalskii, L. dentata ‘Desdemona’ (b)
Limonium latifolium (d)
Lychnis chalcedonicaAGM (c)
Lysimachia punctata(b)
Lythrum salicaria ‘Feuerkerze’ (syn. ‘Firecandle’) AGM (c)
Monarda ‘Croftway Pink’, M. ‘Cambridge Scarlet’ (c)
Oenothera fruticosa ‘Fyrverkeri’ (syn. ‘Fireworks’) AGM (b)
Physostegia virginiana ‘Summer Snow’ AGM (a)
Platycodon grandiflorus 'Mariesii' AGM (d)
Prunella grandiflora ‘Loveliness’ (c)
Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii 'Goldsturm' (b)
Salvia sclarea var. turkestanica 'Vatican Pink' (d)
Scabiosa caucasica ‘Miss Willmott’ AGM (a), S. ‘Clive Greaves’ AGM(d)
Sedum ‘Coral Carpet’
Sidalcea ‘Croftway Red’, S. ‘Rose Queen’ (c)
Solidago ‘Goldenmosa’ AGM (b)
Stokesia ‘Blue Star’ (d)
Veronicastrum virginicum ‘Album’ AGM (a)

August

Actaea cordifolia (a/c)
Anaphalis triplinervisAGM (a)
Anemone × hybrida cultivars (a/c)
Ceratostigma plumbaginoidesAGM (d)
Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ AGM (c)
Persicaria affinis,P. affinis ‘Superba’ AGM, P. affinis ‘Darjeeling Red’ AGM (c)
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae 'Andenken an Alma Pötschke'
Zauschneria californica ‘Dublin’ AGM (c)

September

Aster thomsonii ‘Nanus’ (d)
Aster × frikartii ‘Mönch’ AGM (d)
Hesperantha coccinea 'Major' AGM (c)
Hylotelephium(Herbstfreude Group) 'Herbstfreude' (syn. Sedum (Herbstfreude Group) 'Herbstfreude') AGM (c)
Liriope muscariAGM (d)
Nerine bowdeniiAGM (c)

Some herbaceous perennials for dry shade

Ajuga reptans ‘Variegata’ (d), A. reptans ‘Multicolor’ (d), A. reptans f. albiflora 'Alba' (a)
Alchemilla mollis AGM (b)
Bergenia cordifolia ‘Purpurea’ AGM, B. 'Ballawley' clonal (c)
Brunnera macrophylla AGM (d)
Lamium maculatum (c)
Liriope muscari AGM (d)
Pulmonaria angustifolia AGM, P. officinalis, P. saccharata Argentea Group (c)
Salvia nemorosa ‘Ostfriesland’ AGM (c/d)
Salvia × sylvestris ‘Mainacht’ AGM (d)

Some herbaceous perennials for moist shade

Alchemilla mollis AGM (c)
Aruncus dioicus AGM (a)
Astilbe 'Deutschland' (japonica hybrid) (a), A. (× arendsii) ‘Fanal’ AGM
Caltha palustris ‘Flore Pleno’ (b)
Darmera peltataAGM (c)
Filipendula ulmaria ‘Aurea’ (a)
Gunnera manicata(a)
Helleborus niger, H. foetidusAGM (a)
Hosta ‘Royal Standard’ AGM (d)
Ligularia przewalskii(b), L. ‘Gregynog Gold’ AGM (b)
Lythrum salicaria ‘The Beacon’ (c)
Monarda ‘Cambridge Scarlet’ AGM (c), M. ‘Croftway Pink’ AGM (c)
Persicaria affinis ‘Darjeeling Red’ AGM (c)
Trollius × cultorum ‘Alabaster’ (a), Trollius × cultorum 'Goldquelle' AGM (b), T. cultorum

Some herbaceous perennials for dry sites in full sun

Acanthus spinosus(d)
Achillea(a/b)
Agapanthus(milder areas) (d) or (a)
Anaphalis triplinervisAGM (a)
Aurinia saxatilisAGM (b)
Bergenia cordifolia(c)
Catananche caerulea(d)
Centaurea dealbata(c)
Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ AGM(c)
Dianthus ‘Memories’ (a)
Euphorbia myrsinitesAGM, E. characias subsp. wulfenii(b)
Geranium ‘Johnson’s Blue’ (d), G. × oxonianum ‘Wargrave Pink’(c), G. Rozanne = 'Gerwat' AGM
Hylotelephium spectabile(syn. Sedum spectabile) (c),H.(Herbstfreude Group) 'Herbstfreude' (syn. Sedum (Herbstfreude Group) 'Herbstfreude') AGM (c),H. ‘Ruby Glow’ (syn. Sedum ‘Ruby Glow’) AGM (c)
Iris germanicacultivars (b/d)
Kniphofiacultivars (c)
Oenothera fruticosa 'Fyrverkeri’ (b)
Penstemon ‘Schoenholzeri’ (syn. ‘Firebird’) AGM (c), P. ‘Evelyn’ AGM (d)
Potentilla ‘Gibson’s Scarlet’ AGM (c)
Solidago (b)
Stachys byzantina(d)
Viola ‘Huntercombe Purple’ AGM (d)