Perennials are a flower garden's backbone, providing beautiful color, texture and form. They are easy-care, dependable performers that come back every year. They also are: Uncommonly colorful thanks to foliage and/or flowers.
Perennials, on the other hand, live for three or more growing seasons. They are less work than annuals because they grow back each year from roots that go dormant in the winter. They will be around from year to year, so they put their energy into growing strong roots instead of growing lots of flowers like annuals do.
Unlike short-lived annuals (plants that complete their life cycle in a single year), perennials live for several years and require very little maintenance after initial planting. To help you achieve long-lasting beauty, we've rounded up the best perennial flowers and plants that bloom for at least two seasons.
The short answer is that annuals don't come back. Plants that flower and die in one season are annuals—although many will drop seeds that you can collect (or leave) to grow new plants in the spring.
Perennials live for more than one growing season. Unlike annuals, perennial plants go dormant in the winter and return the following year. Some perennial plants, like peonies, can be long-lived, returning for decades.
The only plants that don't go dormant during the winter are annuals, which are only capable of surviving for a single growing season, and must be replanted each year for continual enjoyment.
Japanese yew (Taxus cuspidata) is a good choice for an outdoor winter plant because it's an evergreen that keeps its leaves on its branches all winter long. It's drought-tolerant and thrives in both full and partial sun. Hardy to Zone 4, Japanese yews can survive harsh winters.
In ideal conditions, petunias can come back each year. But frost will kill these plants. Some gardeners have success overwintering petunia plants indoors. But most simply plant new petunias each spring.
Some Geraniums are long flowering and will flower right from June to frosts. This type of Geranium will come back year after year, although the herbaceous varieties will disappear over winter and regrow in the spring.
About Zinnias
Zinnias are annuals, so they'll grow for one season to produce flowers and seeds, but the original plant will not come back in subsequent years. They have bright, solitary, daisy-like flowerheads on a single, erect stem, which makes them great for use as a cutting flower or as food for butterflies.
“Selaginella lepidophylla is a botanical wonder known for its ability to seemingly come back to life again and again–even after completely drying out,” notes retailer Pistils Nursery. “We've hidden a crystal deep inside this mysterious desert plant.
The Perennial Plant Association has named 'American Gold Rush' black-eyed Susan its Perennial Plant of the Year for 2023. A hybrid between several species of Rudbeckia, 'American Gold Rush' is an easy grower with a compact habit, long late-summer bloom time and foliage that stays healthy.
Lavender is a perennial so it will come back every year as long as you care for it properly, which includes giving it plenty of sun, a little bit of water, and a lot of love. If all of its needs are met, you can expect your lavender plant to bloom every year, for about three to five years.
Lavender is a perennial herb in many areas - that is, perennial if it gets really good drainage. Growing in a pot is an ideal way to provide good drainage. However, if the potting mix is extremely fertile, the plant may grow leaves and stems rather than flowering.
The agave americana plant is known as a century plant because it typically blooms once every 100 years at the end of its life cycle.
' You can treat geraniums like annuals, digging up the plants in fall and composting them and replacing them with new plants the following year. However, given the right care and treatment, you can winterize geraniums, keeping them alive over winter ready to flourish again the following year.
The average life expectancy of a geranium is about two years, and although they will last much longer than that, they tend to get woody and the blooms diminish. Luckily, propagation is easy with geraniums. Simply take four-inch stem tip cuttings with at least two pairs of healthy leaves.
Annual geraniums (Pelargonium hybrids) are amazing — they grow and bloom beautifully from spring to frost without a lot of fuss. Then you dig them up in fall, put them in a cardboard box or a paper bag to store over winter and these tough little plants will take off and grow again the following spring.
Are Impatiens a Perennial? Impatiens are technically a perennial, but only in USDA growing zones 10 and 11. This plant is sensitive to cold weather, and it's not a deal-breaker, but Impatiens do well in humid environments. This plant can live in drier climates, but it will need help in the form of frequent watering.
If you don't remove the base of the flower, you'll end up with a dried seed pod instead of a new bloom. You don't need to cut off much of the petunia stems, but if they look ratty, you can cut the stems below the flower and above green, healthy-looking foliage.
Actually, both! Most marigolds are annuals, but a few are perennials. Marigolds self-seed so they may appear to be a perennial when in reality, they are just coming back from seed.
Fiberglass, lead, iron, heavy plastic, and stone are the best weather-resistant containers to use; terra-cotta will eventually expand and crack with repeated freezing and thawing.