What this spring needs is some color! And with the right perennials showing off in your landscape, you can offer that splash of brilliant cheer everyone’s looking for to brighten the day. If bold, reliable color is the goal, take a look at some of our most vivid blooms for spring and early summer.
Perennial Salvia
Salvia starts as a neat clump of dense, dark green foliage, then shoots up dozens of floral spikes in vivid shades of purple, rose, and white. For something even more striking, check out the cultivar ‘Caradonna’ with its dark purple stems and contrasting bright green leaves. With salvia, the first flush of late-spring blooms is its best display, but after it fades, a haircut encourages a second round of beautiful blooms. Salvia loves the sun and the heat too – and the butterflies love the blooms right back.
Dianthus
Another sunny favorite for passing butterflies, dianthus also attracts attention from anyone in eyesight of its abundant, brightly colored blooms in shades of pink, red, and coral. If you can find the foliage under all those clove-scented flowers, you’ll enjoy its feathery texture and silvery, blue-green color too. Dianthus is a classic choice for sun-drenched cottage gardens, but it adds neat, dense mounds of color to more contemporary-styled beds too.
Siberian Iris
Iris are some of the most well-known and loved garden blooms, but the standard-sized bearded iris can take up a lot of space in the landscape. If something smaller is what you need, thankfully there’s the Siberian iris – a shorter, more compact iris that makes a big splash of color this time of year too. Like all iris, the blooms of Siberian iris are intricate and interesting. Each flower is made up of three upright petals – called standards – and three “falls,” or downward cascading sepals. The blooms on Siberian iris are neat and dainty and go along perfectly with the narrow, grass-like foliage that stays a nice, attractive clump even after the blooms have gone. In our collection, look for the cultivar ‘Caesar’s Brother,’ with its rich, velvety, violet blooms.
Gaillardia
Brilliant, glowing gaillardia – often called blanket flower – is the perennial bloomer you need for that hot, dry spot in your landscape. Once established, gaillardia will thrive if you just leave it alone with minimal water and next to no fertilizer. The abundant, daisy-like blooms are long-lasting and often banded in multiple shades of fiery red, orange, and gold. In our collection, look for the cultivars ‘Arizona Sun,’ ‘Arizona Apricot,’ and ‘Arizona Red Shades’ to get the full spectrum.
Bold, Show-Stopping Blooms
If you’re looking for something to bring the color, these plants don’t mess around. Come visit our Nursery Yard and see which one catches your eye. Or, if you’re not sure which one to choose, just ask one of the team. We’ll be glad to answer any questions, provide planting tips, or just share why we love all these amazing spring and summer bloomers.
