Gardening Flowers Perennials 24 Beautiful Flowering Plants That Will Grow in Wet Soil These colorful perennial plants need constant moisture and some will even grow in standing water. By Andrea Beck Andrea Beck Andrea Beck served as garden editor at BHG and her work has appeared on Food & Wine, Martha Stewart, MyRecipes, and more. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on January 19, 2023 Reviewed by Sylvia Duax Reviewed by Sylvia Duax Sylvia Duax has over 15 years of experience as a professional Horticulturist with expertise in: sustainable garden maintenance techniques; Southeastern U.S., especially in the mid-Atlantic regional gardening; native plants; wildlife gardening; small space, urban and container gardening and community engagement. Learn about BHG's Gardening Review Board Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Lynn Karlin You can fight with a spot that tends to stay soggy in your yard, or you can turn it into an eye-catching landscape feature by planting perennials that love lots of moisture. The following plants for wet soil even sweeten the deal by producing colorful flowers. Plant a mix of these options to transform a previous problem area into a beautiful focal point in your garden. 01 of 24 Canna Marty Baldwin Add tropical flair to your landscape with canna. This bold plant has huge leaves and spikes of bright red, yellow, orange, or pink flowers. In cold-winter regions, dig up and store canna rhizomes in a frost-free place over winter and replant them the following spring, or grow them in containers to make storing the rhizomes easier. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist soil, or water regularly in normal garden soil Size: Tall varieties can reach 8 feet, but dwarf varieties stay under 2 feet tall Zones: 8-10 02 of 24 Turtlehead Dean Schoeppner Getting its name from the distinct shape of the individual blossoms, turtlehead blooms in late summer. It's an adaptable perennial plant that can thrive in soggy soil, but can also tolerate drought. Over time, it spreads to form a dense clump, but it's not usually aggressive. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 4-9 03 of 24 Joe Pye Weed Marty Baldwin The rosy blooms produced by Joe Pye weed are gorgeous in the late summer, and so are the butterflies it's sure to attract. This tall native plant is perfect for adding height to your garden. Anchor it by growing shorter moisture-loving perennial flowers in front of it. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist, well-drained soil Size: Up to 8 feet tall Zones: 3-10 04 of 24 Siberian Iris Doug Hetherington Blooming at the end of spring, Siberian iris has thin, grassy foliage and slender blossoms that give it graceful elegance. Although bearded irises need good drainage, Siberian and Japanese irises will grow in shallow standing water or poorly drained soil. Growing Conditions: Full sun in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 4 feet tall Zones: 3-9 05 of 24 Fiber-Optic Grass Janet Mesic One of the most unusual ornamental grasses, fiber-optic grass has thin, gracefully arching leaves that look almost like fiber-optic wires splaying from a junction box. Its tiny, light-colored blooms may not be very showy, but they do almost seem to glow on the ends of stems. Grow it as an annual in Northern gardens, or bring it indoors as a houseplant. Growing Condition: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 12 inches tall Zones: 10-11 06 of 24 Ligularia Peter Krumhardt The yellow spires of 'Rocket' ligularia bring a bright burst of color to shady spots in mid-summer. When planted in a row, ligularia can form a hedge with its large, heart-shape leaves. This bold perennial needs constant moisture to keep it from wilting, especially if it gets afternoon sun. Growing Conditions: Part shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 4 feet tall Zones: 4-9 07 of 24 Cardinal Flower Richard Hirneisen Hummingbirds can't resist cardinal flower's bright red blooms. Available with either green or bronze foliage, this native plant is perfectly at home along a stream or backyard pond. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 4 feet tall Zones: 3-9 08 of 24 Golden Creeping Jenny Laurie Black Photography Cover the ground with 'Aurea' creeping Jenny's striking chartreuse foliage and bright yellow blooms. It climbs beautifully over rocks as long as its roots stay moist, so tuck it into crannies along streams or waterfalls. Growing Conditions: Full sun, part sun, or shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 4-9 Note: Creeping Jenny is considered an invasive species in some regions of the country, particularly the Northeast. 09 of 24 Forget-Me-Not Peter Krumhardt Especially when it's grown at the edge of a pond or other body of water, forget-me-not forms a delicate-looking cloud of light blue or purple color in early spring. This short-lived perennial typically self-seeds in the garden, and can pop up here and there throughout your yard (though you can prevent it from spreading by deadheading the faded blooms). Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 12 inches tall Zones: 3-8 10 of 24 Japanese Primrose Bryan E. McCay A spring-blooming perennial, Japanese primrose produces clusters of pink, white, magenta or red blooms on long flower stalks. Some of the flowers also have a dark eye in the center, which can make them look two-tone. It does best in cool-summer areas. Growing Conditions: Part shade in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 2 feet tall Zones: 2-8 11 of 24 Spiderwort Stephen Cridland 'Sweet Kate' spiderwort is one of the most eye-catching perennials in the garden, thanks to its neon yellow-green leaves and cobalt-blue blossoms. This native plant is very adaptable, and can thrive in almost any spot in your garden. Growing Conditions: Full sun, part sun, or shade in consistently moist soil (can also tolerate drier soils, too) Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 4-11 12 of 24 Calla Lily Marty Baldwin Graceful callas come in a dizzying array of colors including pink, white, orange, red, bronze, yellow, or maroon. The long-lasting flowers are excellent for cutting, and they add elegance to any bouquet. If you're growing them in a colder region, you'll need to dig up the rhizomes in fall and store them in a frost-free place, then replant in the spring. Growing Conditions: Full sun, part sun, or shade in rich, consistently moist soil Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 7-10 Note: Calla lilies are invasive in warmer areas such as California and Hawaii. 13 of 24 Sedge Denny Schrock Although it does flower, 'Sparkler' palm sedge is grown more for its showy foliage. This variety is one of the dozens of grasslike plants in the sedge family. Virtually all love moist to wet soils, and they also like growing in shady areas too (making them good problem-solving perennials). They also make an attractive low-growing ornamental groundcover. Growing Conditions: Shade, part sun, or full sun in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 5-9 14 of 24 Marsh Marigold John Noltner Just like you'd expect from a plant called marsh marigold, this perennial produces cheery yellow blooms and loves constantly moist or even wet soil. Its springtime blooms contrast nicely with the shiny, dark green leaves and will brighten up boggy areas of your yard. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist or boggy soil Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 3-7 15 of 24 Papyrus Lynn Karlin You don't have to live on the Nile River to enjoy papyrus. This heat-loving tropical perennial has graceful stems topped by an umbrella of narrow leaves. Papyrus also develops small greenish-brown flowers from midsummer until fall. In cold winter areas in the north, grow papyrus in pots and bring the plants indoors before your first frost. Move the plants back outdoors when the weather warms. Growing Conditions: Full sun in wet soil or shallow water Size: Up to 5 feet tall Zones: 9-10 16 of 24 Meadowsweet Peter Krumhardt With pink, fluffy, cotton-candy blooms topping 5-foot-tall stems, meadowsweet looks like supersized astilbe. This plant is also known as queen-of-the-prairie, a fitting name for this Midwest native. It grows best in full sun, but it tolerates some shade. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shadein moist, well-drained soil Size: Up to 5 feet tall Zones: 3-8 17 of 24 Swamp Milkweed Lynn Karlin With a name like swamp milkweed, you know this plant loves wet soil, but it'll also grow in drier sites. Like its close cousin, orange butterfly weed, swamp milkweed attracts monarchs and other butterflies. Growing Conditions: Full sun in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 8 feet tall Zones: 3-9 18 of 24 Hardy Hibiscus Dean Schoeppner Create all-summer drama with hardy hibiscus's dinner-plate size blooms in shades of white, pink, and red. Although hardy hibiscus prefers moist soil, it also can withstand extended drought, making it an easy-care perennial flower for sunny sites. Growing Conditions: Full sun in consistently moist soil Size: Up to 8 feet tall Zones: 4-9 19 of 24 Obedient Plant Jane Milliman No matter which angle you position them on the stem, the blooms of obedient plant stay in place, earning its name. This native perennial isn't always obedient in the garden, spreading quickly to form a large clump in wet or dry soils. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained, consistently moist soil Size: Up to 8 feet tall Zones: 3-9 20 of 24 Japanese Iris Laurie Black Wet, acidic soil is the perfect environment for Japanese iris. These tall, elegant perennials are available in single, double, and peony-flower forms in shades of blue, pink, white, lavender, or violet. In June and July, they produce spectacular 6-inch-wide blooms. Japanese iris prefers to have its roots in shallow water but will survive on higher ground as long as the soil stays moist. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in moist soil, or water frequently Size: Up to 4 feet tall Zones: 4-9 21 of 24 Pickerel Weed Denny Schrock Ideal for shallow, standing water, pickerel weed develops pretty spikes of pale blue flowers from June through October. Pickerel weed is a native plant that grows 2-4 feet tall with large, arrowhead-shape leaves. It forms thick clumps; if you don't want the plants to spread, grow them in containers and sink the pots at the water's edge. The flowers are also attractive to butterflies. Growing Conditions: Full sun in wet soil (ideally on the edge of a pond), in 3 to 5 inches of standing water Size: Up to 4 feet tall Zones: 3-10 22 of 24 Corkscrew Rush Denny Schrock One of the most interesting members of the rush family, corkscrew rush develops dark green, twisted, and spiraled foliage making it a great choice for moist landscapes or container gardens. The plants grow 10-12 inches tall and produce small white flowers in the summer. Corkscrew rush spreads slowly by underground rhizomes, so plant it in pots if you want to keep it contained. In the north, the plants will die back to the ground in the winter, but will remerge in the spring. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in wet soil, or water frequently Size: Up to 12 inches tall Zones: 5-11 23 of 24 Swamp Sunflower Denny Schrock A tough-as-nails native perennial, swamp sunflower is covered with hundreds of bright yellow, daisylike flowers in the late summer and fall. Swamp sunflower is a bushy giant of a plant, growing 5-8 feet tall by 4 feet wide. The variety 'Low Down', shown here, is a dwarf form that grows only 18 inches tall. Growing Conditions: Full sun in consistently moist soil, or water frequently Size: Up to 8 feet tall Zones: 6-9 24 of 24 Horsetail Marty Baldwin If you are looking for a no-work native perennial for a wet area, consider horsetail (Equisetum hyemale). It's prized for its stiff, upright, bamboolike, dark green, segmented stems. Horsetail, also commonly called scouring rush, grows quickly by underground runners in moist soil or shallow water. It can spread aggressively, so make sure to keep it contained. Growing Conditions: Full sun, part shade, or shade in wet soil or standing water Size: Up to 3 feet tall Zones: 4-9 Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit