Gardening Flowers Perennials Plan Your Garden with our Perennial Flowering Plants by Season Guide Use these perennial plant suggestions to have a progression of colors from spring to fall with bloom times that overlap each other. By Deb Wiley Deb Wiley Deb Wiley's goal as a writer and editor is to bring the joy of gardening to readers by cultivating their relationship to growing and planting. After 20 years as a newspaper reporter, Deb melded her lifelong passion for gardening with her writing and photography experience when she became the garden editor for Midwest Living magazine. Since starting her freelance career in 2008, she has been a highly sought-after writer, editor, and creative project manager for a wide range of magazines, books, and online garden articles. where she brings personal experience as well as deep connections to specialists in the world of horticulture. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on October 25, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Perennials are a must-have in your garden because of their ability to come back year after year, usually growing even stronger and more beautiful with age. But unlike annuals that can bloom non-stop for months, most perennials have a relatively short bloom season, lasting from just a few days to a few weeks. Nevertheless, you can still ensure plenty of flowers from your perennials if you plan your garden with plants by season to stagger bloom times. And don't be afraid to pack in the plants for the best color show. Where three or four types of annuals can brighten a bed all season long, you might need a dozen different perennials, so something is blooming from spring to fall. So start planning your continuously blooming garden by selecting a combination of these spring, summer, and fall-blooming perennials for sun and shade. Bleeding heart has beautiful flowers as well as foliage. Peter Krumhardt Spring Seasonal Perennials for Shade These spring flowers will brighten any shady area. These seasonal perennials are planted in low light, and they're low-maintenance. They also have a low risk of attracting pests. You can count on these early bloomers to kickstart your garden every spring. Barrenwort (Epimedium) Bleeding heart (Dicentra) Columbine (Aquilegia) Primrose (Primula) Foamflower (Tiarella) Bergenia Heart-leaf brunnera (Brunnera) Hellebore (Helleborus) Jacob's ladder (Polemonium) Lungwort (Pulmonaria) Viola Solomon's seal (Polygonatum) Candytuft produces masses of snowy white blooms. Denny Schrock Spring Seasonal Perennials for Sun Need a little something more to liven up your sunny space? These sun-loving perennials spring back year after year with dozens of blooms and beautiful color. Equipped for growing in the hot sun, many of these pretty perennials are also tough and drought-tolerant. Alpine clematis (Clematis alpina) Candytuft (Iberis) Creeping phlox (Phlox subulata) 'Crater Lake Blue' Veronica Dianthus Sea thrift (Ameria) Astilbe produces colorful wands of small flowers held above its foliage. Denny Schrock Late Spring to Early Summer Seasonal Perennials for Shade Say hello to the first summer days with these perennials that love the shade. Bright colors and lush foliage make for exciting accents in a cool corner spot. Park a bench near your shade garden, grab a book and relax with a view of your gorgeous perennials. Astilbe Coralbells (Heuchera) Meadow rue (Thalictrum) Foamy bells (X Heucherella) Lady's mantle (Alchemilla) Yellow corydalis (Corydalis lutea) Peonies come in an assortment of colors, including several shades of pink. Karla Conrad Late Spring to Early Summer Seasonal Perennials for Sun Sunny days and warm weather are made even better with plants that can beat the heat. There's plenty of variety among these low-maintenance early summer flowers, so choosing a few that fit into your dream garden plan should be easy. Bear's breeches (Acanthus) Baptisia Fleabane (Erigeron) Iris Lamb's-ear (Stachys) Peony (Paeonia) Geranium Salvia 'May Night' The soft purple flowers of catmint combine well with the pink blooms of bee balm in this garden. Peter Krumhardt Summer Seasonal Perennials for Sun When the heat starts to set in, it's time for hardy, drought-resistant perennials to take over. You've got dozens of choices for summer flowers that can beat the heat, so go ahead and plant as many as you can fit in your yard. Balloon flower (Platycodon) Bee balm (Monarda) Bellflower (Campanula) Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia) Blanketflower (Gaillardia) Blazing star (Liatris) Butterfly weed (Asclepias) Catmint (Nepeta) Coneflower (Echinacea) Crocosmia Delphinium Evening primrose (Oenothera) Dianthus Garden phlox (Phlox paniculata) Globe thistle (Echinops) Hardy hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos) Helenium Hollyhock (Alcea rosea) Hyssop (Agastache) Knautia Lavender (Lavandula) Lily (Lilium) Maltese cross (Lychnis chalcedonica) Meadowsweet (Filipendula) Mullein (Verbascum) Penstemon Pincushion flower (Scabiosa) Red-hot poker (Kniphofia) Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum) Veronica Yarrow (Achillea) Yucca Often grown for their attractive leaves, many varieties of hostas also have eye-catching flowers. Bob Stefko Summer Seasonal Perennials for Shade These perennials bloom in the summer but don't necessarily enjoy the sun's rays. Find a shady, cool spot in your garden for these low-maintenance plants. Astilbe Goatsbeard (Aruncus) Hosta Ligularia Lilyturf (Liriope) Lobelia Meadow rue (Thalictrum) Yellow corydalis (Corydalis lutea) Yellow waxbells (Kirengeshoma) When in bloom, Russian sage looks like a purple haze. John Strauss Late Summer and Early Fall Seasonal Perennials for Sun Summer is ending, but autumn is just around the corner. Feel the soft, cool breeze and smell the fresh scent of these beautiful fall flowers as the leaves start to turn. Add these colors to your space to help the summer season live on just a little longer. BHG / Sydney Saporito Aster Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia) Boltonia Chrysanthemum Coneflower (Echinacea) Gaura Hyssop (Agastache) Japanese anemone (Anemone japonica) Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium) Obedient plant (Physostegia) Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) Sedum Stokes' aster (Stokesia laevis) The dainty flowers of toad lily light up shade gardens in fall when not much else is in bloom. Denny Schrock Late Summer and Early Fall Seasonal Perennials for Shade Summer may be leaving, but these seasonal perennials will still thrive. So enjoy a few last blooms through the changing leaves with these shade-loving fall flowering plants. These seasonal perennials will perfectly complement a fall garden color palette. Bugbane (Actaea) Lobelia Toad lily (Tricyrtis) Yellow corydalis (Corydalis lutea) Yellow waxbells (Kirengeshoma) Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit