Gardening Flowers Perennials 19 Perennial Cutting Flowers to Fill Your Vases All Season Long By Nicole Bradley Nicole Bradley Nicole Bradley is a Jane-of-all-trades when it comes to lifestyle writing. Skilled in understanding the ins and outs of home improvement and gardening, she is a former editor at Better Homes & Gardens. She has written about pets, beauty, and other lifestyle topics. In addition, she optimized SEO word content, a skill that came in handy when she took on her current job as an SEO editor for HomeTalk.Nicole graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in journalism and mass communication and a certificate in entrepreneurial management. Her first job was as a copyeditor at The Daily Iowan, where she fact-checked and monitored the sports and politics pages. Moving on to Putnam Media, she worked to produce business-to-business content and transcribed interviews.Later on, she became the founder and editorial director of Spoon University, responsible for recruiting over 20 employees before coming to Better Homes & Gardens. Her work for Kansas City Magazine allowed her to appear on Fox 4 news segments and produce news stories. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on August 25, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos You can snip a fresh bouquet to arrange in your favorite vase all season long when you plant these beautiful perennials in your cutting garden. They'll brighten your home, as well as your landscape, year after year. 01 of 19 Blazing Star Marty Baldwin A North American prairie native that attracts butterflies, blazing star (Liatris spicata) produces spikes of white, rose, or purple flowers in summer. This sturdy, drought-tolerant perennial adds a vertical accent to a garden, and the cut blooms even dry well. Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-9 02 of 19 Coreopsis Marty Baldwin Also known as tickseed, coreopsis produces daisy-like, 2-inch blooms in shades of yellow, orange, and rusty red throughout the summer. This easy-to-grow native perennial isn't picky about soil. It grows in poor, shallow, chalky, or dry conditions. Plus, it draws pollinators and resists deer. Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 5 feet tall and to 3 feet wide Zones: 3-9 03 of 19 Perennial Salvia Lynn Karlin This salvia is a wonderfully long bloomer: It starts flowering in early summer and continues through early autumn if you keep cutting off the faded flowers. Its long, slender clusters of blooms are great for filling in bare spots in flower arrangements. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 4-9 Buy It: 'Bumblebee' Salvia ($16, Bluestone Perennials) 04 of 19 Yarrow Bob Stefko Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is one of the best perennials for cut flowers. Its stiff blooms also work well for long-lasting, dried arrangements. In the garden, yarrow is one of the most maintenance-free plants you can grow: It resists drought, heat, deer, and rabbits, and is also a blooming machine, producing flat-topped clusters of yellow, orange, red, pink, or white flowers (depending on variety) throughout the summer. Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and wide Zones: 3-9 Buy It: Achillea 'Sassy Summer Sunset' ($19, Jackson & Perkins) 05 of 19 Garden Phlox Kim Cornelison Garden phlox is a perennial garden favorite. It produces large clusters of fragrant flowers from summer to early fall. It has few rivals for its colorful floral display and light, sweet fragrance, and it attracts all kinds of butterflies and other pollinators. It's well-suited for the back of borders and in cottage gardens. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide Zones: 3-8 Buy It: 'Goliath' Tall Phlox ($26, The Home Depot) 06 of 19 Japanese Anemone Greg Ryan Fill your late-summer and fall garden with cheery anemone blooms. This vigorous perennial produces clusters of silky, shallow-cupped, white, rose, or pink flowers with yellow buttonlike centers, surrounded by a halo of yellow stamens. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and wide Zones: 4-8 07 of 19 Lily Jay Wilde Popular in florist shops, lilies such as 'Stargazer' are some of the most stunning flowers for a cutting garden. Their star-shaped blooms appear in several shades, from pink and red to orange, yellow, and bi-colors. Many varieties also add a sweet fragrance to your garden (and your bouquet!). Just beware if you have cats: all parts of lilies are lethally poisonous to them. Test Garden Tip: Extend the show by growing different varieties. Asiatic lilies, for example, bloom in early to mid-summer; orienpet hybrids bloom in mid to late summer. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3-8 feet tall and 12 inches wide Zones: 3-9 Buy It: 'Stargazer' Lily Bulbs (from $20, Etsy) 08 of 19 Clustered Bellflower Stephen Cridland Much like the name suggests, clustered bellflower produces showy, bell-shaped flowers that come in shades of blue, purple, and pink. These perennials usually bloom for several weeks in summer, and the cut flowers can last for a week or more in the vase. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and wide Zones: 3-8 Buy It: 50 'Blue Uniform' Bellflower Seeds ($3, Swallowtail Garden Seeds) 09 of 19 Purple Coneflower David Speer Purple coneflower is easy to grow and provides a steady stream of summer's prettiest blooms. This native perennial has an abundance of daisy-like flowers from midsummer to the first fall frost, which often attract butterflies and other pollinators. Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-9 Buy It: Cheyenne Spirit Coneflower ($15, Michigan Bulb Co.) 10 of 19 Bearded Iris George Chappell The stiff, sword-shaped leaves of bearded iris provide a striking vertical accent in the garden, but the flowers are easily the showiest part of this plant. Their colors run the rainbow from deep burgundy red to pastel pinks and yellows to every shade of blue and violet and begin appearing in late spring. Some varieties even have multicolored blooms. Test Garden Tip: Look for reblooming iris varieties. They put on a spring show and often flower again in fall. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-9 Buy It: Reblooming Bearded Iris Collection ($85, Breck's) 11 of 19 Peony Blaine Moats Often sweetly fragrant, peony is a very long-living plant that forms 2- to 4-foot-tall clumps of leaves. Numerous varieties offer a wide range of flower colors and blooming periods from late spring to early summer. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide Zones: 3-8 Buy It: 'Riches and Fame' Peony ($40, Breck's) 12 of 19 Lady's Mantle Janet Mesic-Mackie They may not be the showiest flowers around, but lady's mantle's frothy, chartreuse blooms work very well for rounding out a perennial cut flower homegrown bouquet. This easy-care plant blooms in early summer and goes with seemingly everything. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 2 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 4-7 Buy It: Lady's Mantle ($14, White Flower Farm) 13 of 19 New England Aster Greg Ryan Sprays of beautiful New England asters are a must for fall bouquets. These perennials have daisy-like flowers in shades of pink, purple, blue, and white. Smaller selections make great fillers in a flower arrangement. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide Zones: 3-9 14 of 19 Bee Balm Peter Krumhardt With dramatic, colorful blooms atop tall stems, bee balm is the perfect perennial for filling your vases in summer. You can find cultivars in red, pink, lavender, violet, or white. Plus, these flowers are a favorite of hummingbirds and butterflies. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-9 Buy It: 'Jacob Cline' Bee Balm ($17, White Flower Farm) 15 of 19 Obedient Plant Clint Farlinger Use obedient plant's tall, pink or white flower spikes to bulk up your bouquets. This easy-growing wildflower earned its name because you can bend the individual flowers to face different directions. Growing Conditions: Part shade to full sun in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 4 feet tall and indefinitely wide Zones: 2-8 Buy It: Crystal Peak White Obedient Plant ($11, High Country Gardens) 16 of 19 Coralbells Peter Krumhardt Beginning in late spring, airy wands of small, bell-shaped blooms appear over the colorful foliage of coralbells. Depending on the variety, the flowers can be bright red, pink, or white, making perfect fillers between bigger blooms. Growing Conditions: Full shade to full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and 30 inches wide Zones: 3-9 17 of 19 Crocosmia Bill Stites Add a unique touch to your favorite flower arrangements with crocosmia. This gladiolus relative bears clusters of bold red, orange, or yellow flowers on the ends of long, gracefully arching stems. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in moist, well-drained soil Size: Grows to 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide Zones: 6-9 Buy It: 'Erika' Crocosmia ($9, Easy to Grow Bulbs) 18 of 19 Blanket Flower Denny Schrock This heat- and drought-tolerant native perennial can provide long-lasting color in a sunny cutting garden. Blanket flower doesn't mind poor soil, either. Its daisy-like, 3-inch wide, single or double flowers bloom throughout the summer and fall. Pollinators love it, too. Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil Size: Grows to 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-8 Buy It: 'Goblin' Blanket Flower ($15, Breck's) 19 of 19 Veronica Andrew Drake This easy-to-grow plant comes in various sizes, from low-growing groundcovers to taller types that are ideal for cutting. Deadhead it diligently, and veronica may be one of the longest-blooming perennials in your garden. Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil Size: Grows 2 feet tall and wide Zones: 3-8 Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit