best perennials for long blooms, long life

Perennials don’t live forever

The perfect hardy perennial would bloom all summer and live forever.

Since that doesn't happen, many of us try to maximize what we get from perennials by choosing plants that bloom for long periods. And to save money and time, we prefer they have a very long life.

This list is not meant to be all inclusive by any means, but every hardy perennial here is considered to have a long bloom period and long life. Care habits and conditions in your garden can certainly affect both blooming and life, so if something on the list dies in your garden, it could have something to do with soil, sun, wind conditions or care habits. And be sure to check hardiness in your zone, but you will find most of these to be hardy for most of the midwest and north.

Perennials the live long and are long blooming, listed by botanical name, common name included:

• Achillea - Yarrow

• Ageratum - Foss Flower

• Allium - Flowering Onion

• Anemone - Wind Flower

• Aquilegia - Columbine

• Campanula - Canterbury bells and Clips

• Chrysanthemums - Mums

• Coreopsis - Tickseed

• Delphinium - Larkspur

• Dianthus - Pinks

• Dicentra - Bleeding Heart

• Doronicum - Leopard's Bane

• Echinacea - Coneflower

• Gaillardia - Blanket Flower

• Geranium - Cranesbill

• Gypsophilia - Baby's Breath

• Hemerocallis - Daylily

• Heuchera - Coral Bells

• Monarda - Bee Balm

• Phlox

• Physostegia - Obedient Plant

• Platycodan - Balloon Flower

• Rudbeckia - Black-eyed Susan

• Sedum - Stonecrop

• Veronica - Speedwell

• Viola - Violet

There are many other perennials that live a very long life, but with a short bloom period, such as hostas. And of course perennials with long bloom periods but with a short life.  If your goal is to plant long living, long blooming hardy perennials, also consider using some hardy shrub roses.  They have the long life of a flowering shrub and the season long blooming of annuals.

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