18 Perennial Flowers That Bloom in Spring, Summer, and Fall

Ice Plant

Where a low-lying, long-blooming perennial is called for, ice plant (Delosperma cooperi) is a good choice, both for its vivid flowers and unusual leaves. Growing only three to six inches high, it blooms from June through September. It is a borderline plant north of zone 6 but may survive in zone 5, if covered with mulch through the winter. Other than this, little maintenance is required.

• Name: Ice plant (Delosperma cooperi)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 10
• Color Varieties: Red-purple
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry, well-drained soil; good drought-tolerance

Garden Phlox

Long-blooming perennial garden phlox (Phlox paniculata) flowers from midsummer well into the fall, but it is susceptible to powdery mildew, a fungal disease that can be disfiguring although it rarely causes serious damage.

However, newer cultivars like the white 'David,' are mildew-resistant, with foliage that stays nice and healthy-looking all summer. Phlox does best in mild summer temperatures in a location that gets good air circulation. Deadhead spent flowers to prevent rampant self-seeding.

• Name: Garden phlox (Phlox paniculata)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 8
• Color Varieties: Pink-purple, white
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil

Stella de Oro Daylily

Stella de Oro daylily (Hemerocallis 'Stella de Oro') is one of more than 50,000 hybrid daylilies. It is a compact plant (nine to 12 inches tall) known for its very long bloom period (May through July), although individual blooms last for only one day.

Stella de Oro requires little care and it is easy to divide whenever you want to propagate new plants. A related cultivar, Hemerocallis 'Black-Eyed Stella', is similar in color but is slightly taller with a burgundy center in the blooms.

• Name: Stella de Oro daylily (Hemerocallis 'Stella de Oro')
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 10
• Color Varieties: Yellow, gold, bi-colors
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil

Becky Shasta Daisy

Becky Shasta daisies (Leucanthemum × superbum 'Becky') are among the best of the Shasta daisy cultivars. They are tough plants, displaying resilience and endurance which belie their delicate appearance. They bloom from July through September on plants that grow three to four feet in height.

• Name: Becky Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum × superbum 'Becky')
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
• Color Varieties: White with yellow centers
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture; good drought-tolerance

Perennial Salvia

Salvia is a large genus of plants that include both annual and perennial species. Varieties with long-lasting blooms include Salvia × sylvestris 'Blauhügel' ('Blue Hill'), Salvia × sylvestris 'Mainacht' ('May Night'), Salvia farinacea 'Victoria Blue,' and Salvia nemorosa 'Caradonna'.

If you deadhead your Salvia regularly, these perennials just might bloom all summer. They flower for several months, though the timing of the bloom period varies depending on the species.

• Name: Salvia (Salvia spp.)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 10, depending on species
• Color Varieties: Blue to violet
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil

Russian Sage

For a tall plant, Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) has rather small blossoms. What it lacks in bloom size, it makes up for in bloom numbers, creating an attractive wispy look in the garden. This long-blooming perennial is showy but in the most tasteful way possible. Plants grow to five feet in height, though they may sprawl. They bloom from July through October.

• Name: Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9
• Color Varieties: Lavender/blue
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil

Yarrow

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is an herb that flowers all summer, June through September, on stems growing two to three feet in height. The species form has clusters of white flowers, but cultivars are also available that offer flowers in many colors. Divide the plants every three to five years. Deadheading spent flowers will lengthen the bloom period.

• Name: Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 8
• Color Varieties: White, yellow, red, pink, rust-brown
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil; drought-tolerant

English Lavender

Lavender-scented linens, sachets, and potpourris provide a nice touch to a home and are ridiculously easy to acquire. But even people with no interest in such domesticity grow lavender plants, since they bring a touch of class to the landscape, too. English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) blooms from June through August on plants that grow two to three feet in height.

• Name: English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
  
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9 (depends on cultivar)
• Color Varieties: Purple, blue; cultivars offering pink flowers are also available
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil

Coneflower

A number of species in the Echinacea genus (and their cultivars and hybrids) go by the name of "coneflower," and many of those sold commercially are cultivars or hybrids of selected species, especially E. purpurea (purple coneflower). Coneflowers typically bloom from June through August on plants that grow two to five feet in height. They will benefit from division every four years or so but are otherwise very low-maintenance.

• Name: Coneflower (Echinacea spp.)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9, depending on the variety
• Color Varieties: Purplish pink; cultivars offer white, orange, yellow, red, and green
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil; good drought-tolerance

Threadleaf Coreopsis

Threadleaf or fernleaf coreopsis (Coreopsis verticillata) produces small, daisy-like yellow flowers that bloom in the summer or fall, depending on the variety. Popular cultivars include 'Moonbeam,' 'Zagreb,' and 'Grandiflora,' all of which are somewhat more compact, bushier plants. Threadleaf coreopsis can be stimulated into a second fall flush of flowers if the plants are sheared back in late summer after the first period of flowering is done. Other than this, they require little maintenance.

• Name: Threadleaf coreopsis (Coreopsis verticillata)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
• Color Varieties: Yellow; hybrids and cultivars also offer pink, red, and bi-color flowers
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil; drought-tolerant

Blue Chip Butterfly Bush

Gardeners have begun shying away from planting butterfly bushes and rightfully so, because the plant is invasive in many parts of North America and is banned in Washington and Oregon.

The hand-pollinated cultivar blue chip butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii 'Blue Chip') is an exception. It is sterile, so it does not spread. It is a diminutive 1-to-2-foot tall version. Its numerous, small flowers form in showy bluish-purple spikes. It flowers from midsummer into October.

• Name: Blue chip butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii 'Blue Chip')
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
• Color Varieties: Bluish-purple
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil

Black-Eyed Susan

This long-blooming perennial is popular because it blooms all summer, warms the yard with its cheerful color, and requires minimal care. Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) blooms from June through September in most climates, on plants that grow two to three feet in height.

Deadheading with pruners will prompt more frequent re-blooming and prevent the plants from spreading through self-seeding. This is a relatively short-lived perennial that some gardeners allow to colonize through self-seeding.

• Name: Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 7
• Color Varieties: Yellow to orange, with dark centers
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil; good drought-tolerance

Autumn Joy Stonecrop

Autumn Joy (Hylotelephium 'Herbstfreude') blooms in late summer, with flowers that gradually darken over several weeks to rust-red or purple by fall. Various cultivars offer different flower and foliage colors. This perennial is highly prized for the long-lasting fall color it provides.

The blooms are actually large masses of smaller flowers that clump together in groups three inches or more across. Autumn Joy is a very long-lived perennial that grows slowly and requires almost no maintenance, except shearing back the stems to ground level after frost.

• Name: Autumn Joy stonecrop (Hylotelephium 'Herbstfreude' AUTUMN JOY)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
• Color Varieties: Rosy-pink buds deepening to bright rust red or purple
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil

Catmint

Catmint (Nepeta racemosa) is a plant valued for landscape uses and not to be confused with catnip, an herb famous for driving felines into a frenzy. Catmint typically grows to about 12 inches high and is used as a ground cover.

'Walker's Low' is a recommended cultivar that grows to 24 to 30 inches tall and blooms from spring through early fall. Shearing the flower spikes after they bloom will stimulate vigorous re-blooming.

• Name: Catmint (Nepeta racemosa)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 8
• Color Varieties: Lavender blue
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Dry to medium moisture, well-drained soil

Spiked Speedwell

Many species and cultivars of speedwell exist, including creeping types. But for a good long-blooming form, try spiked speedwell (Veronica spicata), especially the 'Royal Candles' cultivar.

It produces spikes of blue flowers on plants growing nine to 12 inches tall and blooms from June through August. Other cultivars grow as high as three feet. The key to extending the flowering season of 'Royal Candles' is regular shearing.

• Name: Spiked speedwell (Veronica spicata)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 8
• Color Varieties: Blue/violet; pink and white cultivars also available
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil

Red Hot Poker

The flowers of red hot poker (Kniphofia uvaria) match the name precisely. Also called torch lily, it grows three to four feet tall with red and yellow flowers. Hybrids and cultivars come in different heights and flower colors.

Especially popular is the Popsicle series, specifically 'Mango Popsicle,' 'Pineapple Popsicle,' and 'Redhot Popsicle,' all of which produce flowers from late spring to midsummer on plants that grow one to two feet in height. Spent flower heads should be removed immediately, but no division of clumps is necessary.

• Name: Red hot poker (Kniphofia uvaria)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
• Color Varieties: Red and yellow; peach and yellow cultivars are also available
• Sun Exposure: Full sun
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil

Dalmatian Bellflower

Dalmatian bellflower (Campanula portenschlagiana) is a long-blooming perennial that flowers for two solid months in late spring and early summer. It is a good plant for edging, ground cover, or for trailing over walls. Under ideal conditions, the plant spreads readily, but it is not too hard to control. Divide plants every three to four years to keep clumps vigorous.

• Name: Dalmatian bellflower (Campanula portenschlagiana)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 8
• Color Varieties: Violet, blue
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil

Fringed Bleeding Heart

Fringed bleeding heart (Dicentra eximia) is one of the best long-blooming perennials for shade gardens. It will flower for some three months during the growing season (late spring through late summer in zone 5).

Unlike its better-known relative, the common bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis), this type offers splendid, fern-like foliage. However, the heart shapes aren't as perfect as common bleeding hearts. Fringed bleeding heart is also a smaller plant (12 to 18 inches tall, with a similar spread).

• Name: Fringed bleeding heart (Dicentra eximia)
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
• Color Varieties: Pink, reddish-purple, white
• Sun Exposure: Full shade to partial shade
• Soil Needs: Medium moisture, well-drained soil