Perennial Special

Garden Astilbe are a popular choice for shady gardens, where they perform well if given a rich, moist soil and regular watering. This selection has long, feathery plumes of deep coral pink flowers, over a mound of elegant, lacy green leaves. Also thrives in tubs, or mixed containers. Excellent for cutting.

Fertilize in April and June.  Seed heads may be removed, or left on the plant for winter interest.

 Light Requirement: Full Shade to Part Shade

Height: 36 - 50"

Spread: 36"

Zone: 3

Photo and data courtesy of Aubin Nursery

photo courtesy of  Ball Seed

Lime green foliage with a constrasting red edge. Hot pink flowers. A perfect addition to the front of the perennial border, and works great in containers.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 6"

Width: 18"

Zone: 3

Photo and data courtesy of Aubin Nursery and Bellwyck Horticolor.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Sun

Height: 30"

Width: 24 - 30"

Zone: 3

Photo and data courtesy of De Vroomen Bulb Canada

Burgundy Red

Zone 3b

Full sun

Image Courtesy of Clearview Hort.

Features dainty flower clusters rather than traditional long, spiky stems. Thrives in heat and humidity. Outstanding plants for the perennial border.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 12"

• Width: 12 - 16"

Image Courtesy of Ball Seed Company

Deep Pink Colour

Zone 4

Photo courtesy of Ball Seed

Henry Brockstone was bred in 1955, this garden stunner is not only fragrant but features huge, fully double blooms in the most perfect shade of deep red. One of our favourites, a must add addition to every garden!

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 24 - 36"

• Width: 24 - 36"

Zone: 2

Photo and data courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Shade

Mature Size:

• Height: 10 - 14"

• Width: 12 - 24"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Features dainty spikes of white  flowers, trumpet-shaped, blooming in midsummer. Attractive large round leaves are forest green in colour with a creamy white that keep throughout the season.

Light Requirement: Partial Sun to Full Shade

Mature Size:

• Height: 18 - 24"

• Width: 24 - 36"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

The 'White Temptation' Daylily is a beautifully bright re-blooming daylily, showing a near white petal and yellow-green centre.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 24 - 36"

• Width: 12 - 24"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Also known as Blue Cornflower, or Mountain Bluet.

This species of Bachelor Button is low to medium in height and well suited to growing in the sunny border. Plants form a bushy clump of grey-green leaves, setting off a display of clear-blue shaggy flowers in early summer.

Removing faded flower heads will encourage repeat blooming. Ruggedly hardy, this plant will grow in most types of soils and climate regions. Plants may be pruned back  in mid-summer to maintain a compact habit.

Makes for beautiful cut flower.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 18"
  
• Spread: 24"
  

Zone: 2

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Easily grown in average, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soils in part shade to full shade. Best in medium moisture soils in part shade or to be planted in containers. Once established, it tolerates drought.

Spreads by stem fragments, rooting at the nodes, creeping stems, and seed. It can be somewhat invasive in optimum growing conditions.

If plants become leggy, shear back to 4-6 inches or to new fresh basal leaves in order to shape plants and to promote new foliage growth.

 Light Requirement: Part Sun

Flowering Season: Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 12"
  
• Spread: 24"
  

Zone: 4

Clustered Bell flower is upright and sturdy and makes for a good edging for any garden, Campanula are also known as 'Bell flowers' because of their distinct, upturned bell-shaped flowers. Can be invasive, so clip spent blooms before they go to seed.

 Light Requirement: Full to Part Sun

Flowering Season: Early Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 12"
  
• Spread: 18"
  

Zone: 3a

Unlike Stachys byzantina (Lamb's Ear), this species forms large, rounded clumps of green, long and narrow, textured leaves. It is lovely even when it's not in bloom. From early thru midsummer, sturdy spikes of lavender-rose flowers shoot up through the foliage, putting on quite a display.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 12 - 24"

• Width: 12 - 24"

Zone: 4

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Chinese Lantern (Physalis alkekengi)  There is high value for this dried species in fall displays. In Japan, the seeds are used during the Bon Festival as offerings to guide the souls of the deceased. This plant spreads underground by rhizomes and should be contained in certain situations. Physalis is a close relative of the Cape Gooseberry but is not cultivated as a food crop. The fruit is tasteless and it should be noted that the unripe fruit and leaves are toxic if enough is ingested. 

 Light Requirement: Full Sun

Flowering Season: Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 24"
  
• Spread: 24"
  

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 30"

• Width: 12"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Jeffries Nurseries & Bellwyck Horticolor

Brilliant flowers complement neat, attractive foliage. Wonderful as ground cover, in the rock garden, along walkways or cascading over stone walls. Easy to maintain. Thrives in hot, dry locations. Also called golden carpet or gold moss stonecrop.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Flowering Season: Late Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 6"
  
• Spread: 12"
  

Zone: 3A

Bright yellow flowers on silvery green foliage – flowers open in the afternoon and bloom throughout the night, attracting butterflies and moths. Tolerates a wide range of soil types; drought tolerant and low maintenance.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 3 - 6"

• Width: 15 - 18"

Zone: 5

Photos courtesy of Ball Seed

Rockfoil produces its thickest and most lush foliage in spring. The bright green, crinkly leaves pack tightly together and carpet rocks, pavers, and lightly shaded nooks. In spring, tiny, cupped flowers appear on slender stalks held above the body of the plant. The wiry stalks are tinged pink to purple and support blooms of salmon, pink, purple, white, and other hues. The rockfoil flowers last into the early part of summer. Once the flowers die back, the plant is exposed to drying air and sun without their shading protection.

Photos courtesy of Bellwyck Horticolor

Platycodon grandiflorus 'Hakone Blue' has deep blue, double flowers on tall stems.
Balloon Flower 'Hakone Blue' makes a wonderful cut flower. Deer resistant and drought tolerant. Balloon flower is a long-lived, hardy perennial.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Flowering Season: Late Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 24"
  
• Spread: 24"
  

Zone: 3a

Photos courtesy of Bellwyck Horticolor

Large blue leaves have a wavy yellow margin. In summer yellow margins turn to creamy white. Pale lavender flowers are held just above the foliage.

Light Requirement: Part Shade to Shade

Height: 2'8"

Width: 6'6"

Zone: 3

Photo and data courtesy of Proven Winners

Brilliant display of summer colour with compact form and strong resistance to powdery mildew. Butterfly attractant. Fuchsia flowers. 

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 18"

Width: 24"

Zone: 3

Photo and data courtesy of Aubin Nursery and Bellwyck Horticolor.

A clump-forming, densely leafy perennial to 60cm, with narrow-lanceolate leaves and small clusters of blue-eyed white flowers 3-4cm across

Image courtesy of Ball Horticulture

This improved Beard-tongue forms low mounds of glossy green leaves, bearing medium-tall stalks of tubular deep purple flowers arranged around the strong stems. Vigorous and easy to grow. Remove faded flowers to encourage continued blooming. Attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds. Stems are nice for cutting. Clumps may be easily divided in early spring. Unlike many of the taller selections, this one is ruggedly hardy in colder regions. Drought tolerant once established.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 15 - 20"

• Width: 10 - 15"

Zone: 3

Images courtesy of vanstone Nurseries

Very rich, dark purple flowers are produced above dark green foliage in early fall to midfall. A perfect finale to the growing season!

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Flowering Season:  Late Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 26 - 30"
  
• Spread: 40 - 44"
  

Zone: 3a

Developed from a native North American wildflower, this is an important source of food for Monarch Butterflies. Forms an upright clump of narrow green leaves, bearing showy clusters flowers in mid to late summer that is sure to attract butterflies.

The seed pods that follow are sometimes used in dried arrangements — pick and dry these while still green. Very late to come up in the spring, so mark the spot by planting daffodils or other companion bulbs. 

For best growth plant in well-drained sandy soil. 

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 30"

Width: 24"

Zone: 4

Photos and data courtesy of Van Noort Bulb - http://www.vannoortbulb.com

Blanket Flowers are one of the longest-blooming perennials, well suited to hot sunny sites. This selection forms a low mound of olive-green leaves, with large daisy-like blooms. A great choice for edging, borders, rock gardens and containers.

Removing faded flowers will greatly extend the blooming season.

These will not tolerate wet, heavy clay soil, particularly in the winter.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 30"

• Width: 36"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Jeffries Nursery

'Eupatorium Maculatum' , also known as Joe-Pye Weeds,  are bold, architectural specimen plants, perfect for making a statement in the border. Plants forms a huge clump of coarse green leaves, bearing enormous umbrella-like heads of rosy-purple flowers in late summer.

This selection is a little more restrained in height, but still gets large and impressive.

A magnet to butterflies, this is also suitable for planting in a meadow or at the waterside. Excellent for cutting.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Shade

Mature Size:

• Height: 60 - 72"

• Width: 24 - 36"

Zone: 4

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

'Komodo Dragon' Hosta forms a large mound, with dark blue-green leaves and shows a ruffled edge. In midsummer, 4 foot tall flowering stalks emerge bearing light lavender coloured, funnel shaped bloom.

Light Requirement: Full Shade to Partial Shade

Mature Size:

• Height: 36"

• Width: 24 - 84" 

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.