Perennials

This early blooming hybrid series will produce an array of vivid flowers for many weeks in summer. The plants have an upright and compact growth habit with exceptional branching. Dense clusters of smaller fragrant flowers will cover the plant and make an eye-catching display.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 14"

Width: 12"

Zone: 3

Photo and data courtesy of Vanstone Nurseries

The Echinacea Sunseeker Series offers vibrant, sun-loving flowers in pink and purple, attracting pollinators and boosting wellness. Perfect for sunny gardens, these low-maintenance, drought-tolerant plants add beauty to any space.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 18 - 24"

Width: 18 - 24"

The Skyler series does not need a cold winter period, unlike other Veronica longifolia cultivars. It will flower the first year from planting. Cut to the ground, and it will generally send out an additional flush of flowers. Depending on location you may harvest 2-4 flushes of flowers per year. It is fully hardy. In its second and third years, you will see many more stems emerge as the plant spreads. 

Images courtesy of : Danzinger

Zone 4

This selection, of 'Autumn Joy', boasts vibrant rosy flowers from late summer into fall. Developed in Quebec, it's a striking option. Tall sedums form substantial foliage clumps, serving as shrub alternatives. Their sturdy stems bear massive flower heads that bloom in fall, offering winter interest and bird food if left standing.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Shade

Mature Size:

• Height: 24 - 30"

• Width: 18 - 24"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Jeffries Nursery

'Blue Fescue' ornamental grass has slender, wiry blades of blue. It is a tidy evergreen that is very tolerant of a wide range of sites and conditions. This grass is perfect for a brightly coloured, mounding accent plant for borders, rockeries or even containers. 

Low maintenance, plant in a sunny location with well drained soil. 

Light Requirement: Full to Part Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 24"
  
• Spread: 24"
  

Zone: 4

Chrysanthemums are a great choice for the garden, or in tubs and mixed containers. Garden Mums are extremely popular plants for a splash of colour in late summer right through the fall.

Morden strain produces naturally cushion-shaped, compact plants with double and semi-double flowers in a whole range of rich jewel tones. Best in a sunny area, with regular watering through the season. 

Pinching plants in June will result in a much greater number of flowers. 

Light Requirement: Full to Part Sun

Flowering Season: Early Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 16"
  
• Spread: 18"
  

Zone: 3

Prairie smoke (Geum triflorum) adds interest to a garden bed from early spring through to fall. This perennial is native to North American prairies. It gets its name from the long, wispy, feather-like achenes (seed heads) that develop during the summer. With their pinkish shades, they create an impression of puffs of smoke remaining on the plant for several weeks. The small, pink, bud-like flowers may not be as impressive as the achenes, but they still add a splash of color to the garden in the spring. And during the fall, the foliage takes on purplish, reddish, and orange hues and then turns to a burgundy shade during winter. 

Cotton Candy^™ Phlox will bring months of tantalizing color and delicious fragrance to the garden. Soft lavender-pink flowers with cotton candy centers bloom in the summer. Cotton Candy^™ is mildew resistant, compact, and wildly floriferous.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 18 - 22"

Width: 18 - 24"

Photos and information courtesy of First Editions Plants.

Ratibida  upright Prairie Cone Flower AKA Mexican Hat has several long-stalked flower heads at the top of the stem. Red and Yellow bi colour flowers have 4 to 12 droopy, wide, bright yellow petals (ray flowers), The cone is up to 1½ inches long and covered with hundreds of tiny brown or purplish disk flowers that bloom from the bottom of the cone up.

Photos courtesy of Bellwyck Horticolor

'Caramel' is a popular and robust selection with fuzzy leaves ranging from apricot to amber, complemented by purple-red undersides and cream flowers. It boasts brighter coloration than 'Amber Waves' and has a compact habit.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 6 - 10"

• Width: 12 - 15"

Zone: 4

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa & Ball Horticultural

'Matrona' Sedum, also called stonecrop, is a beautiful plant with pale pink flowers, gray-green leaves, and purple veins and stems. It loves full sun, blooms in late summer, and attracts many pollinators in the fall. It's also very showy and tolerates low rainfall well.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Shade

Mature Size:

• Height: 12 - 24"

• Width: 18 - 24"

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Widely grown as a commercial cut flower, this plant form a low clump of grassy leaves, bearing tall spikes of purple flowers beginning in midsummer.

 Can be planted in sunny border or meadow garden, or in containers.

May need to be staked as growth continues.

Height: 18 - 24"

Spread: 18 -24"

Image courtesy of Jeffries Nursery

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 18 - 24" 

Spread: 18 - 24"

 Photos and data courtesy of Ball Seed, Aubin Nursery & Bellwyck Horticolor.

Grape Lollipop^™ Phlox is covered in grape-colored flowers with striking red eyes that bloom in the summer. The fragrant blooms, compact habit, and mildew-resistance make this a great addition to the garden for phenomenal summer interest. Introduced by Plants Nouveau.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Height: 18 - 22"

Width: 18 - 24"

Photos and information courtesy of First Editions Plants.

Karl Rosenfeld is bright crimson, 16-18 cm flowers appear in mid to late spring. Garden visitors, as well as butterflies and hummingbirds, will love the fragrant, fully double blooms. The glossy, green foliage is very ornamental and provides a colour show in the spring when new growth is copper-burgundy and when the leaves turn soft yellow in the fall. 

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Cerastium is a very useful ground cover perennial, often grown in dry, sunny areas with poor soil. Plants form a low, fast-spreading mat of silvery-grey leaves, studded with tiny white star flowers in late spring and early summer. An indestructible choice for difficult sites, but be sure to plant this where its spreading habit will not become a problem. Beautiful spilling over rock walls or on steep sunny slopes, used as a lawn substitute. Also grows well in tubs or mixed containers. Easily divided in spring or fall. Plants should be clipped hard or mowed (to 2 inches) after blooming to maintain a tidy habit.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Flowering Season: Early Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 6"
  
• Spread: 18"
  

Zone: 3a

Nora Barlow is particularly good for cut flowers as it features a fully double, upward-facing bloom, rising above a ferny foliage of gray-green divided leaves. Plants typically produce 3-5 stems in the first year and 5-10 stems in the second and following years.

Remove faded flowering stems to promote additional blooming.

Light Requirement: Part Sun

Flowering Season: Early Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 24"
  
• Spread: 12"
  

Zone: 3

Photo courtesy of Ball Seed Company

'Bright Eyes' Garden Phlox is a vibrant and eye-catching variety of Phlox paniculata. It features large clusters of bright pink flowers with contrasting dark eyes that bloom from summer into fall, attracting butterflies and hummingbirds to the garden. This perennial plant is known for its excellent disease resistance and compact growth habit, making it a popular choice for garden borders, beds, and containers.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 24 - 36"

• Width: 24 - 36"

Zone: 4

Photos courtesy of Van Noort Bulb Co. & Florissa.

Coreopsis also known as Tickseed, form a mound of leathery green leaves, bearing many upright stems of daisy type flowers for weeks starting in early summer. Removing faded flowers regularly will encourage blooming to continue into the fall.

Tolerant of hot, humid summer climates and attractive to butterflies.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Flowering Season: Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 24"
  
• Spread: 16"
  

Zone: 3b

photo courtesy of Ball Seed

May Night Salvia  is an outstanding perennial with excellent cold hardiness, vigor, and tolerance of heavy clay soils. Blooming in late spring with a profusion of flower spikes, it re-blooms later in the summer when deadheaded. These plants attract butterflies and are deer/rabbit resistant.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 12 - 36"

• Width: 12 - 36"

Zone: 3

Photos and Data Courtesy of Ball Seed

Moss Phlox forms a low mound or cushion smothered by tiny flowers in late spring.  Clip plants immediately after blooming to encourage a dense habit. Wonderful in the sunny rock garden, for edging, or in mixed containers. Requires good drainage. Drought tolerant, once established.

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 4 -6"

• Width: 12 - 24"

Zone: 2

Photos courtesy of Jeffries Nursery

Fragrant Oriental Lily with a late summer flowering 

Height: 100cm (40") 

Full Sun - Part Shade

Images courtesy of: van Noort Bulb Co.

This improved Beard-tongue forms low mounds of glossy burgundy leaves, bearing medium-tall stalks of tubular deep pink 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: 24"

• Width: 18-24"

Zone: 3

Images courtesy of vanstone Nurseries & Terra Nova Nursereies

Discover the earliest flowering perennial sage available. This stunning plant boasts large flower spikes that bloom over an extended season, adding vibrant deep rose color to your garden. 

H 12" x W 12"

McKana's Giant aquilegia is particularly good for cut flowers as it features a fully double, upward-facing bloom, rising above a ferny foliage of gray-green divided leaves. Plants typically produce 3-5 stems in the first year and 5-10 stems in the second and following years.

Remove faded flowering stems to promote additional blooming.

Light Requirement: Part Sun

Flowering Season: Early Summer

Mature Size:

• Height: 30"
  
• Spread: 24"
  

Zone: 3

Photos courtesy of Ball Seed Company & Bodger

Creeping types are low-growing with a vine-like habit and make a great ground cover or in between stepping stones

Once established flowers bloom in late spring and early summer. They are also deer and rabbit resistant. 

*Susceptible to root rot in wet, soggy soil. 

Light Requirement: Full Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 3"

• Width: 12"
• Zone  3

Photos courtesy of Jeffries Nursery

Maiden Pinks are easy-care perennials, ideal for the beginning gardener. Plants form a low, spreading mound of green and bronze leaves, studded with bright white & pink bi-colour flowers in late spring, and bloom on and off throughout the summer. Suitable in poor soils, and hot, sunny sites.

Excellent in tubs and mixed containers.

Trim back lightly after first flowering. Plants are easily divided in early spring or fall.

Red Flame lupin is a deep red crimson colour One of the best lupines for small gardens, containers or the front of beds and borders.

CAUTION: Harmful if eaten.

Light Requirement: Full Sun to Partial Sun

Mature Size:

• Height: 20"

• Width: 12"

Zone: 4