Top Flowering Perennials for Edges, Offering Persistent Blossoming throughout the Season
Transform your outdoor space into a dazzling haven with these fantastic perennial border options. Discover our top picks for reliable color and texture in every season.
Popular Perennials for Garden Borders
1. Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi)
Create a lush, low-maintenance ground cover with bearberry, thriving in sandy or poor soil with excellent drought tolerance. This hardy plant prefers full sun or partial shade and requires a slightly acidic, well-drained soil. Water when exposed to shade, approximately every 9 days. Drink bearberry leaf decoction to help treat bladder and kidney issues.
2. Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis)
Perfect for shady borders or woodland gardens, bleeding heart's North American species are great for edging, rock gardens, and garden design. Grow best in light shade but can tolerate full sun in moist cool climates. They prefer well-drained soil and should be watered weekly during their first year. Shade-loving evergreen climber Bleeding Heart Vine can reach up to 3 meters tall and offers pain-relieving effects.
3. Blanket Flower (Gaillardia aristata)
Combine blanket flowers with fine-foliage perennials or strappy leaves for a colorful border or mixed bed. Grow blanket flowers in fast-draining soil and full sun, surviving winter in lighter soil. Water daily from summer heat arrival. Historically used medicinally for breastfeeding mothers to make tea for soothing sore nipples and sore eyes.
4. Blue-Eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium)
Loamy, well-draining soil is ideal for blue-eyed grass which makes a terrific choice for edging walks, cottage gardens, or rock gardens. Water approximately every 9 days when exposed to shade, tolerateshade to full sun conditions and welcomes pollinators like bumblebees and butterflies.
5. Autumn Fern (Dryopteris erythrosora)
Versatile autumn fern can be part of woodland gardens, shaded borders, or accents. Prefers partial to full shade, withstanding morning sunlight but favoring filtered or dappled shade. Well-draining, humus-rich soil is preferable, with slightly acidic to neutral soil conditions and regular watering in hot weather. Traditional uses treat various ailments, including coughs, fever, rheumatism, and more.
6. Blue Star Creeper (Ajuga reptans)
This striking perennial makes an excellent ground cover in garden borders, rockeries, or along pathways. Prefers consistently moist soil and full sun or partial shade, grow in pots or borders, and can withstand a variety of landscaping conditions.
7. Calla Lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica)
Vivid calla lilies can line garden paths, be displayed in pots, or add flair to borders. Bright, sheltered locations away from midday sun are best, with well-draining soil that stays moist. Traditionally used in wedding bouquets for good luck, and historically boiled calla lilies treated headaches and healed wounds.
8. Astilbe
Astilbe delivers color and texture to those tricky, damp, and shady parts of the garden. It prefers part-shade growing conditions, thriving in poor, lean or rocky soils if garden compost is added a few weeks prior to planting. Grow best in moist soil but avoid overly wet or soggy conditions. Traditional uses treat ulcers, bleeding during childbirth, inflammation, body aches, diarrhea, and dysentery.
9. Barrenwort (Epimedium spp.)
Barrenwort brings an attractive addition to borders, rock gardens, and container planting, making it a versatile option for various landscape designs. It thrives in shady areas, under trees, or woodland gardens and prefers neutral to slightly acidic soil. Water sparingly when the top few inches of soil is dry. Barrenwort is used in traditional Chinese Medicine to treat fatigue, arthritic pain, nerve pain, and sexual dysfunction.
Crafting a Spectacular Garden
Adding perennials to your borders helps create a lush landscape, attracting pollinators and enriching the ecosystem. With their enduring nature, perennials offer aesthetic and practical value, making them a wise investment for lasting garden beauty. Whether you're a budding gardener or an experienced horticulturist, mix these perennials to suit your soil pH, soil type, moisture levels, and shade requirements, and watch your outdoor space bloom all year round!
Develop a charming home-and-garden lifestyle with a mix of colorful perennials in your home borders. These vibrant garden choices, such as the Bearberry, Bleeding Heart, Blanket Flower, Blue-Eyed Grass, Autumn Fern, Blue Star Creeper, Calla Lily, Astilbe, Barrenwort, stand out in every season. By catering to your local soil pH, soil type, moisture levels, and shade requirements, you can cultivate a lifestyle interwoven with a thriving, diverse home-and-garden.
