Springtime…
………….a perennial gift from Heaven
These are three of my all-time favorite spring flowering perennials. I always feel like they are a free gift from heaven every spring!
- Basket-of-gold (Aurinia saxatili) is one of those plants that loves to grow in the least likely of place — cracks between paving stones, the edge of gravel paths and patios, rocky outcroppings, between the stacked stones of a retaining wall, and more. It’s a real showstopper. That does well in the hot dry sun. Not so much in more humid climates. It will reseed prolifically in little cracks, filling an area each spring with dazzling neon yellows. However, it is easy to maintain and doesn’t take over the world, which I appreciate. After it finishes blooming just trim off the flowering stems and the grayish-green foliage is a beautiful mat throughout the remainder of the year. It is also wonderful for erosion control on a slope or in a rock garden.
- Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata) Is a wonderful, creeping ground cover that displays a thick blanket of blooms in vibrant shades of pink, lavender, red, white or bluish-purple every spring. Creeping phlox is a sturdy, and a little bit prickly plant that is low maintenance and does well at camouflaging an unsightly slope or other difficult areas in the landscape as it rambles between rocks and cascades over walls. It can also be planted along a walkway or bordering a flowerbed. You should plant it in the spring although it won’t have the mass of flowers until the following spring. But believe me! It is worth the wait.
- Soapwort What an ugly name for a beautiful flowering plant/ground cover. I love it! Perennial, Saponaria or Rock Soapwort is an easy to grow perennial that forms a blanket of spreading color. It produces a profusion of five petaled, lavendar flowers in varying shades. I planted one little plant 3 summers ago and it now cascades down and tumbles over our rock wall and onto some stone steps. It is beautiful. And after it finishes blooming in the spring it is a mass of beautiful dark green leaves. This lovely little plant is all by maintenance free. It lives beautifully on the water that splashes onto if from the sprinklers. Although I haven’t tried it in a hanging basket or pot, I bet it would be fabulous!!
Perennials………I love them! More to come on some other favorites.
