We all know that gardens are never finished and there is always room for one more stellar plant. Try these varieties for great impact in a limited space.
Color your world with a few new perennials and shrubs this gardening season. Whether a plant has underperformed, a short-lived variety has succumbed to time, or a hard winter has taken its toll, there’s always a new spot in the garden to fill.
If you’re looking for a low-maintenance replacement or a statement plant that will give you a long season of color, opt for long-blooming perennials that offer hardy constitutions and vivid hues.
Echinacea PowWow® Echinacea purpurea ‘Wild Berry’
Zone: 4-10
Height: 16-20 inches
Spread: 12-16 inches
Unique, intense rose flowers with dark rose center. Naturally compact with good branching for more flowers per plant. Very drought tolerant once established. Nonfading color. All-America Selections winner. (Kieft Seed)
Echinacea Echinacea x hybrida ‘Cheyenne Spirit’
Zone: 4-10
Height: 18-30 inches
Spread: 10-20 inches
Excellent overwinter performance. Provides many seasons of incredible color. Attracts birds and butterflies. Drought tolerant and easy to care for. Brilliant color range: red, orange, purple, scarlet, cream, yellow, and white. All-America Selections winner. (Kieft Seed)
Echinacea Sombrero® Echinacea x hybrid
Zone: 4-9
Height: 24-26 inches
Spread: 16-18 inches
Sturdy and compact plants with bold, bright color. Very floriferous, well branched, and hardy for years of enjoyment in the garden. Available in several rich colors: Adobe Orange, Salsa Red, Lemon Yellow, and Hot Coral. Deadheading will prolong the flowering period. (Darwin Perennials)
Coreopsis Coreopsis grandiflora ‘Sun Up’
Zone: 4-9
Height: 10-12 inches
Spread: 12-14 inches
More naturally compact than other coreopsis, Sun Up has bright golden, semidouble flowers that bloom freely all summer long. Attracts bees and pollinators; it is also a low-maintenance and drought-tolerant plant for color in your garden spring through fall. (Kieft Seed)
Coreopsis Coreopsis grandiflora ‘Sunny Day’
Zone: 4-9
Height: 18-24 inches
Spread: 22-24 inches
Gardeners will get an abundance of large, single yellow blooms on compact plants. This North American native will rebloom if spent flowers are removed. (Darwin Perennials)
Coreopsis Coreopsis grandiflora ‘Early Sunrise’
Zone: 4-9
Height: 12-24 inches
Spread: 22-24 inches
Excellent heat and drought tolerance. This tough plant has bright golden yellow flowers and is great for full-sun exposure, spring through fall. The blooms are semi-double, and the plant flowers constantly all summer. All-America Selections winner. (Kieft Seed)
English Lavender Lavandula angustifolia ‘Mini Blue’
Zone: 5-8
Height: 10-12 inches
Spread: 12-14 inches
Winter-hardy and cold-tolerant plants have very strong stems and are long flowering in perennial beds and patio planters. Very floriferous and fragrant. Great for edging and rock gardens. No trimming needed; Mini Blue stays tidy. (Kieft Seed)
English Lavender Lavandula angustifolia ‘SuperBlue’
Zone: 5-8
Height: 10-12 inches
Spread: 10-12 inches
Blooms June through August. It has rich blue blooms on short flower spikes. There’s less gaping among the spikes for more color impact in the garden. SuperBlue has excellent winter hardiness and performs very well in your landscape. (Darwin Perennials)
English Lavender Lavandula angustifolia ‘Ellagance’
Zone: 5-8
Height: 12-14 inches
Spread: 10-12 inches
Ellagance has large, dense flower spikes on well-branched, bushy plants. You’ll love its feel-good fragrance and gray-green foliage. Ellagance is long flowering in perennial beds and patio planters. Winter hardy and cold tolerant, with good tolerance to foliar diseases. Available in colors Pink, Purple, and Sky. (Kieft Seed)
Trumpet Flower Campsis x hybrida “Summer Jazz Fire”
Zone: 5-9
Height: 3 feet
Spread: 3 feet
Campsis Summer Jazz Fire is the best compact, early-flowering climber in Ball’s series. It doesn’t overdo it! Half the size and half the vigor of other trumpet flowers, Campsis Summer Jazz Fire has dragon’s-breath red blooms with intense orange overtones.
For shrubs, seek varieties that provide resilience and a compact form. In humid climates, look for plants that resist mildew. Include those that boast foliage variations through the seasons to add to your garden’s palette from spring through fall.
Cupressus Cupressocyparis leylandii ‘Shorty’
Zone: 6-8
Height: 72-84 inches
Spread: 36-48 inches
Cupressus Shorty is a more compact growing cypress. It has deep green foliage with a dwarf habit. Cupressocyparis leylandii are heat-loving conifers that survive humidity.
Thuja Thuja occidentalis ‘Siena Sunset’
Zone: 3-7
Height: 12-24 inches
Spread: 24-30 inches
Thuja Siena Sunset is a small, compact Arborvitae—even more compact than Reingold. It grows into a golden sphere that turns bronze in winter.
Butterfly Bush Flutterby Petite™ Buddleia hybrid ‘Tutti Frutti Pink‘
Zone: 5-10
Height: 24-30 inches
Spread: 24-30 inches
The Flutterby Petite series of Butterfly Bush are top compact Buddleias. They’re noninvasive and attract butterflies, bees, and other pollinators all season.
Ninebark Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Caramel Candy’
Zone: 3-8
Height: 2-2½ feet
Spread: 2-3 feet
Physocarpus Caramel Candy is a dwarf, ground-covering Ninebark. It has pretty flowers and a neat, low-compact habit. Foliage shines in yummy caramel tones from spring until fall. In spring it has sweet, light pink blooms.
Ninebark Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Burgundy Candy’
Zone: 3-8
Height: 4-5 feet
Spread: 3-3½ feet
Physocarpus Burgundy Candy is truly compact with tall burgundy foliage. It holds upright foliage without the overgrown cascading branches you usually see on most large Ninebark. Deep burgundy-red foliage from spring until fall. Blooms white flowers in spring. It’s also tolerant of mildew.
Thanks to the team at Ball Horticultural for offering these suggestions for shrubs and flowering perennials that will provide superior performance in a small garden.
© Caruth Studio