Best blooming perennials for vibrant spring and summer colour, Home landscape tips, Colorful plant advice

Perennials for Vibrant Spring and Summer Colour Guide

January 18, 2023

When planning your garden for the warmer months, perennials are likely the starting point and backbone of the entire design. Emerging, again and again, each year, they provide consistency and reliability in a space that is constantly changing.

If you’re searching for spring and summer perennials to fill your garden with color this year, look out for perennials. Why do you ask? To begin with, they have a super long lifespan of a decade or more, whereas annual plants die back and must be replanted every year.

12 Best Blooming Perennials for Vibrant Spring and Summer Colour

Tulips
Spring is incomplete without colorful tulips to start off the season. Whether you choose one color as a focal point or a rainbow mix to brighten your backyard, you can’t go wrong with these bulbs.

They are also great additions to cut flower gardens, allowing you to enjoy their beauty indoors and out. There are tons of colors to choose from, but these are some of the most popular options:

Yellow

Lavender

Red

Mixed

Daffodils
Another spring classic, daffodils are beloved around the world for their sunny blooms. The bulbs are planted in fall, ready to welcome the spring season once the soil warms.

Although one plant is beautiful on its own, they look even better planted en masse. Make your carpet of daffodils look natural by sprinkling the bulbs over your beds and planting them wherever they land.

Echinacea
Coneflowers are members of the daisy family, delighting gardens with their tall stalks and long flowers.

They come in several different colors – such as yellow or the popular purple – that allow you to tailor them to your existing garden design. They are also pollinator magnets, great for attracting beneficial insects to your backyard.

Solomon’s Seal
If you’re looking for a carefree, easy-to-grow perennial, Solomon’s seal is your answer.

Scientifically known as Polygonatum biflorum, it flowers reliably with little attention and is disease, drought, and pest resistant. It is also a great shade perennial, featuring white blooms that decorate the shade garden across the warmer months.

Daylilies
To add some color to your garden during the transition from spring to summer, you need at least one daylily in your perennial garden. The vivid blooms are incredibly popular and attract pollinators to sunny spots in your backyard.

Choose bright orange for a warm pop of color, ‘Red Baja’ for something a little more dramatic, or the classic yellow ‘Stella de Oro’.

Phlox
There are several different Phlox species on the market, each sporting bright blooms that form carpets of color during the warmer season.

Creeping phlox is a low and compact type that works wonderfully as a ground cover or filler in rock gardens. Phlox drummondii, or annual phlox, is another colorful pick that self-seeds, emerging year after year.

Dianthus
Similar in appearance to phlox flowers, Dianthus comes with many benefits for your perennial garden. The flowers are long-lasting and incredibly bright, sporting a wide range of colors to suit any backyard.

Dianthus barbatus, also known as Sweet William, is fragrant and colorful, although short-lived when compared to other perennials.

Virginia Bluebells
One of the earliest spring bloomers, Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) are the perfect plants to welcome the season. Native to the United States, they grow across almost all USDA Zones and flower consistently without fuss.

What these plants lack in height, they make up for in vivid color and ease of care.

Wild Geranium
Another North American native, Geranium maculatum is a whimsical woodland perennial with plenty to offer. The flowers bridge the gap between spring and summer, pushing up impressive purple flowers in masses across beds.

They also spread quickly, allowing you to enjoy more blooms year after year with little effort. Plant your wild geranium as a groundcover to turn your beds into your own personal woodland.

Iris
Blue is a rare color in the natural world and, by extension, in home gardens. That’s what makes irises such a popular choice for perennial gardens.

The classic bearded iris, Iris germanica, or the well-known Siberian iris are both perennial favorites, but there are also less popular and more unique options. Try Iris cristata in shady spots or the Siberian iris if you live in a colder zone.

Marsh Hibiscus
Most popular perennials are relatively low-growing herbaceous plants. But, if you’re looking for something a little larger and more shrub-like, give the marsh hibiscus a try.

Also known as rose mallow or by its scientific name Hibiscus grandiflorus, the massive flowers that appear from spring to summer are sure to brighten your backyard.

Milkweed
If your main goal is to attract butterflies to your perennial garden, you need milkweed (Asclepias incarnata). This species is known for drawing monarch butterflies – recently placed on the endangered list – by providing protection from predators.

The flowers are also beautiful, forming clusters of pink that instantly draw the eye.