Long blooming perennials are the backbone to successfully creating a garden of continuous bloom. The gardens at Plant Paradise Country Gardens are a testament that continuous bloom is possible. Long blooming perennials are the key to success. For in-depth information on this subject, Lorraine Roberts has written the book, A Recipe for Continuous Bloom, as your essential guide to creating a perennial garden that blooms from spring until frost.

To determine which perennials to grow in your garden, start by asking yourself a few questions. What are the light conditions in my garden? Is it a sunny or shady location? Is the soil dry or moist? What growing zone am I in? Answers to all of these questions will be a starting point to determine the best perennials that will grow in your garden.

It all starts with choosing the right plant for the right location. The average perennial flower will bloom from two to three weeks, so choosing perennials that bloom for months is an added bonus. These long-blooming perennials create the foundation of building a garden of continuous bloom.

Choosing perennials with outstanding foliage cannot be emphasized enough. Foliage provides colour, texture and form in the garden when the flowers are not in bloom.

It’s very difficult to whittle down the list of top twelve long blooming perennials. The plant choices are limitless and there will always be a new plant or hybrid, but Lorraine recommends long blooming, hardy perennials that they have grown in their Caledon, Ontario Zone 5 botanical gardens and nursery. All of these plants grow well in soil that is amended with compost and once established; rely only on rainfall for water.

These are Lorraine’s top 20 long blooming perennials for continuous bloom. Click on the plant names for more information about each plant. All of these plants (and many more) can be purchased from Plant Paradise Country Gardens.  View the complete catalog here.