Perennial plants are the mainstay of your garden. They provide shade, color, flowers, wonderful scents and fruit. Creating a perennial flower garden in phoenix in Phoenix is easy to do because you have so many choices.
Perennial plants can be divided into two groups:
- herbaceous perennials such as trees, shrubs and vines
- non-herbaceous perennials such as flowers and herbs
By definition a perennial plant is one that lives for more than two years.
Perennial Gardening in Phoenix Arizona
Flowers and herbs have stems that die down at the end of the growing season and become dormant. In Phoenix the dormant season can either be in winter or in summer depending on the plant.
The dormant season is generally pretty short. Choose perennials based on bloom times and plant so that as one plant finishes blooming another variety will take the spotlight and produce blooms. You can also plant annual flowers with your perennial flowers to extend your growing season.
Flowers you may see in Phoenix include:
- Lily of the Nile
- Angelita Daisy
- Blackfoot Daisy
- Desert Marigold
- Rain Lily
- Verbena
- red flax
- Autumn Sage
- Hummingbird Mint
- Penstemon (firecracker & Parri)
- African Daisy
- Hibiscus
- Bougainvillea
- Oleander
- Lilies
- Iris
Lily of the Nile which produces a beautiful clusters of lavender flowers in January. Autumn Sage an incredibly attractive shrub for hummingbirds that does well in our desert heat, Penstemon’s delicate tubular flowers, Hummingbird Mint, the cheery African Daisy, tropical Hibiscus, or the popular highway planting of Bougainvillea and Oleander to name a few.
Trees, vines and shrubs remain alive during dormant season and they grow new shoots. Some will lose their leaves, but most trees around Phoenix are evergreen and keep their leaves year round.
Plant them, nurture them and they reward you with a beautiful garden year after year. When planted correctly with annuals you can achieve year round color in your garden. Mix up your flower garden with both annuals and perennials.
Best time to Plant Your Perennial Garden in Phoenix
A great time to plant most perennials in the Phoenix area is November through March. This gives them time to establish their root systems before the hot summer arrives.
Iris bulbs should be planted in November, but Lilies should be planted in January or February. As a general rule of thumb, late-summer or fall-flowering perennials are planted in the spring, while spring-flowering perennials are planted in late summer or early fall.
