Beautiful Perennial Flowers

Although I grew up in Minnesota, I have lived most of my adult life in the south. When it comes to gardening, I am not an expert. The perennials mentioned in this lens are ones that I have had success with. There are some perennials such as the dahlia that can be left in the ground year-round here, but need to be dug up before the first frost in Minnesota.

Determine what zone you live in and what plants will do well for you before sinking a lot of money into the ground. Shortly after moving to South Carolina I planted close to fifty tulip bulbs. I love tulips and they reminded me of my mother's garden.

My tulips bloomed beautifully the first year, looks scraggly the second, and were dead by the third. Tulips need a cold winter between their growing seasons and we don't have that. There are no tulips in my garden.

The Amaryllis is often considered a Christmas plant. I buy a bulb right after Thanksgiving every year. It's usually in full bloom by Christmas. Once the bloom has shriveled, I move it to the garage and ignore it until spring and then plant it in my garden. It grows but doesn't bloom that first season, but they bloom beautifully the following year.

The Amaryllis is an extremely low maintenance perennial. Once they're planted they need little care. The leave die back after the first hard frost. I trim the dead leaves off, push the mulch up around it and wait for spring. Different varieties bloom at slightly different times, but most of mine bloom the end of April or early May.

I remember years ago wracking my brain for the perfect Mother's Day gift. I knew she didn't want another "dust collector" and buying clothes didn't seem right. But she loved her garden. The Bleeding Heart was one of her favorites. I knew she had one years before, but it was gone and never replaced. Needless to say I gave her a bleeding heart that year. She still has one. I doubt it's the same plant I gave her years ago. But if it was lost to a harsh winter, she replaced it. She loves the delicate tear shaped blooms almost as much as I do.

The Bleeding Heart needs full shade. The first time I tried planting one I planted it on the east side of the house figuring a little sun wouldn't hurt. I was wrong. I lost two more before I found the right spot. My flower garden is on the west side of the house but it's between a Bradford Pair and the house. My Bleeding Heart is tucked in beneath a wisteria bush. (Wisteria is a vine, but I keep mine trimmed. It anchors the corner of my garden.)

Daffodils are a hardy spring blooming bulb. They herald the arrival of spring from one end of spring in gardens everywhere. The proper name for the Daffodil is the Narcissus and there are hundreds of varieties. They shoot up from the ground in early spring, bloom and then die back. They are a popular bulb for naturalizing. Many plant their Daffodils right in the yard as they can be mowed over once the grass starts growing. I like the Daffodil for its hardy predictability.

Day Lilies are very popular here in the south. It may be because they're hardier than the weeds. Plant a garden full of Day Lilies and they will bloom every summer. It doesn't matter if you tend them or not. They will push up through the weeds and bloom.

The Day Lily is very hardy and will grow in zones 1 through 11. It is also quite prolific. Every year you will have more Lilies than the year before. Given the opportunity they will take over the whole bed. I like the Day Lilies but as the name implies, when a bloom opens in the morning it is gone by night-fall. Fortunately a single plant will produce a fair number of flowers.

I used to have a full bed of Day Lilies but now days I hold them in check. While the individual flowers are pretty, unless you want to be out in the sun dead-heading every day, a large bed will start to look trashy and unkempt. I don't have time to keep up with a whole bed, but one or two plants works just fine.

The Bearded Iris has been and always will be my favorite flower. My grandmother has a bed of purple Bearded Irises. When it bloomed... Even after the flowers faded away, the bed was still beautiful. The thick leaves stood straight and tall. Even the wind couldn't ruffle them.

When I first moved to South Carolina I tried transplanting some of the rhizomes from my grandmother's Minnesota garden to my flower bed. They grew well but never bloomed. I don't know why the change in climate affected them, but it did. I purchased a couple of rhizomes and planted them. They have been blooming beautifully ever sense.

The Bearded Iris is incredibly easy to care for. Every three to five years I dig them up and split the rhizomes and replanted them. Now days when I split the rhizomes I give them away. I have so many irises...