My Garden - Recommended Low Maintenance & Colorful Plants

My Perennial Garden

I was sitting outside this morning having my coffee and taking a look at my garden. Here's a picture of it on one of my website pages, although it's taken from an angle where you can't see all the plants. https://www.landscape-design-advice.com/bird-bath-fountains.html

I moved down to Virginia from New Jersey about five years ago. We thought we would see how things went, so we rented a house, thinking we would possibly buy something after we got settled in.

Well, the thing is, that we love where we are so never quite get that motivation to move on.

Why am I telling you this? It's because I have a small garden next to my front porch, that I never took very seriously, because I am always thinking...."How long are we really going to be here for?"

As it turns out, I absolutely love this helter-skelter cottage garden. It's so much fun because I just plant what I like here and there and change it as I see fit. Not very organized for a landscape designer, but it shows that you don't have to be for certain things.

I'd like to tell you what is in this area because not only does it look great, but it has color throughout the season and is very low maintenance.

So here's the list:

Butterfly Bush - this is one of the smaller varieties which provides height and purple flowers for a very long time. It's drought tolerant too.

Fairy Rose - I had this in a previous home so was familiar with its' habit. It is a very carefree rose which blooms almost continuously (except for when it takes a rest here and there).

Carefree Wonder Rose - I just bought this one as a new addition, so it hasn't done much yet. However, once again, I grew it previously, so I know it will do great, bloom throughout the season, and is "carefree". It gets pink flowers that are very natural looking.

Nepeta (Catmint) 'Walker's Low' - a perennial with a long blooming time and pale purple flowers. It is drought resistant and basically takes care of itself. This perennial grows to be about 12" high maximum and about 24"+ wide.

Coneflower (pink) - I have two of these in the garden and they bloom later in the season. They are very hardy with large daisy-like flowers.

Verbena - Now I'll admit this is a mystery to me. I bought it as an annual, but it comes back every year! I think it might be a perennial variety because although it blooms for a decent amount of time, the blooms do not last all season as annuals do.

Snapdragons - Oh, I just add these in each year because I like them for additional color. They also do well with little water.

Sedum 'Autumn Joy' - This is another perennial I just added. I know it well. It is drought tolerant and very hardy, blooming late in the season...almost at the end of the summer and into fall.

Lavender 'Hidcote' - I love Lavender...the color, the fragrance and the pretty grayish colored foliage provides a different kind of texture. It's a fairly long bloomer...does well with little water, and it looks pretty near the roses.

In the middle of the garden is an iron birdbath which I periodically fill with water for the birds. Nearby, I have a small iron-like trellis. I've planted some Morning Glory from seed and hope they take off and climb the trellis. An old Rose is there too.

So, that's it. You might consider some of these plants for your own garden. They are really very low maintenance and won't suffer during droughts. And they are colorful!

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