25 Longest Lasting Perennial Flowers for Beautiful Blooms

By Jennifer Poindexter

Are you looking for perennial plants with longer bloom cycles? Let’s be honest. Most people grow perennials because you plant them once, and they return for years.

Plus, they’re typically lower maintenance. Why wouldn’t you want these plants to bloom for as long as possible?

If this is part of your perennial wish list, you’re in the right place. I’ve compiled a list of perennial plants which are known for longer bloom cycles.

Here are your potential options for the longest lasting perennial flowers:

1. Black Eyed Susan

Black eyed Susan is hard to miss due to its bright yellow petals and dark centers. This flower thrives in areas with ample sunlight.

You should also plant these flowers in high quality, well-draining soil. Black eyed Susan is hardy in planting zones three through nine, and this flower should bloom from June to September.

2. Stonecrop

Stonecrop produces tiny blooms which form large clusters. These clusters appear as fluffy, colorful blooms which are hard to miss. These flowers grow best in areas with full to partial sunlight. They also need well-draining soil that’s rich in nutrients.

Should you like to grow stonecrop in your growing location, expect them to bloom during the fall months for approximately eight weeks. Stonecrop is hardy in planting zones four through nine.

3. Ice Plant

Ice plants are beautiful flowers with colorful, fringed blooms and bright centers. If you’d like to add a splash of color to your landscape, this might be a great fit.

When growing ice plants, they need full sunlight and well-draining soil. These flowers are hardy in planting zones five through nine, and you should expect their bloom cycle to last for one month.

4. Sneezeweed

Sneezeweed are brightly colored, layered flowers with centers that protrude from the petals. If you need a bright flower to liven up an area of your yard, this could be a good choice.

When growing sneezeweed, be sure to select a location with full sunlight and well-draining soil. However, it’s important for the soil to remain evenly and consistently damp. In return, these flowers should bloom for up to eight weeks in planting zones three through eight.

5. Blue Vervain

Blue vervain is an interesting flower that grows best in saturated conditions. If you have an area that suffers from poor drainage, you may be able to add life to this area by planting this option. Blue vervain produces long stems with cone-shaped vertical blooms.

Aside from providing damp conditions, be sure to plant blue vervain in full to partial sunlight. As long as this flower is growing in the right location, it should remain hardy in planting zones three through nine and bloom for six weeks.

6. Lupine

Lupines are beautiful flowers which produce colorful, vertical blooms. You may also know this plant as a bluebonnet.

Regardless of what you call it, lupine plants grow best in full sunlight and well-draining soil. These flowers are hardy in planting zones four through eight and should bloom for two months.

7. Astilbe

Astilbe is another brightly colored flower. This plant produces vertical, triangular blooms, and they come in both dark and bright color options.

When growing astilbe, it’s best to pick a location with morning sunlight and afternoon shade. It’s important for this plant to have evenly damp, well-draining soil. Expect astilbe to remain hardy in planting zones three through eight. The flowers should bloom for approximately three weeks.

8. Coreopsis

Coreopsis, sometimes known as tickseed, is a beautiful flower with daisy-like blooms. It grows best when provided well-draining soil and full sunlight.

Once you have the growing conditions down, you should prepare to see blooms from this plant. Coreopsis typically blooms from June until September. This is a hardy flower in planting zones four through nine.

9. Lavender

Lavender is a lovely, bushy plant with beautiful blooms. This plant does require more space, but can be grown either in the ground or in a container.

When growing lavender, be sure to provide a space with ample sunlight and well-draining soil. In return, you should anticipate lavender remaining hardy in planting zones five through nine and to bloom anywhere from one to three months, depending on the variety of lavender planted.

10. Shasta Daisy

Shasta daisies are traditional style daisies with white petals and bright yellow centers. If you’d like a bright but subtle flower to add life to your growing space, the Shasta daisy could be for you.

Should you choose to incorporate the Shasta daisy into your growing area, be sure to provide a location with full to partial sunlight and well-draining soil. The soil should also be of good quality. Shasta daisies should remain hardy in planting zones four through nine and bloom between four to six weeks.

11. Butterfly Bush

Butterfly bushes have a special place in my heart. My mother-in-law, who has since passed, loved these bushes in her yard. They’re beautiful and draw lots of pollinators to the area.

If you’d like to grow butterfly bushes, they’re a great perennial candidate in zones five through nine. These bushes need full sunlight and well-draining soil. Anticipate your butterfly bush beginning to bloom in summer and continuing through fall.

12. Catmint

Catmint is a large plant with rich green foliage and vertical, lavender blooms. Ensure you have the space for this plant as it can become as tall as three feet and be equally as wide. When growing catmint, the plant should be hardy in planting zones three through nine.

It also prefers to grow in full to partial sunlight and requires well-draining soil. Catmint should flower in summer until the temperatures become too hot. Don’t worry, though, because once the temperatures lower, catmint will continue to bloom into the fall.

13. Cranesbill

Cranesbill is a cup-shaped flower that appears delicate and blooms in beautiful pastel colors.  This flower is hardy in planting zones five and higher.

However, should you choose to grow cranesbill, be sure to provide the right growing conditions. This flower needs well-draining soil to avoid the roots from becoming oversaturated. The plant also needs full to partial sunlight. Anticipate cranesbill to bloom for up to five weeks.

14. Russian Sage

Russian sage is a large plant that produces lavender blooms. This plant can become as tall as three feet or larger. This is a favorite amongst perennials because, aside from being beautiful, it’s tolerant of both high temperatures and drought.

Should you wish to grow Russian sage, be sure to provide a growing location with ample sunlight and well-draining soil. Russian sage is hardy in planting zones four through nine. It tends to bloom for around fifteen weeks.

15. Dalmatian Bellflower

The dalmatian bellflower is an herbaceous perennial which produces beautiful bell-shaped flowers among green foliage. These plants require well-draining, evenly damp soil.

They also prefer full sun unless they’re growing in extremely hot climates. In this case, they do better when shaded in the afternoon. Dalmatian bellflowers are hardy in planting zones four through eight, and they bloom from spring until summer.

16. Bleeding Heart

Bleeding hearts are a unique shrub as they produce arching branches with colorful, heart-shaped blooms which appear as though they have a teardrop hanging.

Should you add bleeding heart to your landscape, they’re a hardy option in planting zones three through nine. This plant prefers partial sunlight and well-draining soil. Expect this shrub to bloom for approximately eight weeks in spring.

17. Wood Betony

Wood betony begins with a mound of green leaves. From the leaves comes long stems and  purple blooms which grow vertically.

If this plant is something you’d like to add to your growing area be sure to provide quality, well-draining soil and a location with partial shade. This plant is hardy in zones four and up. You should expect wood betony to bloom for about two months.

18. Perennial Salvias

Salvias are another beautiful option because of the green mound of foliage at the plant’s base and the colorful, vertical blooms atop long stems.

When growing salvias, be sure to provide a location with well-draining soil and full sunlight. These plants are hardy in zones four through ten and their blooms last approximately six weeks, depending upon variety.

19. Phlox

Phlox adds so much beauty to its growing location with the small, colorful blooms each plant produces. If you’d like to liven up your property with this plant, ensure you provide what it needs for success.

You should pick a growing location with around six hours of direct sunlight. Also, be sure to provide quality, well-draining soil. Phlox are hardy in planting zones four through eight. They bloom for about one month in late spring or early summer.

20. Ornamental Onion

Ornamental onions are unique perennial plants to grow around your home. They grow on long stems and have bright purple, round blooms at the top. They’re eye-catching for all the right reasons.

If you’d like to add ornamental onions to your growing space, expect them to remain hardy in planting zones four through eight. They bloom for three weeks as long as they’re grown in the right location which must include full sun and well-draining soil.

21. Stella de Oro Daylily

The stella de oro daylily could make a gorgeous addition to your landscape. This bright beauty has the typical wispy green foliage as a base, but it produces bright yellow hibiscus-shaped blooms.

Should this be a good fit for your area, be sure to provide adequate growing conditions. This flower needs full to partial sunlight and well-draining soil. These plants can stand up to both heat and humidity and are a hardy fit in planting zones three through ten. Each bloom only lasts a day, but the plant as a whole can bloom for up to three weeks.

22. Red Hot Poker

Red hot poker plants are unique due to their bright colors and vertical blooming technique. This plant gets its name because it resembles a red-hot poker.

These plants require a growing location with plenty of sunlight and well-draining soil. They’re hardy in planting zones six through nine and bloom from summer until fall.

23. Coneflower

Coneflowers standout because of their bright colors and protruding centers which make them resemble a cone.

When growing coneflowers, pick a location with full sunlight and well-draining soil. This is a hardy option for planting zones five through eight, and the flowers bloom for two to three months.

24. Spiked Speedwell

Spiked speedwell is another plant that grows from a mound of lush foliage, produces vertical blooms, and they come to a point which makes them appear spiked.

If this is the right plant for your landscape, plant spiked speedwell in a location with full sunlight and well-draining soil. This is a hardy option in planting zones three through eight. Expect these plants to bloom during the summer months.

25. Yarrow

Our final long-blooming perennial is yarrow. This plant produces small blooms which form larger, more colorful clusters.

Yarrow plants are great for planting zones three through nine, bloom for approximately six to eight weeks, and grow best in full sun and well-draining soil.

You now have twenty-five plants which are perennials and bloom for a prolonged period of time. If you’re looking for a way to liven up your home without having to plant each year, some of these ideas might work for you.

Be sure to pick the plants you not only like, but also can provide the right growing conditions and planting zone. Give these plants every reason to thrive, and you should be able to create a low-maintenance, perennial landscape for your home.

Learn More About Longest Lasting Perennial Flowers

https://nhmu.utah.edu/common-yarrow

https://www.uaex.uada.edu/yard-garden/resource-library/plant-week/redhot-poker-9-19-08.aspx

https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/bleeding-heart-dicentra-spectabilis/