Best Plants for Gardens

Gardening can be a challenge anywhere you live, but by choosing plants that are top performers in ease of maintenance, ability to survive and thrive, and of course length of bloom time will ensure your garden has a showstopping success. Perennials should always be included in any planting design, due to their reappearance year after year. They play a long-running role in any garden's revival, always with an audience waiting for them to re-emerge in the Spring. My top ten picks will make the scene in Zones 3-9, so if you live in the majestic Rocky Mountains like I do, or the sweltering heat of the South, my best plants for gardens are sure to steal the show.

Salvia: The Salvia family is sure to please in any setting. Flowering spikes of colors in deep purple, lavender, pink and white are not only reliable but attract all the attention. Most varieties are around 18-24 inches and make their debut early in the summer, although in my garden the variety May Night' blooms nonstop spring to frost. Caradonna' is a relatively new variety similar to May Night' only with burgundy-black stems for a smoldering effect. I also am partial to Plumosa,' which has dusty rose colored blossoms resembling chenille fabric. Salvias love the heat and can tolerate drought and are critter resistant, what else could a gardener ask for?

Gaillardia: Often called Blanket Flower, Gaillardia flowers are daisy-like in form and come in the hot hues of red, orange and yellow and all shades in between. Fanfare' is a real drama queen, with flaring trumpet shaped petals of scarlet fading out to bright yellow. Very vivid in color but behaving in habit, Fanfare' will carry your garden through all the seasons. The Burgundy' Blanket Flower is a heavy bloomer reaching 30" in height and is a great plant for those who are non-red lovers. Nearly new Oranges and Lemons' is a crowd-pleaser too that will brighten up a blah spot. Gaillardias grow in any well-drained soil but even in my clay beds they outshine their neighbors. Deer resistant, drought tolerant and sun-baked indulgent nature round out its attributes. Give a Gaillardia a try today!

Dianthus: "Pinks" have been a garden staple plant for generations and show no sign of stopping. Their charming nature carries them anywhere, from a formal four-square planting to a casual cottage feel, a Dianthus variety is out there for everyone. I happen to love the mat formers like crimson Brilliant' and Arctic

• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

---

Add your voice

Know something about Best plants to grow in a garden?
We want to hear your view. Write now!