16 Colorful Perennial Flowers That Bloom from Spring to Fall (2024)

21 Hardy Perennials That Promise Unstoppable Color Every Year

Hellebore

What a tough beauty! Hellebores are one of the earliest perennials to bloom from spring to fall. The large bowl- or saucer-shaped flowers are delicate and lovely. Flowers bloom in white with splashy pink, yellow, or maroon markings. Hellebores are cold-hardy and deer-resistant and do best in lightly shaded locations.

Season of Bloom: Winter/early spring

Growing Conditions: Part to full shade in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 2 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Virginia Bluebells

Virginia bluebells create a sea of bell-like blue flowers in spring, perfect for brightening up woodland gardens. After blooming, these plants virtually disappear, so place other perennials around them for continued color after they fade. They make ideal companions for daffodils and other spring-blooming bulbs.

Season of Bloom: Mid to late spring

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in consistently moist soil

Size: Up to 2 feet tall

Zones: 3-8

Viola

This smaller cousin to the pansy offers masses of tiny, delicate perennial flowers that bloom from spring to fall under the right circ*mstances. Violas bloom in various colors, including white, blue, purple, yellow, and many color mixes. They add perky color to spring container gardens and window boxes. Violas are best planted in a spot shaded from the afternoon sun because excessive heat will kill them. Their blooms are edible and make a colorful addition to a salad.

Season of Bloom: Early to late spring

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 12 inches tall

Zones: 2-11

Peony

One of the most-loved spring flowers, this bushy perennial produces big round buds that open to large, fragrant blooms. Peonies offer a variety of flower types: Petal-packed doubles, semi-doubles, anemone-centered, and singles. Flowers come in bright and pastel shades: Red, rose, pink, salmon, white, and yellow. Peony plants are famously long-lived and can bloom happily for decades with little care.

Season of Bloom: Spring

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 3-8

Nepeta

The soft purplish-blue blossoms of catmint, a perennial flower that blooms from spring to fall, add color throughout the seasons. The gray-green foliage is pretty, too. If you shear back plants when their blooms wane, you can encourage another flush of bloom. Catmint tolerates hot weather and can grow through times of drought.

There's a type of catmint for every garden: short varieties that make excellent edging plants and taller types that can add color to a flower border or mixed shrub landscape plan. Plus, bees and butterflies love it!

Season of Bloom: Spring and summer

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 3-9

Iris

The delicate crepe-paper petals and intricate bloom of the iris make it a must-have in mixed flower borders. This easy-to-grow perennial produces spearlike foliage and long stems topped with fabulous flowers. Siberian iris blooms in spring. Classic bearded iris blooms in early summer (some varieties, such as 'Peach Jam' can rebloom later in the season, too). Flower colors include white, blue, purple, orange, yellow, and pink.

Season of Bloom: Late spring into summer

Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 3-9

Baptisia

This native prairie plant looks stunning when in full bloom. Also called false indigo, baptisia plants are hefty; they measure 3 to 4 feet tall and wide. In spring, the plants send up sturdy spires of blue, white, yellow, or bicolor pealike blooms. They make elegant additions to cut flower arrangements. Baptisia is drought tolerant and takes very little care to bloom for years.

Season of Bloom: Late spring

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 4 feet tall

Zones: 3-8

Perennial Geranium

Hardy perennial geraniums differ greatly from the annual plant with the same name. The flowers of perennial geranium continue blooming in shades of pink, purple, blue, and white for several weeks, making them a colorful addition to the front of perennial borders. Plus, the foliage forms tidy, low-growing mounds, making these perennials ideal bed-edging plants. Perennial geraniums often take on pretty fall color and are generally easy to grow.

Season of Bloom: Summer

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 18 inches tall

Zones: 5-9

Black-Eyed Susan

Black-eyed Susan is a perennial flower that blooms from spring to fall and offers beautiful sunny hues (yellow or orange flowers, depending on the variety) for beds and borders. Plus, they make long-lasting cut flowers for bouquets. These prairie natives are easy-care, drought-tolerant, deer-resistant, and pollinator-friendly.

Season of Bloom: Summer into fall

Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 3-11

Coreopsis

Airy, sunny coreopsis is one of the easiest-care perennials that bloom from spring to fall in the garden. It blooms for quite a while, starting up in summer and continuing through autumn. The daisy-like flowers bloom in bright yellow, but there are also varieties with pale yellow, pink, or bicolor blooms. Deadhead flowers to encourage additional blooms.

Season of Bloom: Summer into fall

Growing Condition: Full sun in well-drained, slightly dry soil

Size: Up to 2 feet tall

Zones: 3-9

Echinacea

Purple coneflower is a hardy, sturdy prairie native and a wildlife magnet. Originally, coneflower came in pinkish purple or white, but recent hybrids have produced flowers in a rainbow of colors: Yellow, orange, burgundy, cream, and other shades. Coneflower is also nearly pest and disease-free. Plus, it makes a lovely and long-lasting cut flower.

Season of Bloom: Summer

Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 3-9

Phlox

By growing several different types of phlox, you can have something in bloom for months. Garden and meadow phlox produce large flower heads in summer in white, pink, lavender, purple, and red. These taller beauties are ideal toward the back of mixed borders. Lower-growing types, such as creeping phlox and woodland phlox, make colorful groundcovers and bloom in spring.

Season of Bloom: Spring or summer (depending on type)

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in evenly moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 4 feet tall

Zones: 4-8

Foxglove

Try foxglove if you're looking for a tall, showy plant for your back border. The tall spires are covered with a mass of blooms. Most foxgloves are biennials (they need two years to bloom and then die in the fall). But once you get foxglove established, they reseed, so they seem like perennials. If plants are in an open area, the tall spires may need staking to protect them from wind gusts.

Season of Bloom: Summer

Growing Conditions: Full to part shade in well-drained, evenly moist soil

Size: Up to 6 feet tall

Zones: 3-8

'Autumn Joy' Sedum

Add russet hues to your fall garden with lovely 'Autumn Joy' flowers. This large sedum grows 2 feet tall. The gray-green succulent leaves look stunning all summer. In late summer, they bear large green-budded heads that open pink and turn russet red in autumn. Pollinators will flock to the blooms. Because it's a succulent, 'Autumn Joy' doesn't mind drought or heat.

Season of Bloom: Late summer into fall

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 2 feet tall

Zones: 3-8

Russian Sage

Color and texture in one plant! Russian sage offers wispy wands of lavender or blue flowers surrounded by silvery foliage. This large, shrubby perennial offers color when you need it most: In late summer and autumn. The foot-long flowers stay in bloom for weeks. Plant in drifts to enjoy the intense color; close planting helps avoid staking because these tall plants are prone to flopping over.

Season of Bloom: Summer into fall

Growing Conditions: Full sun in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 5 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Asters

The starlike flowers of asters are the grand finale of perennial flowers that bloom from spring to fall, almost completely covered in blooms late in the summer and often lasting until the first frost. Asters typically flower in deep purple and lush lavender, but there are also white and pink varieties. Plants can reach up to 6 feet tall, but there are also compact versions, some of which can grow in containers or window boxes. Bees and butterflies love asters, sipping up nectar as one of the garden's last big meals.

Season of Bloom: Late summer into fall

Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade in well-drained, evenly moist soil

Size: Up to 6 feet tall

Zones: 3-9