This is the time when many plants say “Thank you for having put me in your garden” or “Please, put me in now!”. Gardening is a positive experience. Newcomers discover what works in their flower beds or what doesn’t and over time they learn to relax and enjoy the process of growing. It takes a growing season or sometimes a bit more for plants to come to their full potential and glory. When summer arrives, all gardeners get to enjoy the pay-off for dirty hands and dirty jeans.
Bee Balm (Monarda), also called wild bergamot is beloved in flower beds for its beautiful blooms and fragrant foliage.
Blooming summer plants, whether perennials or annuals, are essential for any garden as they attract butterflies, hummingbirds, bees and other pollinating insects. Flowers fill gardens with fragrant scents and colours.
Night-Scented Stock (Matthiola longipetala) is an old-fashioned annual that reaches its peak fragrance at twilight.
Some of the best plants that bloom from summer to fall are: Bee balm (Monarda), Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia), Dahlia, Coneflower (Echinacea), Petunias, Lavender, Hydrangeas, Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus), Garden phlox (Phlox paniculata), Creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum), Night-Scented Stock (Matthiola longipetala).
Read More: How to Plant Shrubs and Trees Correctly
With time spent in a garden, anyone can choose from a variety of summer plants: Tall flowering plants, small flowering shrubs, or gorgeous blooming ground cover plants.
Victorian Secret Shasta Daisy (Leucanthemum superbum) is a prolific bloomer and good choice for sunny borders.
Perennial flowers come back every year, as they survive through the winter. Annual plants grow flowers for one growing season and don’t come back every year. However if annuals drop seeds that germinate in the spring they will flower in the next growing season.
▲ Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ (Montbretia) An extremely showy South African native that is a magnet for hummingbirds and butterflies.
▲ Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is a favorite flower that blooms heavily for many weeks in late summer.
▲ Hidcote Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) A great fragrant plant for a dwarf hedge, edging, or for massing.
Summer drought and smoky skies aside, a bit of dirt and water, and all is blooming.