Perennials rated low for maintenance, for anyone who wants a good-looking border but has little time for it.
99 plants from our verified database, by name. A plant is only listed when the data this list relies on is not in doubt. How our data is made
Aster alpinus 30 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A low, cushion-forming perennial that carries large yellow-centred daisies in violet, blue, pink or white in late spring and early summer, which makes…
Stachys monieri 55 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A long-lived perennial that makes a dense cushion of glossy, dark green, scalloped leaves, above which tight rosy-purple flower spikes stand for weeks…
Gypsophila paniculata 90 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
In summer its much-branched, wiry dome turns into a cloud of tiny white or pale pink flowers, which makes it ideal for hiding the gaps left by…
Platycodon grandiflorus 60 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A long-lived, bushy perennial whose puffed-up, balloon-like buds open in summer into blue, white or pink starry bells. Plant it in sun or part shade…
Rudbeckia fulgida 80 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A dependable, long-flowering perennial with golden yellow, dark-centred daisies from midsummer into autumn, popular with bees and butterflies. It does…
Liatris spicata 90 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A cormous perennial that sends stiff, upright stems out of a tuft of grassy leaves, with purple, pink or white bottlebrush spikes that open from the…
Dicentra spectabilis 80 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
An old cottage garden favourite: in late spring its arching stems carry rows of pink and white heart-shaped flowers. Plant it in part shade or…
Geranium sanguineum 30 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A tough ground-covering perennial that forms a low mound of finely cut leaves, dotted with magenta-pink flowers from late spring into summer, and…
Baptisia australis 1.2 m × 1.2 m after 10 years
A shrub-like, very long-lived perennial that carries lupin-like spikes of indigo blue flowers in late spring above blue-green, clover-like foliage,…
Echinops bannaticus 1.2 m × 60 cm after 10 years
A tall, architectural perennial that carries steel-blue, globe-shaped flower heads on stiff greyish stems in midsummer: bees and bumblebees work it…
Hylotelephium × hybridum 55 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
The upright autumn stonecrops sold by cultivar name: clumps of fleshy stems and leaves that carry flat flower heads from late summer to late autumn,…
Dianthus carthusianorum 50 cm × 25 cm after 10 years
The pink of dry grasslands: thin, wiry stems rise in summer from grassy evergreen tufts and carry tight heads of small magenta flowers that…
Nepeta × faassenii 50 cm × 80 cm after 10 years
A loose mound of grey-green, aromatic foliage that carries clouds of lavender-blue flowers from May to September and is a favourite of pollinators.…
Nepeta × faassenii 'Walker's Low' 75 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
This grey-green catmint brings lavender-blue flowers and plenty of pollinators to sunny borders, path edges and rose plantings. Once established it…
Anemone hupehensis 75 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A perennial that flowers in pink or white from late summer until the first frosts, bringing colour when most of the border has finished. It does…
Astilbe chinensis 60 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A perennial with ferny, dark green leaves that sends up stiff, feathery pink or lilac plumes from midsummer, later than the garden hybrid astilbes. It…
Paeonia lactiflora 90 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
A long-lived, bushy perennial with large, scented flowers in late spring and foliage that makes a good backdrop in the border until autumn. Plant it…
Allium schoenoprasum 45 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A kitchen garden perennial that forms dense, grassy clumps: you can cut its hollow, onion-flavoured leaves from spring to autumn, and the purple globe…
Aquilegia vulgaris 70 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A graceful perennial with nodding, spurred flowers in blue, purple, pink or white in late spring and early summer above blue-green, lobed leaves. It…
Polypodium vulgare 30 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Common polypody is a small evergreen fern that creeps slowly on its rhizome to weave a loose mat over mossy rocks, stone walls and the bases of trees.…
Achillea millefolium 80 cm × 80 cm after 10 years
A tough native perennial with finely cut, aromatic foliage and flat flower heads that bees and butterflies visit all summer; garden cultivars also…
Primula veris 25 cm × 20 cm after 10 years
A low, rosette-forming perennial of meadows and wood edges that opens nodding, fragrant, egg-yellow flowers in April on stems held above the leaves.…
Crocus × hybridus 12 cm × 15 cm after 10 years
Spring crocuses bring the first colour of the year: the smaller-flowered early kinds open at the end of winter, the large-flowered Dutch hybrids…
Veronicastrum virginicum 1.5 m × 75 cm after 10 years
A tall, slender perennial with whorls of leaves on strong, straight stems, topped in summer by thin, candelabra-like spikes of white, pale pink or…
Euphorbia polychroma 45 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A perennial that forms a neat dome and glows sulphur yellow around April and May, then turns red in autumn. It suits a sunny, dry border, also on limy…
Narcissus × hybridus 40 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
Daffodils are among the most dependable spring bulbs: they return every year, the bulbs multiply by offsets so a handful thickens into a dense clump…
Iris pallida 90 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A bearded iris with sweetly scented, pale lavender-blue flowers and grey-green sword leaves that stay tidy after flowering; the striped forms are…
Hemerocallis × hybrida 80 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Garden daylilies are almost indestructible, long-lived perennials: above a clump of arching, grassy leaves they carry trumpet-shaped flowers for weeks…
Hemerocallis 'Stella de Oro' 40 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A low, dense daylily that keeps producing lightly scented golden yellow flowers in flushes from early summer to autumn, so it is rewarding as an…
Amsonia tabernaemontana 90 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
A long-lived perennial that builds a dense, bushy clump: pale blue starry flowers in late spring, then narrow leaves that turn golden yellow in…
Lavandula angustifolia 'Hidcote' 60 cm × 1 m after 10 years
'Hidcote' forms a compact mound of silvery foliage topped with fragrant, dark-purple flowers that attract bees. It works well along sunny borders,…
Achillea filipendulina 1.2 m × 75 cm after 10 years
A tall, stiff-stemmed perennial whose flat, golden yellow flower plates last all summer and keep well cut or dried, while its spicy-scented, ferny…
Hosta fortunei 60 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
The Fortune's hosta group (for example gold-edged 'Aureomarginata' and white-edged 'Francee' and 'Patriot') is a dependable foliage plant for part…
Penstemon digitalis 1 m × 50 cm after 10 years
In early summer stiff, upright stems rise from a low rosette of leaves, carrying loose spikes of white tubular flowers that bees and bumblebees…
Veronica longifolia 90 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
An upright, clump-forming perennial that carries long, slender lilac-blue spikes above narrow toothed leaves in summer; there are white and pink…
Aruncus dioicus 1.8 m × 1 m after 10 years
A big, bushy woodland perennial native to the region that lights up shady corners in early summer with head-high plumes of creamy white flowers. Plant…
Dryopteris affinis 1 m × 90 cm after 10 years
Golden male fern is a big, sturdy, shuttlecock-shaped fern: the fronds unfurl yellowish green in spring with stalks covered in golden-brown scales,…
Anemone tomentosa 1.1 m × 90 cm after 10 years
The toughest and earliest of the Japanese-type anemones: pale pink flowers float on thin stems above vine-like leaves from late summer into autumn. It…
Muscari armeniacum 20 cm × 10 cm after 10 years
A low spring bulb with small grape-like clusters of mostly cobalt blue flowers (pale blue, white or pink in some cultivars) from late March to May;…
Sanguisorba officinalis 90 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A native perennial of wet meadows: thin, wiry stems rise from a clump of pinnate leaves and carry small, dark red, egg-shaped flower heads from July…
Camassia leichtlinii 1 m × 40 cm after 10 years
A late-spring bulb that carries starry blue, purple or creamy white flowers on waist-high stems, just in the gap between tulips and the summer…
Anemone blanda 15 cm × 20 cm after 10 years
A tiny tuberous anemone that weaves a carpet of blue, white or pink daisy-like flowers under deciduous trees and shrubs in early spring. Plant the…
Geranium × hybridum 50 cm × 70 cm after 10 years
This record covers the garden cranesbills sold by cultivar name: loose mounds of cut leaves with saucer-shaped blue, purple, pink or white flowers,…
Bergenia cordifolia 60 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
Its large, round, leathery, glossy leaves stay all year and flush burgundy and bronze in the cold, and in early spring it carries clusters of pink…
Aster ericoides 80 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A densely branched aster from the North American prairies with tiny, heather-like leaves, covered in September and October by clouds of very small…
Hosta sieboldiana 'Elegans' 90 cm × 1.5 m after 10 years
Its large, corrugated blue-green leaves fill shady borders nicely, and it also works as a specimen or in a large container. Give it humus-rich,…
Hyacinthus orientalis 25 cm × 10 cm after 10 years
A spring bulb with dense, waxy flower spikes in April whose scent fills the whole garden; sold in blue, purple, pink, red, white and yellow cultivars.…
Echinacea × hybrida 70 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Modern hybrid coneflowers come from crosses of purple coneflower with its relatives: the same stiff-stemmed flower with a central cone, but in orange,…
Aster amellus 60 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A low, bushy aster with large lavender, violet or pink daisies with yellow centres from late summer well into autumn, always busy with bees and…
Paeonia Itoh Group 80 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
A group of hybrids between herbaceous and tree peonies ('Bartzella', 'Cora Louise', 'Julia Rose', 'Hillary', 'Kopper Kettle'): it dies back to the…
Anemone × hybrida 1 m × 1 m after 10 years
A perennial that flowers from late summer into autumn, when most borders are winding down: white or pink blooms float on slender stems and look best…
Aster ageratoides 70 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A very tough, late-flowering aster: from late summer until the frosts it is covered in a haze of pale lilac, white or pinkish flowers, in sun or…
Athyrium niponicum 45 cm × 55 cm after 10 years
Japanese painted fern is a low, arching fern usually sold in its painted forms: the fronds are silvery grey with a green wash and burgundy midribs,…
Polystichum polyblepharum 50 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Glossy, dark green, finely divided fronds form a neat vase-shaped clump that stays green through winter. In spring the tips of the unfurling fronds…
Athyrium filix-femina 90 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
A deciduous fern with lacy, light green fronds that form a shuttlecock-shaped clump, good for filling shady, moist spots under trees and shrubs.…
Veronica teucrium 40 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A low, bushy perennial that is almost hidden under spikes of vivid gentian-blue flowers in May and June, to the delight of bees and butterflies. It…
Helleborus orientalis 45 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
An evergreen, shade-tolerant perennial that carries nodding white, pink, plum or speckled flowers from late winter into spring, when little else is in…
Doronicum orientale 50 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
One of the earliest yellow daisy-flowered perennials: it blooms in spring alongside tulips, above fresh green heart-shaped leaves. It suits part shade…
Calamintha nepeta 45 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A low, bushy perennial that wraps itself in a cloud of tiny white or pale lilac flowers from midsummer until frost and is then one of the busiest…
Salvia verticillata 75 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A loose, bushy perennial with soft, hairy leaves that carries whorled spikes of smoky purple flowers from June to September, constantly visited by…
Dryopteris filix-mas 1 m × 90 cm after 10 years
A large, shuttlecock-shaped woodland fern that also grows wild in the region, and one of the least demanding ferns for shade and part shade. Use it…
Caltha palustris 40 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A perennial for pond margins, stream sides and permanently wet, boggy ground that opens glossy golden-yellow flowers in early spring above round,…
Thalictrum aquilegiifolium 1 m × 50 cm after 10 years
An airy, tall perennial with blue-green, columbine-like leaves and clouds of fluffy lilac flowers in early summer. It suits part shade and…
Salvia pratensis 70 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A violet-blue wildflower of dry meadows: from late May slender flower spikes rise above a basal rosette of wrinkled leaves and draw bees and…
Crocosmia × crocosmiiflora 90 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Above sword-shaped fresh green leaves it carries arching sprays of fiery red, orange or yellow flowers in midsummer, and they last well when cut.…
Origanum vulgare 60 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Oregano is a wildflower and a kitchen herb in one: from midsummer its pinkish-purple flowers are busy with bees and butterflies. It is happy in sunny,…
Allium × hybridum 90 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
Tall ornamental onions flower in late spring and early summer: their purple, white or pink globes on bare, straight stems fill the gap between…
Sedum telephium 60 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A fleshy-leaved, upright succulent perennial with flat heads of pink, purple or reddish flowers from late summer into autumn, when it is covered in…
Pulsatilla vulgaris 25 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
Pasque flower opens its silky-haired, bell-shaped purple flowers in early spring, almost before the leaves, and follows them with feathery, rounded…
Campanula persicifolia 90 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Peach-leaved bellflower sends up slender, upright stems from a rosette of narrow leaves in early summer, carrying large blue or white bells. It…
Anaphalis triplinervis 50 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A bushy perennial with grey, felted leaves that carries small, yellow-centred, white papery flower heads from midsummer into autumn; they are lovely…
Echinacea purpurea 1.2 m × 60 cm after 10 years
Plant it in a sunny perennial border, preferably in a small group, for pink-purple summer flowers that attract bees and butterflies. Established…
Verbena bonariensis 1.5 m × 60 cm after 10 years
Tall, airy, almost leafless stems carry clusters of purple flowers from summer until the frosts, and butterflies and bees visit them all day. You…
Aster pyrenaeus 60 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A European aster that makes a low, broad, loose mound, covered for weeks from late summer into autumn with large, pale lilac, narrow-rayed daisies…
Lychnis flos-cuculi 60 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A slender, airy wildflower whose pink (rarely white) petals are each cut into four narrow strips, giving the flowers their ragged look from May to…
Persicaria amplexicaulis 1.2 m × 1.2 m after 10 years
Red bistort is one of the longest-flowering perennials: from early summer until the frosts its dense, leafy mound keeps producing slender spikes of…
Centranthus ruber 80 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A bushy perennial with fleshy, blue-green leaves that carries clusters of small, fragrant crimson, pink or white flowers from late spring to autumn…
Lychnis coronaria 80 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Above rosettes of silver-grey, felted leaves it opens vivid magenta (in some forms white) flowers on branching grey stems in early summer. It is…
Geranium 'Rozanne' 60 cm × 80 cm after 10 years
'Rozanne' is useful for covering the ground beneath roses or softening the front of a perennial border, with violet-blue, white-centred flowers from…
Perovskia atriplicifolia 1.2 m × 1 m after 10 years
A subshrub with silvery, aromatic foliage that carries a haze of lavender-blue flowers from midsummer into autumn and is very popular with bees. It…
Limonium latifolium 70 cm × 70 cm after 10 years
From a rosette of broad, leathery leaves it sends up wiry, much-branched stems in midsummer that carry a cloud of tiny lavender-blue flowers,…
Armeria maritima 20 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
A low, dense evergreen cushion of grass-like leaves, topped in late spring by pink or white flower globes on thin stalks. Use it in rock gardens, as…
Sedum spectabile 50 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A succulent perennial forming a neat clump of fleshy, blue-green leaves, with flat, hand-sized flower heads from late summer into autumn that are…
Brunnera macrophylla 45 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A shade-loving perennial with large, rough, heart-shaped leaves that carries a haze of tiny sky-blue, forget-me-not-like flowers above the foliage…
Iris sibirica 90 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
A graceful iris with grassy leaves that carries blue, purple or white flowers on tall stems in May and June, and keeps a handsome, grass-like clump of…
Scabiosa columbaria 60 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Small scabious forms a low mound of grey-green, divided leaves and carries lilac-blue, pink or white pincushion flowers on long, thin stems from…
Veronica spicata 50 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A slender perennial with upright spikes of blue flowers (pink or white in some cultivars) that draw bees and butterflies for weeks in summer. Give…
Lychnis viscaria 40 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
A native wildflower that sends up spikes of vivid magenta-pink flowers in May and June from tufts of grass-like leaves; the stems are sticky below the…
Hylotelephium 'Herbstfreude' 60 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Plant it in a sunny perennial border or gravel garden for late-summer and autumn flowers that attract bees and butterflies. Once established, it needs…
Oenothera fruticosa 50 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
An easy, sun-loving perennial whose bright yellow, four-petalled flowers open by day, unlike most evening primroses, and follow each other for…
Inula ensifolia 30 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A low, dense, dome-shaped perennial with narrow sword-like leaves, covered for weeks in summer with golden yellow daisies. It suits sunny, dry, even…
Coreopsis verticillata 60 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
An airy perennial with fine, thread-like foliage, covered in starry yellow flowers from early summer into autumn. It is undemanding and long-lived…
Phlomis russeliana 90 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
Turkish sage makes a dense, weed-suppressing carpet of large, heart-shaped, felted leaves, and in summer its stiff stems carry tiers of soft yellow…
Dryopteris wallichiana 1 m × 90 cm after 10 years
A large, shuttlecock-shaped fern whose new fronds unfurl golden green in spring against dark, almost black scales on the stalks and midribs. It…
Lythrum virgatum 1 m × 45 cm after 10 years
A slender, clump-forming perennial with wand-like stems that carries loose spikes of purplish pink flowers for many weeks in summer and draws bees and…
Aster divaricatus 70 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
One of the few asters that flowers in shade: from late summer into autumn its dark, wiry, zigzag stems carry clouds of small white daisies above…
Eranthis hyemalis 10 cm × 10 cm after 10 years
One of the very first flowers of the year: golden yellow cups on a green leafy ruff, barely a hand high, open in February and March, often through…
Salvia nemorosa 60 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A tough perennial of dry loess grasslands whose garden cultivars carry dense, upright spikes of violet, blue, pink or white in early summer, always…
Salvia nemorosa 'Caradonna' 60 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
Deep purple flower spikes and almost black stems work well in sunny borders, alongside ornamental grasses or in larger pots, and attract…
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