Native columbine blends with Caesar's Brotther Siberian iris, May Night Salvia and KnockOut Rose. Summer blooming lilies tower. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp
If there’s anything that consumers want in their perennials, it’s low maintenance, says Pam Bennett, who runs the trial gardens for Ohio State University Extension.
She evaluates annual and perennial plants at the Gateway Learning Gardens, a five-acre plot in Springfield, Ohio, that is open to the public. The Master Gardener coordinator for Ohio, Bennett spoke recently about Top Performing, Low Maintenance Perennials for Midwest Gardens at a program of the Indianapolis Museum of Art Horticultural Society.
In the trial garden, plants are evaluated for their flower power, disease and insect resistance, maintenance demands and drought and rain tolerance. Here are three seasonal favorites from her list. Each of these is a good companion for spring bulbs, too.
Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) is the North America native species. Red-yellow bell-shaped flowers dangle about a foot above a nice mound of scalloped green leaves. It does best in full sun to part shade in moist, but well-drained soil. It blooms from mid-spring to early summer. This plant self-sows a bit, but is not invasive. It also does not seem to get leaf miners, a common insect on many other columbine, she said.
Pasque flower. Photo courtesy University of Illinois
Pasque flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) has reddish-purple blooms in April and May in full sun to part shade. When blooming, it is about 12 inches tall. Plant in well-drained moist soil in the front of the border. The cuplike flowers age into silky seed heads, which are beautiful in their own right, she said.
Iron Butterfly Tiarella. Photo courtesy Terra Nova Nurseries.
Foam flower (Tiarella) is an under used native ground cover. One type spreads by rhizomes (T. cordifolia) and the other is a clump grower (T. wherryi). They do best in part shade to full shade in moist, well-drained soil. It will go dormant if it gets too hot and dry. The slightly fragrant flowers are white or pink and many varieties have spectacular foliage. ‘Iron Butterfly’ made the best list.