Late summer splendour – Perennials that shine when summer slows…

Perennials that shine when summer slows…

Perennials are often seen as the stalwart of the borders, returning year on year, bringing colour, shape and sheer joy as they emerge from their winter slumber. With a bit of thought and planning perennials will bring interest to your garden throughout the seasons.

August, the time when a gentle transition begins. Some blooms begin to soften and retreat, others step forward and some continue to flower all summer long, like the roses that adorn our pillars and arches.

In the borders, it is time for the later flowering perennials to take centre stage, ensuring colour and interest right through until Autumn graces us with its presence and the trees and shrubs begin their own fiery display.

With a whole host of perennials to choose from here are a few of our later flowering favourites…

Japanese anemones provide elegant, saucer-shaped blooms in white or blush to deep magenta, thrive in partial shade, and attract late-flying pollinators when other garden plants begin to fade

Phlox for their billowing mounds of fragrant summer flowers, excellent versatility, and long blooming season

Asters bring vibrant whites, pinks, lilacs, blues, and purples to the garden when other summer blooms have faded and their open, daisy-like single flowers are excellent magnets for pollinators like bees and butterflies

Rudbeckia produce a continuous display of fiery yellows, oranges, and reds from mid-summer well into autumn and the single-flowered varieties are superb for attracting pollinators, while leaving spent seedheads on the stems provides essential food for birds and shelter for garden wildlife in colder months

Heleniums also have rich, fiery hues that add warmth to borders and are hugely popular with bees and other pollinating insects, making them ideal for wildlife-focused gardens and their sturdy stems and long-lasting blooms are great for bringing into the home.

These are just a few possibilities and create the perfect opportunity to bring a touch of late-summer splendour in your garden.