Browse Plants

(12 user reviews)

Large flowers consisting of brassy orange-yellow rays surrounding brown cones are what make this plant so popular. It blooms for 7 or 8 weeks beginning in midsummer. The flowers top 18- to 30-inch-tall plants that will readily self sow in cultivated soils. 

This biennial or short-lived perennial has given rise to numerous cultivars which are often grown as annuals. From summer into early autumn, it bears daisy-like blossoms (to 3 inches across) with light or deep yellow rays and brownish-purple centers. The flowers are a staple in late summer bouquets.

(2 user reviews)

'Indian Summer' is a standout among a sea of Black-eyed Susans because of its extra-large, golden yellow flowerheads. It will bloom from early summer until first frost. Use it in borders, cottage gardens, meadows, or for naturalizing. Butterflies are drawn to it. The species is native to the central U.S.

This choice species makes a strong vertical statement with its large, smooth, sea-green leaves and towering stems to 6 feet tall. It bears short, yellow ray florets with giant, upright cones at the center. It prefers average soil with good drainage, and is excellent in native or wild plantings.

(1 user review)

This dignified U.S. native species has downy leaves and bears clusters of luminous clear-yellow flowers with reddish-brown center cones. It blooms for over a month starting in mid- to late-summer.

The unique, finely quilled, 2-inch-wide flowers are what make 'Henry Eilers' stand out from the rest of the coneflowers. The petals sit separate from one another, forming a brilliant, golden yellow starburst around a dark brownish purple cone. The blooms grow on strong, upright, 4- to 5-foot-tall stems in late summer, and are produced in such abundance that you can cut some for bouquets and you'll never even notice they are missing from the garden. The stems are covered with a soft, hairy down, while the leaves have a pleasing vanilla-and-anise scent.

This biennial makes a superb, self-sown companion in a mixed border or wild garden. It reaches up to 5 feet tall and exhibits a long-lasting, airy spray of small, daisy-like blossoms in yellow with purple-black centers. The flowers are beautiful in late summer bouquets. 

(7 user reviews)

This three-foot-tall evergreen shrub bears many tubular, blue or purple, petunia-like flowers on dark stems over a long period. Each flower lasts for just one day. It is a fast grower that may self-seed aggressively. Use in a border, container, or at waterside. Can be grown as an annual in cooler areas.

This species has open-faced coral-red blossoms from late spring until fall. 

'Indigo Spires' sage is a vigorous hybrid prized for its 12- to 15-inch-long, twisting spikes of dark violet flowers. It is a non-stop bloomer from early summer through fall. Blooming can be further encouraged by pinching stem tips early in the growing season and deadheading the spikes once they fade. 'Indigo Spires' quickly grows to 4 feet high, and can be grown as an annual where not hardy.  

Throughout the summer, 'Mystic Spires Blue' produces long stalks of dark blue flowers, which continue to reward in abundance when deadheaded. Refresh tired plants in midsummer by cutting them back by half. This cultivar makes an excellent bedding or container plant.

This hybrid of S. nemorosa and S. sylvestris is a drought-tolerant perennial that lends vivid purple-blue hues to the garden from summer to early fall on 1.5- to 3-foot-tall spikes. Deadheading prolongs bloom. The spikes rise from a clump of silvery green leaves that grows to about 2 feet tall and wide.

(1 user review)

This drought-tolerant perennial bears abundant pure blue flower spikes in early summer and until fall if spent flowers are removed promptly. It forms an erect clump 20 inches tall by 18 inches wide, with wrinkled, softly hairy leaves.

(5 user reviews)

This drought-tolerant perennial bears deep violet-blue flower spikes in early summer and then sporadically if spent flowers are removed promptly. It forms an erect clump 2.5 feet tall by 1.5 feet wide, with wrinkled, soft hairy leaves.

This biennial or short-lived perennial is grown for its massive, downy-silver rosettes of foliage. In its second year, it spawns plumes of white or pinkish flowers with gray calyces in mid- to late summer. The plant has a spiky form, 3 feet tall by 2 feet wide. Locate it where the rosettes can be easily seen.

Pitcher sage is a wonderful wildflower found growing over a wide area of the Great Plains. Blooming in late summer and early fall, this perennial is admired for its sky blue flowers and remarkable xeric qualities. This salvia grows to 30 to 36 inches in height, but may be pinched back for bushier growth.

This short-lived, tender perennial shrub native to the Canary Islands off the African coast sends up 6-foot white-furred stems cloaked with long, felted, arrow-shaped leaves and topped, summer to frost, with plumes of purplish violet flowers clasped by red-tipped calyxes. It grows up to 4 feet wide.

(2 user reviews)

This choice species boasts narrow, downy sage-green leaves and true sky-blue blossoms from summer to fall. It has woody stems and forms a beautiful specimen 12 inches tall by 18 inches wide.

(1 user review)

This upright tender perennial provides rich color for annual bedding schemes where it is not hardy. Its deep red flowers are borne on 2- to 2.5- foot, open spikes from summer to autumn. Plants grow to about a foot wide and bear hairy, oval to heart-shaped leaves. Salvias are some of the showiest plants for containers, annual borders, and mixed borders. Butterflies and hummingbirds love them.