Give mom a gift that keeps on giving. A gift of beauty, perennials are plants that come back year after year. Three of our favorite perennials that make a statement in May and June are Roses, Peonies, and Iris.
Roses
With moist, well-drained soil and full sunshine, what blooms more beautifully in every color imaginable than a rose? With many varieties to choose from, here is a breakdown of the different varieties we offer.
Each long stem of Hybrid Tea Roses produces a single flower with an exquisite fragrance.
Grandiflora Roses produce clusters of large flowers on each stem.
Climbing Roses gracefully decorate walls, trellises, arbors, or trees.
Floribunda Roses are hardy, low-growing plants with flower clusters.
Miniature Roses are ideal in borders, small gardens, and containers.
Shrub Roses provide a beautiful backdrop to a herbaceous flower garden.
Like a thorn for a rose, a bit of care and protection is required to yield the best results in any rose garden, especially hybrid tea, grandiflora, and floribunda roses. Shrub roses are the least demanding. Refer to our Plant Guide or ask our sales staff for more information on which roses are the right choice for your location.
Peonies
Peonies are perennials that get better with age! The nostalgic fragrance from their lush blooms fills the air, making them excellent cut flowers. Peonies are easy to grow in a sunny, well-drained space.
Fernleaf and Cut-leaf Peonies are smaller and have finer foliage.
Tree Peonies bloom earlier in the season than herbaceous peonies and do not die back to the ground.
Only Herbaceous Peonies need to be cut back in the fall to avoid disease.
Itoh Peonies are a cross between a traditional garden Peony and a woody Tree Peony. Once established, one plant can produce 50 enormous blooms that grow in succession for a month. Adding fertilizer low in nitrogen when in bloom and removing spent flowers encourages additional buds to burst.
Iris
Extremely versatile and available in many colors, Irises are valued for beautiful May-June blooms. All Irises are deer and rabbit resistant and prefer full sun in a moist area, but many can take part shade and average, well-drained soil. Some have unique speckled or bicolor flowers and others have beautiful, variegated foliage.Once established, many can be divided after blooming.
Bearded Irises have ruffled, fragrant flowers and can rebloom in late summer or fall.
The Iris siberica, or Siberian Iris is an easy-care, long living classic. ‘Caesar’s Brother’ has been breaking ground each spring in our Naperville Learning Gardens since the 1970’s. Its rich, velvety dark purple blooms are soft and supple in contrast to the grassy foliage.
In the hustle and bustle of daily living, the natural world remains as giving as ever. Step away from the work responsibilities and walk outdoors. Your senses will be delighted with fresh air, bird song and glorious colors of plant life.
