6 Great Perennial Flowers to Plant in Northern Michigan

Black-Eyed Susan

Black-eyed Susan are an extremely popular planting in Northern Michigan. Not only are they easy to care for, they are very tough and can withstand our harsh winters. Black-eyed Susans have color that lasts long into the season, so they keep your garden looking vibrant for more than just a few weeks.

Purple Coneflower

Also called their Latin name, Echinacea, Purple Coneflowers are an excellent choice for any Traverse City area garden. These tough plants are native to our area, so they are a natural pollinator plant for our struggling bee population. In addition, they are drought tolerant, making them extremely easy to care for. Purple not your favorite color? Coneflowers come in tons of colors, including yellow, red, and orange!

Russian Sage

Russian Sage, often confused with lavender, is another beautiful choice for your landscape beds. They grow larger each year, so they are a great space filler in your garden. They bloom bright purple flowers, but when not in bloom they have attractive foliage which adds texture to your garden area. Russian sage are also drought tolerant, extremely low-maintenance, and long-blooming perennials.

Coral Bells

Also known by their Latin name, Heuchera ‘Purple Palace’, are a native hybrid perennial. This means they are great for our environment and thrive in our sandy Northern Michigan soils. Our favorite quality of this type of Coral Bells is that they can be planted in full sun or shade, giving you color and unique texture in any area of your garden. Their beautiful purple foliage is beautiful even after the delicate flowers die off.

Alliums

Alliums are one of our favorite perennials. They are deer-resistant, so they can be planted around the outer edges of your garden space to deter deer! Many homeowners do not consider Allium, as they are also referred to wild onion. Though they are considered a part of the onion family, they have beautiful showy purple sphere blooms. Allium tend to be very easy to care for, but they do prefer full sun.

Coreopsis

Also known as Tick Seed, Coreopsis produces beautiful blooms. We love the Lil Bang or Red satin varieties. These native hybrid plants bloom for a very long time, starting in early summer and lasting through fall! They thrive in both sun and part shade and are typically deer-resistant as well. The varieties we recommend produce tons of flowers as well.

Selecting Flowers to Plant this Fall

When planting, be sure to gently loosen the roots before putting the plant in the ground. Be sure to water frequently for the first week or so if it is extra hot or dry out. We don’t recommend fertilizing these perennials in the fall months.

While all of these options are beautiful, it is important to remember to not plant in late Fall. The best guideline is plant about a month before the first frost so new flowers have time to take root. If you run out of time to plant before fall, these options can all be planted in the Spring or Summer months as well.

Looking for some help designing or installing perennials into your gardens? Contact our landscape experts today!