Pointers on Planting Florida Perennials 

Alliteration can grab notice for a blog article much like Florida perennials can steal the show in any landscape. A “perennial” is a plant that lives for three years or more and yields bursts of flowers cyclically. Florida has many perennials you can choose from to add color and beauty to your garden. More about perennials follows as well as descriptions of five of them (a pentad of perennials!) that thrive in Florida. A good variety of perennials are available in Tampa at Cypress Creek Landscape Supply, a family-owned garden center determined to be a one-stop source for everything landscapers need.

A Few Facts About Perennials

It’s nice to plant perennials that last a few years as opposed to annuals that last for only one season or year. Some of the perennials that bloom their best in Florida’s warm temperatures are annuals everywhere else because they can’t survive chilly winters. Insufficient irrigation is another type of adverse condition that could result in a perennial living only one year.

Bloom Cycles

The bloom is another difference between annuals and perennials. Annuals are much-loved for the way they provide constant blooms in their season. Perennials, on the other hand, have cycles of blooms in different seasons, and the colors of the blooms vary at different times of the year. In keeping with their adversity to cold temperatures, perennials typically flower less frequently during Florida winters.

Color Now As Well As Then

By interplanting some perennials with annuals, your garden can have colorful blossoms all year round. It can also be fascinating to see the different colors of perennials flowers from season to season.

Maintenance of Perennials

In general, perennials are low-growing and need to be trimmed regularly for robust health and abundant growth. Become familiar with the specific perennials you are planting, however, because some need little more than an occasional trim. Some varieties flourish better if you deadhead them, which means cut off spent flower stems and flowers.

Perennials of virtually all varieties need to be watered often and fertilized copiously to fully flourish.

Pointers on Planting Perennials

Be careful about planting perennials in the recommended placement for light and shade. The following are some of the popular landscaping uses for perennials in Florida:

• Among shrubs to serve as filler plants
• Anywhere you want to attract butterflies
• In planters and window boxes
• Some perennials do well in hanging baskets
• Plant perennials instead of groundcover plants
• As a border for walkways and gardens
• In a garden bed entryway, mix perennials with annuals

Perennials to Pick for Your Panorama

Tampa, Florida, is in USDA Hardiness Zones 9b and 10a. You’ll have an easier time tending your garden if you choose perennials and all other plants that thrive within these zones. The following are some beautiful Zone 9b and 10a perennials:

• Pentas bloom in bright shades of pink, red, and white. They attract hummingbirds and butterflies like magnets. Pentas are perfect for easy-care landscaping.
• Crossandra is a perennial that blooms in orange, salmon, and apricot shades. The plants do well in up to 4 hours per day in full sun and tolerate partially shady are as well. These avid bloomers love humidity.
• Blue Daze produces a profusion of small sky-blue flowers against its small leaves of silvery-green. These perennials are stunning cascading over the side of a hanging basket, container, or planter. The flowers close in the afternoon, and new blooms open in the morning.
• Cat’s Whiskers are remarkably unique, with white stamens that resemble what the plant’s name implies. True attention-getters, the snowy shrubs bloom throughout the summers in Florida.
• Since Society Garlic perennials flourish best in sandy soil and full sun, they thrive in Florida. This lovely ornamental plant’s leaves smell like garlic. The same as onions and garlics, Society Garlic is in the lily family. The flowers have a sweet scent, in contrast to its leaves. The flashy flowers grow in such colors as lilac-blue, purplish-violet, and pink.

Visit Cypress Creek Landscape Supply today to see our selection of perennials and the many other plants in our two-acre oasis. We have friendly experts on hand to answer your questions and help you create and care for the landscape you dream of. We carry bulk quantities of pebbles, stones, gravel, boulders, and rocks in various sizes. Among the perennials we carry are Periwinkles, Bush Daisies, and Buttercups. Stop by to visit us and see our many plants, products, pots, and a plethora of other paraphernalia at 12734 N. Florida Avenue or call at (813) 933-7944.