Creating vibrant and thriving perennials for gardens in central Florida or south Florida can be a rewarding endeavor, thanks to the state’s warm climate and abundant sunshine.
However, choosing the attractive perennial as an accent plant, echinacea purpurea, herbaceous perennial with white flowers, sunny yellow flowers, pink flowers of false heather, Persian shield, flax lily, shrimp plant with green foliage, Mexican petunia with bright pink flowers in hanging baskets, cat’s whiskers with white and purple flowers or any favorite perennial can withstand the heat and humidity while providing continuous beauty for natural ecosystems in Florida.
These tropical plant species return year after year, offering a reliable source of garden color with new blooms, adding appearance and texture to your landscape. In this guide, we’ll explore the best perennials for cold temperatures or cold weather to warm weather, North Florida, Central Florida to South Florida; flowers bloom in gardens.
Showcasing top perennials in Florida, that promise stunning blooms and low-maintenance care in sun exposure throughout the seasons. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or just starting out, growing season of these favorite plants will help you achieve a beautiful, evergreen garden with border plant or annual plants in container.
Best Perennials for Florida Landscapes
1. Blue Daze
Blue daze can be used as mass plantings, in borders, in containers or as groundcover, in hanging baskets or cascading down a wall. Its dense, low-growing foliage forms a beautiful mat of greenery in growing seasons.
Blue Daze loves full sun but will tolerate some afternoon shade. It needs a well drained soil, but also frequent watering. It cannot tolerate wet soils at all, and very rainy periods or overwatering will cause fungus problems and lead to premature death. Blue Daze doesn’t need much watering in winters.
2. Bougainvillea
The plant needs at least six hours of direct sun per day to be its floweriest. Fertilize every two weeks during blooming season. Bougainvillea in pots is a heavy feeder. Use a water soluble plant food mixed at half strength to keep the flowers coming.
Bougainvillea can grow to a mature size of 6 feet in one season. Bougainvillea prefers well-drained soil to prevent root rot caused by standing water. Sandy or loamy, slightly acidic soil (between a 5.5 and 6.0 pH level) is ideal.
The flowers, alone or in combination with other medicinal plants, have long been used in Mexican traditional medicine for the treatment of coughs and respiratory problems.
3. Bush Daisy
Like other tropical plants, Bush daisy likes hot, sunny weather. This vigorous plant prefers well-drained soil. Daisies thrive in soil that is neutral to slightly acidic, ideally. Water whenever the surface of the soil starts to dry out. Feed Bush daisies with a slow-release granular fertilizer to encourage plenty of blooms and attract butterflies in the garden.
It can grow up to three feet tall and four feet wide. The bush daisy is ideal for mass plantings, mixed flower borders, and as a container plant. People use wild daisies for bleeding, cough, bronchitis, wounds, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.
4. Anise Hyssop
Anise Hyssop is an upright, clump-forming perennial with attractive spikes of small, tubular, lavender to purple flowers from early summer to early fall.
Grow anise hyssop native species in direct sunlight to partial shade. It tolerates a wide range of soils as long as there is good drainage. This plant has no significant pest problems but may develop root rot in wet soils or powdery mildew and leaf spots in humid climates.
Infused in tea, anise hyssop can be used to relieve congestion, acting as an expectorant (clearing mucus from lungs and airways).
5. Black and Blue Salvia
It is a small shrub,belongs to native plants in Florida and tolerates Florida’s climate. Most salvias bloom in the spring and summer months.
Most salvias thrive in a sheltered, sunny position in well-drained soil that retains some moisture. This makes them well-suited to south-facing borders, gravel gardens, raised beds, coastal locations, and exotic and subtropical planting schemes. A few, including Salvia glutinosa, tolerate light shade. It is recommended that the soil dries between waterings. It is fast-growing and can reach up to 3 to 4 feet.
Edible salvia flowers are a joy to behold, with intense colors like red and purple-blue. The red variety smells delicious and has a fruity accent in its taste.
6. Bulbine
The Bulbine is native to South America and has made its way to being one of the most popular plants in the country, especially in Florida perennials.
Bulbine grows best if planted in a spot that receives full sun and has well-drained soil, though it will tolerate light shade. Deadheading spent flowers is not necessary, but will encourage the plants to produce more flowers. Clumps can easily be divided.
The fresh leaf produces a jelly-like juice that is wonderful for burns, rashes, blisters, insect bites, cracked lips, acne, cold sores, mouth ulcers, and areas of cracked skin. This plant is ideal for growing and is a useful first-aid remedy for children’s daily knocks and scrapes.
Conclusion
Florida gardens thrive with a variety of perennial plant species that not only withstand the state’s unique climate but also add vibrant beauty year-round. From the stunning blooms of the Mexican heather with dark green leaves, it grows best as a groundcover in Florida perennials, with the heat-tolerant Lantana to the fragrant Plumbago and favorite perennials like Salvia; these plants offer a diverse palette of colors and textures and attract bees, butterflies and other pollinators.
Incorporating these best perennial cultivars in your garden ensures a resilient, low-maintenance landscape that flourishes despite Florida’s challenging weather conditions. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or just starting, these perennial plants will bring lasting blossoms and splendor to your garden, even from late summer to fall.
