7 Perennials for Houston Gardens Perfect for Mother’s Day

If you’re looking for a Mother’s Day gift, Houston area nurseries are full of ideas. It’s fun to choose a plant or two, pot them up or offer to plant them in Mom’s garden. For those whose mother has passed away, why not remember them with a favorite flower?

Here are seven perennials perfect for Houston. They will last not only this summer but also for seasons to come.

Salvia adds a bit of drama to the garden. Mystic Spiers salvia has vibrant dark blue flowers. It is a compact hybrid that is easy to grow, heat tolerant and relatively free of pests and diseases. Evolution Salvia, aka mealy sage, produces rich purple-blue flowers. This compact plant has a long summer flowering season.

Also called Black-eyed Susan, this native perennial has golden yellow flowers with black centers. It produces large flowers up to 5 inches across that make great cut flowers. It is drought tolerant and prefers full to part sun. It pairs well with purple salvia.

Angelonia, or summer snapdragon, is native to South America with small lavender, purple, pink, raspberry and white flowers. The plant grows 18 to 22 inches tall and 1 foot wide and likes full sun. Angelonia is a tender perennial plant, which means it is not frost-hardy. (I covered mine during the freeze, and it survived.)

Coneflowers have ray-shaped petals surrounding a cone-shaped center. These prolific flowers grow 2 to 4 feet tall. Eastern purple coneflower is a popular, drought-tolerant native plant that attracts butterflies and lasts all summer in Houston. It prefers full sun to partial shade and fertile, well-drained soil. New cultivars come in shades of reddish orange, yellow and white.

Dianthus Firewitch is a long-blooming evergreen groundcover that has bright pink single flowers with frilly petals. Dianthus “Melody” is a perennial plant with white or pink flowers for several months. “First Love,” with white, light pink and dark pink flowers, is another great variety. “Jolt Pink Magic” tolerates cold and heat. Dianthus, which have an attractive clove scent, require good drainage and sun or partial sun.

Summer phlox grows 3 to 4 feet tall with white, magenta, or pink dome-shaped flowers that look great in mass plantings. It flowers from late spring to fall and likes full sun and good drainage. Butterflies love it.

Plumbago is a 4-foot mounding perennial shrub with sky blue or white flowers. Blue plumbago is a root-hardy perennial for the Houston garden. For the most part it is pest, disease and deer free. It likes full sun and is easy to grow in the garden or in a pot. Plumbago may die in cold weather, but it should come back from the roots.

Prune spent flowers and trim the tips of your perennials to encourage dense growth. Keep watered in well-drained soil. Use a bloom booster when flowers begin to decline.