Add Photo to Journal

Photo Credit: ©2001 Dolezal Publishing/John M. Rickard

Different plant heights and groupings give mixed borders visual relief.

Creating mixed perennial gardens is a thoroughly eclectic yet enjoyable way to grow a flower garden. In a return to the spirit of the old-fashioned cottage garden, these beds and borders present perennials alongside your favorite shrubs, bulbs, herbs and, yes, even food crops.

Mixed plantings can be formal or casual. Both allow you to vary color, texture, fragrance and bloom times in your garden. Formal plantings are arranged symmetrically. Heights are established carefully with tall plants (perhaps an evergreen shrub) in the back of the border or the center of the bed. Midsize plants – including many flowering perennials – are planted next. And in the foreground are smaller selections like bulbs and annuals. Groundcovers fill the space at the edge.

In casual mixed-planting styles, more attention and weight are placed on overall ambiance and less on height and symmetry. These quirky and colorful gardens have much to attract attention and enjoy. They’re a great way to showcase your artistic expression, personality and taste.

Add Photo to Journal

Photo Credit: ©2001 Dolezal Publishing/John M. Rickard

Mixed plantings, whether in containers or in the garden, combine the strength of perennial flowers with the bloom power of annuals.

Whether formal or casual, evergreen shrubs add their solid masses to the back of the mixed planting designs, and they provide creeping perennials a surface over which to scramble. Dwarf conifers lend distinctive shape to the flower border when winter falls and it’s dusted with snow.

During the growing season, it’s important to make sure you’ve got something to look at as the months pass – something bulbs are great at. Early flowering bulbs provide late winter color. As spring comes on, their yellowing leaves are hidden beneath the rising perennial foliage. Summer-blooming bulbs create seasonal surprises, while fall-blooming bulbs offer welcome garden color during the sparse late August to October season.

Annuals with short-lived but profuse flowers fill in the blanks other times of the year when various perennials are between blooms. And many annual flowers attract the pollinating bees and hummingbirds that also serve your perennials. There are so many options, it’s just a matter of figuring out which plants you want to include. Whether your perennial garden is a lavish border or a single window box, it’s always a good idea to mix it up.