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Perennial Plants

Perennial plants in the boarder is still one of the most popular features in many developed gardens in the British Isles.

Perennial plants have gained popularity, over the annual bedding plants, because of their low maintenance and not needing to be re-planted every year.

Perennial plants are grown from seed, cuttings and splits and cover a large number of species, many now being introduced from other countries such as Australia , New Zealand , Japan and China.

Planting perennial plants:

Dig the hole larger and deeper than the root ball of the perennial, loosen the bottom of the hole with a trowel, then, after gently loosening the roots in the root ball, fill the soil in around the plant and gently firm.

If you do not have access to well rotted manure, then peat or bark will do the job nicely.
Fortunately, the vast majority of perennials that are more widely grown are very accommodating. They will thrive in most types of soil although characteristics such as, vigor and rate of growth will vary considerably from variety to variety, and also from different types of soil.

GEUM chiloense 'Blazing Sunset'
You must never coddle hardy perennial plants, as they are on the whole very hardy and resent being grown soft.
The taller varieties of perennials will need staking and tying, if you want to get the best effect from them, also watch out for creeping weeds such as bindweed, which, if left unchecked will chock your plants.
In the late autumn when the perennials have finished flowering, most will need to be cut down to ground level with the exception of as few varieties, e.g. Penstemons must not be cut down until they start to show new shoots in the spring, then you should cut them down to ground level to allow the new shoots to come up from the crown off the plant.
The best thing is to consult any good gardening book, and this should tell you the varieties to cut and those not to cut down.

Why cut back perennial flowers?

Cutting back flowering hardy perennials will help to improve and prolong flowering and the shape of a plant.
Flowering perennials will make more flowers, better quality blooms or bushier plants after being trimmed to shape, this also promotes more and larger flowers.

Other ways to promote better flowering:

Most flowers bloom and set seed which is a natural climax to the annual growth cycle. By deadheading flowers as they fade not only makes the plant look tidy, but also interrupts the plants sequence and stimulates new flowers to appear.
Deadhead fading flowers of herbaceous perennials regularly as this will stimulate new flowers and prevent plants from self-seeding.
Most hardy perennials should have their dead flower stalks cut back to the nearest bud at the base of the flowering stem as soon as the flowers begin to fade. By using this technique it also prevents unwanted self-seeding. You can either  use your thumb and forefinger, garden cutters or secateurs
Some hardy perennials concentrate their energy into a single tip bud. If you remove this tip bud then the buds lower down will produce side shoots. This is called stopping, pinching or tip pruning and makes bushier growth.
Some plants will only need pinching once, other perennials may need pinching a few times by taking out the initial bud and then pinch out the resulting side growths.
By chopping back hardy perennials in the late-spring this will make bushier plants that will flower later in the season very often more prolifically. This pinching back is best carried out in late May early June, and is done by cutting or pinch back the plants by half their length.
You will need to watch out for Aphids, Caterpillars and the like during the summer months.

New Varieties
Photos kindly supplied by Jelitto Staudensamen GmbH3, Thompson & Morgan, Kings Seeds and Moles Seeds
© All photos are copyrighted and may not be copied in any other way or form.
Copyright (c) Mentha Nurseries Ltd.. 2010

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Abingdon, Accrington, Acle, Addlestone, Adlington, Adwick le Street, Alcester, Aldeburgh, Aldershot, Aldridge, Alford, Alfreton, Alnwick, Alsager, Alston, Alton, Altrincham, Amble, Ambleside, Amersham, Amesbury, Ampthill, Andover, Appleby-in-Westmorland, Apsley, Arlesey, Arnold, Arundel, Ascot, Ashbourne, Ashburton, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Ashford (Kent), Ashford (Surrey), Ashington, Ashton-in-Makerfield, Ashton-under-Lyne, Askern, Aspatria, Atherstone, Atherton, Attleborough, Audenshaw, Axbridge, Axminster, Aylesbury, Aylsham

Bacup, Backworth, Baildon, Bakewell, Baldock, Banbury, Banstead, Barking, Barnard Castle, Barnehurst, Barnoldswick, Barnsley, Barnstaple, Barrow-in-Furness, Barton-upon-Humber, Basildon, Basingstoke, Bath, Batley, Battle, Bawtry, Beaconsfield, Beaminster, Bebington, Beccles, Beckenham, Bedale, Bedford, Bedlington, Bedworth, Beeston, Belper, Berkeley, Berkhamsted, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Beverley, Bewdley, Bexhill-on-Sea, Bicester, Biddulph, Bideford, Biggleswade, Billericay, Billingham, Bilston, Bingham, Bingley, Birchwood, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Bishop Auckland, Bishop's Castle, Bishop's Stortford, Bishop's Waltham, Blackburn, Blackheath, Blackpool, Blackrod, Blandford Forum, Blaydon, Bletchley, Bloxwich, Blyth, Bodmin, Bognor Regis, Bollington, Bolsover, Bolton, Bootle, Bordon, Borehamwood, Boroughbridge, Boston, Bourne, Bournemouth, Bovey Tracey, Bowness-on-Windermere, Brackley, Bracknell, Bradford, Bradford on Avon, Brading, Bradley Stoke, Bradninch, Braintree, Brampton, Brandon, Brentwood, Bridgnorth, Bridgwater, Bridlington, Bridport, Brierfield, Brierley, Brierley Hill, Brigg, Brighouse, Brightlingsea, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Brixham, Broadstairs, Broadstone, Bromborough, Bromley, Bromsgrove, Bromyard, Broseley, Brough, Broughton, Broughton-in-Furness, Brownhills, Broxbourne, Bruton, Buckfastleigh, Buckhurst Hill, Buckingham, Bude, Budleigh Salterton, Bulwell, Bungay, Buntingford, Burford, Burgess Hill, Burgh le Marsh, Burnham-on-Crouch, Burnham-on-Sea, Burnley, Burntwood, Burton Latimer, Burton upon Trent, Bury, Bury St Edmunds, Bushey, Buxton

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Dagenham, Dalton-in-Furness, Darlaston, Darley Dale, Darlington, Dartford, Dartmouth, Darwen, Daventry, Dawley, Dawlish, Deal, Denholme, Denton, Derby, Dereham, Desborough, Devizes, Dewsbury, Didcot, Dinnington, Diss, Doncaster, Dorchester, Dorking, Dover, Dovercourt, Downham Market, Driffield, Droitwich Spa, Dronfield, Droylsden, Dudley, Dukinfield, Dulverton, Dunstable, Dunwich, Durham, Dursley

Eaglescliffe, Ealing, Earby, Earl Shilton, Earley, Earlswood, Easington, Easington Colliery, Easingwold, East Bedfont, East Cowes, East Grinstead, Eastbourne, Eastham, Eastleigh, Eastwood (Essex), Eastwood (Nottinghamshire), Eccles, Eccleshall, Eckington, Edenbridge, Egham, Egremont, Elland, Ellesmere, Ellesmere Port, Ely, Emsworth, Epping, Epsom, Epworth, Esher, Eston, Eton, Evesham, Ewell, Exeter, Exmouth, Eye

Failsworth, Fairford, Fakenham, Falmouth, Fareham, Faringdon, Farnborough, Farnham, Farnworth, Faversham, Fazeley, Featherstone, Felixstowe, Feltham, Fenny Stratford, Ferndown, Ferryhill, Filey, Filton, Fleet, Fleetwood, Flitwick, Folkestone, Fordbridge, Fordingbridge, Fordwich, Formby, Fowey, Framlingham, Frimley, Frinton-on-Sea, Frodsham, Frome

Gainsborough, Garforth, Garstang, Gateshead, Gillingham (Dorset), Gillingham (Kent), Glastonbury, Glossop, Gloucester, Godalming, Godmanchester, Golborne, Goole, Gorleston, Gosport, Grange-over-Sands, Grantham, Gravesend, Grays, Great Dunmow, Great Torrington, Great Yarmouth, Grimsby, Guildford, Guisborough, Guiseley

Hadfield, Hadleigh, Hailsham, Halesowen, Halesworth, Halifax, Halstead, Haltwhistle, Hanwell, Harlesden, Harleston, Harlow, Harpenden, Harrington, Harrogate, Harrow, Hartland, Hartlepool, Harwich, Haslemere, Haslingden, Hastings, Hatfield, Hatherleigh, Havant, Haverhill, Hawes, Haxby, Hayle, Hayes, Haywards Heath, Heanor, Heathfield, Hebburn, Hebden Bridge, Hebden Royd, Heckmondwike, Hedge End, Hednesford, Hedon, Helmsley, Helston, Hemel Hempstead, Hempstead, Hemsworth, Henley-in-Arden, Henley-on-Thames, Hereford, Herne Bay, Hersham, Hertford, Hessle, Heswall, Hetton-le-Hole, Hexham, Heywood, High Bentham, Higham Ferrers, Highbridge, Highcliffe, Highworth, High Wycombe, Hinckley, Hindley, Hingham, Hitchin, Hoddesdon, Holbeach, Holmfirth, Holsworthy, Holt, Honiton, Horley, Horncastle, Hornchurch, Hornsea, Horsforth, Horsham, Horwich, Houghton-le-Spring, Houghton Regis, Hounslow, Howden, Hoylake, Hoyland, Hucknall, Huddersfield, Hugh Town, Hungerford, Hunsdon, Hunstanton, Huntingdon, Huyton, Hyde, Hythe

Ibstock, Ickenham, Ilfracombe, Ilkeston, Ilkley, Ilminster, Immingham, Ingatestone, Ipswich, Irlam, Irthlingborough, Isleworth, Ivybridge

Jarrow

Kearsley, Keighley, Kempston, Kendal, Kenilworth, Kesgrave, Keswick, Kettering, Keynsham, Kidderminster, Kidsgrove, Killamarsh, Killingworth, Kimberley, Kingsbridge, Kingsbury, King's Lynn, Kingston upon Hull, Kingston upon Thames, Kingswood, Kington, Kirkby, Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Kirkby Lonsdale, Kirkby Stephen, Kirkbymoorside, Kirkham, Kirton in Lindsey, Knaresborough, Knottingley, Knowle, Knutsford

Lancaster, Langport, Laindon, Langdon Hills, Langley Mill, Launceston, Leamington Spa, Leatherhead, Lechlade, Ledbury, Leeds, Leek, Lee-on-the-Solent, Leicester, Leigh, Leighton Buzzard, Leigh-on-Sea, Leiston, Leominster, Letchworth, Lewes, Leyburn, Leyland, Lichfield, Lincoln, Linslade, Liskeard, Littleborough, Littlehampton, Liverpool, Loddon, Loftus, London, Long Eaton, Long Sutton, Longbenton, Longridge, Longtown, Looe, Lostwithiel, Loughborough, Loughton, Louth, Lowestoft, Ludgershall, Ludlow, Luton, Lutterworth, Lydd, Lydney, Lyme Regis, Lymington, Lytham St Annes

Mablethorpe, Macclesfield, Madeley, Maghull, Maidenhead, Maidstone, Maldon, Malmesbury, Maltby, Malton, Malvern, Manchester, Manningtree, Mansfield, Mansfield Woodhouse, Marazion, March, Margate, Market Bosworth, Market Deeping, Market Drayton, Market Harborough, Market Rasen, Market Weighton, Marlborough, Marlow, Maryport, Masham, Matlock, Melbourne, Melksham, Meltham, Melton Mowbray, Mere, Mexborough, Middleham, Middlesbrough, Middleton, Middlewich, Midhurst, Midsomer Norton, Mildenhall, Millom, Milnrow, Milnthorpe, Milton Keynes, Minchinhampton, Minehead, Minster, Mirfield, Mitcham, Mitcheldean, Morden, Morecambe, Moretonhampstead, Moreton, Moreton-in-Marsh, Morley, Morpeth, Mossley, Much Wenlock, Mytholmroyd

Nailsea, Nailsworth, Nantwich, Needham Market, Nelson, Neston, Netherfield, Netherton, New Alresford, New Ferry, New Malden, New Mills, New Milton, New Romney, Newark-on-Trent, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Newbury, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newent, Newhaven, Newlyn, Newmarket, Newport (Isle of Wight), Newport (Shropshire), Newport Pagnell, Newquay, Newton Abbot, Newton Aycliffe, Newton-le-Willows, Norbury, Normanton, North Hykeham, North Petherton, North Shields, North Tawton, North Walsham, Northallerton, Northam, Northampton, Northfleet, Northleach, Northwich, Norton-on-Derwent, Norwich, Nottingham, Nuneaton

Oadby, Oakengates, Oakham, Okehampton, Oldbury, Oldham, Ollerton, Olney, Orford, Ormskirk, Orpington, Ossett, Oswaldtwistle, Oswestry, Otley, Ottery St Mary, Oundle, Overcombe, Oxford, Oxted

Paddock Wood, Padiham, Padstow, Paignton, Painswick, Partington, Patchway, Pateley Bridge, Peacehaven, Pendlebury, Penistone, Penkridge, Penrith, Penryn, Penwortham, Penzance, Pershore, Peterborough, Peterlee, Petersfield, Petworth, Pickering, Pitsea, Plymouth, Pocklington, Polegate, Pontefract, Ponteland, Poole, Porthleven, Portishead, Portland, Portsmouth, Potters Bar, Potton, Poulton-le-Fylde, Prescot, Preston, Prestwich, Princes Risborough, Princetown, Prudhoe, Pudsey

Quarry Bank, Queenborough

Radcliffe, Radstock, Rainham, Ramsbottom, Ramsgate, Raunds, Rawtenstall, Rayleigh, Reading, Redcar, Redditch, Redhill, Redruth, Reepham, Reeth, Reigate, Retford, Richmond (Greater London), Richmond (North Yorkshire), Rickmansworth, Ringwood, Ripley, Ripon, Rishton, Robin Hood's Bay, Rochdale, Rochester, Rochford, Romford, Romsey, Ross-on-Wye, Rothbury, Rotherham, Rothwell (Northamptonshire), Rothwell (West Yorkshire), Rowley Regis, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Royston (Hertfordshire), Royston (South Yorkshire), Royton, Rubery, Rugby, Rugeley, Runcorn, Rushden, Ryde, Rye, Ryton

Saffron Walden, St Albans, St Austell, St Blazey, St Columb Major, St Helens, St Ives (Cambridgeshire), St Ives (Cornwall), St Just in Penwith, St Mawes, St Neots, Salcombe, Sale, Salford, Salisbury, Saltash, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Sandbach, Sandhurst, Sandiacre, Sandown, Sandwich, Sandy, Sawbridgeworth, Saxmundham, Scarborough, Scunthorpe, Seaford, Seaham, Seaton, Sedbergh, Sedgley, Selby, Selsey, Settle, Seven Kings, Sevenoaks, Shaftesbury, Shanklin, Shaw & Crompton, Sheerness, Sheffield, Shefford, Shenfield, Shepperton, Shepshed, Shepton Mallet, Sherborne, Sheringham, Shifnal, Shildon, Shipley, Shipston-on-Stour, Shirebrook, Shoeburyness, Shoreham-by-Sea, Shrewsbury, Sidmouth, Silloth, Silsden, Sittingbourne, Skegness, Skelmersdale, Skelton-in-Cleveland, Skipton, Sleaford, Slough, Smethwick, Snaith, Snodland, Soham, Solihull, Somerton, South Bank, South Benfleet, South Cave, South Elmsall, South Molton, South Norwood, South Petherton, South Ruislip, South Shields, South Woodham Ferrers, Southam, Southampton, Southborough, Southend-on-Sea, Southminster, Southport, Southsea, Southwell, Southwick, Southwold, Sowerby Bridge, Spalding, Spennymoor, Spilsby, Stafford, Staines, Stainforth, Stalbridge, Stalham, Stalybridge, Stamford, Stanford-le-Hope, Stanhope, Stanley, Stanmore, Stapleford, Staveley, Stevenage, Steyning, Stockport, Stocksbridge, Stockton-on-Tees, Stoke-on-Trent, Stokesley, Stone, Stonehouse, Stony Stratford, Stourbridge, Stourport-on-Severn, Stowmarket, Stow-on-the-Wold, Stratford-upon-Avon, Stratton, Stretford, Strood, Stroud, Sturminster Newton, Sudbury, Sunbury-on-Thames, Sunderland, Sutton, Sutton Coldfield, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Swadlincote, Swaffham, Swanage, Swanley, Swanscombe, Swindon, Swinton (Greater Manchester), Swinton (South Yorkshire), Syston

Tadcaster, Tadley, Tamworth, Taunton, Tavistock, Teignmouth, Telford, Telscombe, Tenbury Wells, Tenterden, Tetbury, Tewkesbury, Thame, Thatcham, Thaxted, Thetford, Thirsk, Thornaby-on-Tees, Thornbury, Thorne, Thornton, Thorpe St Andrew, Thrapston, Tickhill, Tidworth, Tilbury, Tipton, Tisbury, Tiverton, Todmorden, Tonbridge, Topsham, Torpoint, Torquay, Totnes, Toton, Totton & Eling, Tow Law, Towcester, Tring, Trowbridge, Truro, Twickenham, Tyldesley, Tynemouth

Uckfield, Ulverston, Upholland, Upminster, Uppingham, Upton, Upton-upon-Severn, Urmston, Uttoxeter, Uxbridge

Ventnor, Verwood

Wadebridge, Wadhurst, Wainfleet All Saints, Wakefield, Walkden, Wallasey, Wallsend, Wallingford, Wallington, Walmer, Walsall, Waltham Abbey, Waltham Cross, Walthamstow, Walton, Walton-on-Thames, Walton-on-the-Naze, Wandsworth, Wantage, Ware, Wareham, Warminster, Warrington, Warwick, Washington, Watchet, Waterlooville, Watford, Wath-upon-Dearne, Watlington, Watton, Wednesbury, Wednesfield, Wellingborough, Wellington (Shropshire), Wellington (Somerset), Wells, Wells-next-the-Sea, Welwyn Garden City, Wem, Wendover, Wesham, West Bridgford, West Bromwich, West Kirby, West Malling, West Mersea, Westbury, Westerham, Westgate-on-Sea, Westhoughton, Westminster, Weston-super-Mare, Wetherby, Weybridge, Weymouth, Whaley Bridge, Whickham, Whitby, Whitchurch (Hampshire), Whitchurch (Shropshire), Whitebushes, Whitefield, Whitehaven, Whitley Bay, Whitnash, Whitstable, Whittlesey, Whitton, Whyteleafe, Wickford, Wickham, Wickwar, Widnes, Wigan, Wigston Magna, Wigton, Willenhall, Willington, Wilmslow, Wilton, Wimborne Minster, Wincanton, Winchcombe, Winchelsea, Winchester, Windermere (town), Windsor, Winsford, Winslow, Winterton, Wirksworth, Wisbech, Witham, Withernsea, Witney, Wiveliscombe, Wivenhoe, Woburn, Woburn Sands, Woking, Wokingham, Wolsingham, Wolverhampton, Wolverton, Wombwell, Woodbridge, Woodley, Woodstock, Wooler, Wootton Bassett, Worcester, Workington, Worksop, Worsley, Worthing, Wotton-under-Edge, Wragby, Wroxham, Wymondham

Yarm, Yarmouth, Yate, Yateley, Yeadon, Yeovil, York