Star plants in July: Eupatorium atropurpureum (back), Echinacea purpurea (left), Veronicastrum virginicum (centre), Phlox paniculata (right)
Image: Canva
After June’s spurt of fresh foliage and flowers, the heat of July can begin to draw some of the vigour out of displays. Here are 5 reliable perennials which will continue to reward throughout this month.
Alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’
Alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’
Image: Thompson & Morgan
June is largely dominated by soft pastel colours but come July the garden palette begins to warm up. Alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’ delivers a tropical punch with its fruity, burnt orange and yellow blooms set against bronze foliage. This is one of those ‘firework’ plants which has real impact in borders and containers. It certainly earns its place as it keeps blooming through to October and the flowers last for ages in a vase.
- Height & Spread: 75cm (30″) x 60cm (24″).
- Growing conditions: fertile soil in a warm, sunny spot
- Hardiness: Hardy
- Flowering season: Early summer until the first frosts
Echinacea ‘Rubinstern’
Echinacea ‘Rubinstern’ Image: Canva
Coneflowers are plants with real presence. They stand sturdily upright on unbranching stems which don’t require staking. The flowers have a pleasingly definite shape, each one crowned with a fat, spiny cone. Their strong silhouette combines well with ornamental grasses. ‘Rubinstern’ is one of the best selections, with a rich pink colour.
- Height & Spread: 90cm (36″) x 50cm (20″).
- Growing conditions: A sunny border in any freely draining soil which does not get waterlogged in the winter
- Hardiness: Hardy
- Flowering season: July to August
Diascia ‘Hopleys’
Diascia ‘Hopleys’
Image: Canva
This long flowering perennial is much underused for such a rewarding plant. All summer long, Diascia ‘Hopleys’ produces tall clouds of small, dusky pink flowers which work beautifully in the middle of a sunny, well-drained border or as a free-flowering container feature.
- Height & Spread: 90cm (36”) x 50cm (20”).
- Growing conditions: Full sun and well draining soil
- Hardiness: Hardy
- Flowering season: May to October
Dahlia ‘Totally Tangerine’
Dahlia ‘Totally Tangerine’
Image: Thompson & Morgan
This is a dahlia with real class and one of my favourites. The apricot to pink blooms of ‘Totally Tangerine’ have a distinctive luminosity in the evening sun and unlike some of the more garish dahlias, it’s a colour which works harmoniously in borders alongside other herbaceous perennials. It’s also sturdy and well branching and so makes a great specimen for a large container– try it with a contrasting violet salvia such as ‘Amistad’ surrounded by some airy Panicum elegans ‘Sprinkles’.
- Height & Spread: : 80cm (24″ to 32″) x 45cm (18″)
- Growing conditions: Full sun and freely draining soil
- Hardiness: Tender
- Flowering season: July to November
Phlox ‘Bright Eyes’
Phlox ‘Bright Eyes’
Image: Shutterstock
Phlox paint bold blocks of colour in a border like no other perennial, their domed panicles forming soft duvets of pinks and violets, providing a dreamy backdrop to other more structural perennials. Their other asset is fragrance – billowing clouds of sweet perfume which float across the summer garden. ‘Bright Eyes’ forms gorgeous drifts of pink in the middle and back of borders, each flower picked out with a darker pink eye.
- Height & Spread: 80cm (31″) x 60cm (24″).
- Growing conditions: Moist, fertile soil, in full sun or partial shade – the flowers lasting longer if given some shade. Good for clay soils.
- Hardiness: Hardy
- Flowering season: July-August
If Annelise’s July favourites have inspired you, check out our summer flowers hub page for more great ideas for brightening up your garden this summer. For more plants which are looking fabulous this month, see Looking Good on The Nursery.
Annelise Brilli is the Horticultural Copywriter for Thompson and Morgan. Annelise caught the gardening bug from her mother, whose tiny backyard was crammed with a huge collection of plants. As an adult, she had a career change into horticulture, gaining a training apprenticeship with the National Trust at Powis Castle Garden in Welshpool. She went on to work in a range of private and public gardens, later running a garden design and maintenance business. She is passionate about sustainable gardening and has developed her own wildlife-friendly garden which she has opened as part of Macmillan Coastal Garden Trail.