May flowers
We may not have had April showers this year, but we are nonetheless eagerly awaiting the flowers that May will bring. I am always stunned by how quickly spring arrives. We get so caught up in the chaos of spring planting and planning, that one day I look around me and am surprised to see that the grass is green and the trees have leafed out. We always appreciate the earliest blooming spring varieties, like Hellebores, Pulsatilla, and creeping phlox, but May brings with it an unrivaled and welcome burst of color that reminds us of why we love being in this industry, where we can make the outdoors our office.
Some of my favorite spring-blooming perennials are Salvia. There is an almost overwhelming number of Salvia on the market, but we have been able to sort through many of them so that we can focus on growing what we feel are the best-performing varieties. Salvia nemorosa ‘Rose Marvel’ and ‘Blue Marvel’ have quickly become two of our favorite varieties since they hit the market a few years ago. They are a little slow to come out of dormancy, but once they start to grow, they quickly catch up to ‘May Night’ and ‘Blue Hills’. We love the Marvel series because the distinctive buds are attractive even before the flowers begin to open, and the combination of the blue and rose flowers against the backdrop of burgundy calyxes is uniquely stunning. Salvia ‘Violet Riot’ is another of our favorite Salvias. This PW variety is a joy to grow; it fills out quickly, but has a consistent habit that stays neat and controlled, and it is one of the most densely flowering varieties that we have seen.
Brunnera is another essential spring-blooming perennial. Brunnera is a finnicky genus in the heat of summer, but is truly in its prime during the spring months of April and May, where the cool night temperatures and low humidity aren’t as conducive to melting out. Nothing compares to the delicate, baby blue flowers of ‘Jack Frost’ against the backdrop of silvery green foliage. Brunnera macrophylla is a little more reliable than some of the more popular varieties with silver or variegated foliage, but it is a great plant for naturalizing in the shade. We are excited to trial the PW varieties ‘Jack of Diamonds’ and ‘Queen of Hearts’ this spring, and hope to find some new favorites in these new additions to the market.
Dicentra is an obvious favorite when it comes to spring-blooming perennials. Dicentra spectabilis may be old-fashioned, but its classic beauty will never get old. My favorite Dicentra is Valentine®; I love the combination of bright red flowers against deep green foliage and deep red flower stems. Dicentra ‘Gold Heart’ may not be everyone’s cup of tea, with its yellow foliage, but I personally like the combination of classic bleeding heart flowers against the bright gold backdrop that will brighten any shady area.
May will also bring us blooming Geraniums; ‘Rozanne’, ‘Biokovo’, and ‘Bevan’s Variety’ are a few of our favorites. We can never have enough ‘Rozanne’ available. This vigorous variety will quickly fill out an area and is covered with violet blue flowers from spring until fall in the garden. ‘Biokovo’ is less aggressive, with delicate, pink-tinged white flowers with pink stamens, and stays neat all season without cleaning. I love Geranium ‘Bevan’s Variety’; it is one of the first perennials to fill out in the spring, and I can’t get enough of the scented foliage. This deer-resistant variety does well in full sun, and has nice, red-tinted foliage in the fall, when most other Geraniums are shutting down for the year.
These are just a few of our favorite May perennials that bring color just in time for Mother’s Day. May can be an unpredictable time in the Midwest, when we can expect 80 degree temperatures some days followed by below-freezing nights the next week, but we can rely on these perennial beauties to bring us color right on time, year after year.
