The 10 Best Low-Maintenance Perennials for Southern Gardens
Beautiful landscapes don't have to be a lot of work. You can enjoy a low-maintenance garden with beautiful blooms and colorful foliage from spring into fall—it's just a matter of picking the right plants. We've pulled together a group of low-maintenance garden plants that are among the easiest to grow in the South. Several of these perennials are longtime favorites—in fact, you may see them thriving in older gardens that have been untended for years.
Blanket Flower
Heat and humidity don't faze blanket flowers (Gaillarida x grandiflora), a tough native perennial that also can tolerate drought well. In early summer, it begins pumping out brightly colored blooms in warm hues such as yellow, orange, and red. It will continue blooming until frost, especially with a little deadheading.
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: 1-2 feet tall and wide
Grow it With: Salvia and anise hyssop both make good companions for blanket flower because their bloom times overlap and their flower shapes make a pretty contrast.
Zones: 3-10
Black-Eyed Susan
If the South's summer heat causes your garden to fade, add the versatile, low-maintenance black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida). Hot temperatures bring out the best in this summer border and container favorite.
Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide
Grow it With: Black-eyed Susans make for a great addition to a casual garden bed, as do the summer blooms of accenting phlox.
Zones: 4-9
Canna
Canna (Canna indica) is a low-maintenance tropical garden classic. Its triumphant foliage and large, multi-petaled flowers add distinctive summer beauty to your garden. Search out varieties such as 'Pretoria,' with its variegated foliage, for added garden interest.
Growing Conditions: Full sun and moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 7 feet tall and 2 feet wide
Grow it With: Lantana, which acts as a great and flowery skirt at the base of the tall canna.
Zones: 8-11
Yellow Flag Iris
A vigorous plant, yellow flag iris (Iris pseudacorus) loves wet spots—they're happiest near a pond or water garden. Yellow blooms add color in the spring, and the evergreen foliage adds interest to your garden the rest of the year.
Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade and moist soil
Size: To 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide
Grow it With: Ranunculus plants, which add a playful contrast in shape and texture.
Zones: 5-8
Japanese Sedge
A tough, low-growing border plant, Japanese sedge (Carex morrowii) forms tidy clumps of grass-like, evergreen foliage. Choose varieties such as 'Variegata' (shown here) for its variegated foliage that can brighten up the dimmest areas of your garden.
Growing Conditions: Full to part shade and consistently moist soil
Size: 1-2 feet tall and wide
Grow it With: Try this sedge with yellow flag iris; both of these perennials prefer wetter conditions and shade.
Zones: 5-9
Obedient Plant
This fast-spreading obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana) offers beautiful spikes of snapdragon-like flowers in late summer. Native to the South, it adds easy-growing grace to your low-maintenance garden—as long as you give it plenty of
Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and moist soil
Size: To 4 feet tall and wide
Grow it With: Black-eyed Susans for a stunning contrast in color and texture. Both bloom like crazy in late summer and into fall.
Zones: 4-8
Crinum Lily
Crinum lily (Crinum americanum) is one of the toughest and lowest maintenance garden plants you can grow. Sometimes called bog lily, because it loves moist soil, crinums offer bold, fragrant clusters of pink, purple, or white flowers from spring to fall.
Growing Conditions: Full sun and moist soil
Size: To 2 feet tall and wide
Grow it With: Daylilies, which offer beautiful foliage and similar clusters of flowers.
Zones: 9-11
Southern Shield Fern
Ferns prove that plants don't need flowers to add beauty to your garden. The southern shield fern (Dryopteris ludoviciana) is common in forests and fields across the South. While not as lush as other ferns, it adds simple elegance and beauty to woodland plantings.
Growing Conditions: Shade and moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 2 feet tall and 3 feet wide
Grow it With: Pair it with hostas; choose large-leafed versions with deep green or variegated foliage for visual interest.
Zones: 6-8
Cast Iron Plant
Commonly grown as a houseplant in the North, cast iron plant (Aspidistra elatior) is the perfect pick if you're trying to garden in deep shade in the South. Its tolerance of low light isn't the only reason this easy-to-grow plant earned its moniker—a cast iron plant is really one of the toughest outdoor plants you can grow.
Growing Conditions: Shade and moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 2 feet tall and wide
Grow it With: Variegated cultivars of cast iron plant look great against the vertical foliage and lacy leaves of ferns.
Zones: 7-11
Phlox
Beloved by bees and butterflies, phlox adds showy flowers starting in early summer and continuing through the season. Many of these low-maintenance perennials are also wonderfully fragrant, especially on warm, humid evenings. The scent can fill the yard (or the house if you cut the flowers and bring them inside).
Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and moist, well-drained soil
Size: To 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide
Grow it With: Purple coneflower; the two bloom at the same time and will put on a display the butterflies can't resist.
Zones: 3-8