Absolute Best Perennials for Memphis

I have lived in Memphis TN most of my life and have been growing gardens the whole time--vegetable gardens, gardens for shade and sun, water gardens, and flower gardens. I've grown it all. But here's what I've learned in a capsule. Do NOT trust zone maps indicated for perennial potted plants. We are technically in Zone 7, but those zones do not weight the heat factor like they do the cold hardiness? Well guess what, folks? We get really, really hot here. Many plants marked hardy for Zone 7 often just burn up in this climate of ours. I also learned to absolutely trust the planting guides for sun/shade. If they say it needs at least 6 hours of full sun, believe it. No amount of wishing will make that plant bloom in too much shade. The last thing I learned the hard way is to prepare the soil every time you plant something that is to be a treasure, blooming healthily year after year.

There are several perennials that I know from experience will prosper and bloom in our very difficult Memphis climate zone. It's important to pay attention to the planting instructions. Get some advice directly from the seller if possible. I usually go to Ferd Heckle, or one of the excellent clerks that work at the Dan West Garden Center on Poplar if I ever want to ask questions about a weed, a plant, or planting instructions. These are the most professional garden experts and salespersons in the city, in my opinion. Trees by Touliatos on Brooks Rd. also has experienced horticulturists that can answer questions based on real knowledge and not just some sales hype. Sam Stringer sometimes has some good help.

Now for my experienced suggestions and the reasons for them--I'll list a few excellent plants first, and then tell why I suggest them strongly for the area and my reasons for doing so. I won't be able to give the absolute genus and species of these plants, but I guarantee you that the plant experts at the nurseries I listed can advise you on the specific species you will need for this climate. Good nurseries will have them in stock.

O.K. Here it is, the common names for these few major perennials for Memphians:Peonies
Shasta Daisies
Georgia Blue Veronica
Ornamental Ginger (hardy here, large foliage, small flowers, HUGE smell)
Garden phlox
Oriental poppy varieties (check the species for heat tolerance)
Native Rudbekia
Bellflower (Campanula)
Echinacea (Black-eyed Susans)
Balloon flowers (platycodons)

Now, for my experience with these varieties. Do NOT plant Echinacea unless you're going to be willing to divide clumps regularly. They will creep into other clumps of different plants and choke them out eventually. But they will bloom for a month or more in the summer and provide some lively color for your garden. Bellflowers bloom early but can last into the late spring or early summer. They can be delicate, so mulch them and the Balloon Flowers and be sure to keep the beds cleaned out of refuse and leaves. Bellflowers are early bloomers as is the Veronica. Our common woodland blue phlox is common in woodlands all over the area and you should ask for it from a good nursery. But there are garden phlox that bloom in the summer heat, so if you plant both types you will have bloom from April through much of the summer just from Phlox.

Every Memphian should have peonies in their gardens if they want late spring blooms and some wonderful cut flowers in their homes. Peonies need to be planted shallow and with certain modifications. If you buy these rhizomes, plant them right and they'll come up year after year with proper care. Rudbekias are also another summer flower perennial that blooms in the heat of the summer. My neighbor had some absolutely stunning yellow blooms in her yard in mid summer heat and I took a sample to Dan West and was told this was a local variety that grows wild in this area and is hard to transplant. But this is one plant everyone in Memphis should enjoy in our summer heat. These plants will just give you a place to start in your planting purchases. It's not too late to research or get your plants.