Do you have a balcony or patio that you want to fill with beautiful flowers that come back year after year? If so, you’re in luck, as in this article we’re going to be covering our top 10 perennial flowers that you can plant on your balcony.
Contents
Bleeding Hearts
If you’re looking to add an interesting-shaped perennial to your balcony, then a bleeding heart could be for you. We only discovered this plant recently after moving to our country garden, and have really loved its beautiful heart-shaped flowers and intricate leaves.
Bleeding hearts are well suited to shady spots on your balcony, making them a great addition to your space. Make sure to pot them in moist, well-draining soil to keep them looking great from April until June.
Clematis
Clematis is a popular climbing perennial with beautiful flowers. Even though people often think of it as a garden plant, it also looks beautiful as part of a balcony garden, especially if you encourage it to grow around your balcony railings. We’d recommend mulching heavily to keep the roots cool and placing it in a sunny spot to help it flower the best.
Blackeyed Susan
If you’d like to encourage bees and other pollinators into your balcony garden, then a blackeyed susan could be for you. It blooms from late summer into early autumn with beautiful yellow-orange flowers with a prominent brown centre.
We’d recommend using a big pot to plant blackeyed susan in, adding another smaller plant around the base to cover its long stems. Removing faded flowers will help to keep it blooming for about a month.
Hydrangea
A hydrangea is a stunning flowering plant which everyone knows for its showy clusters of flowers and lush foliage. These flowers come in a huge variety of colours and bloom all the way from spring to early autumn. Hydrangeas are great for balconies as they’re easily trainable and are available in so many different sizes and colours, allowing you to really customise your balcony garden to your tastes.
To keep your hydrangea happy, we’d recommend that you pick a large, sturdy container with plenty of good drainage. You can learn more about picking the right pot for your balcony plants in our complete guide here.
Echinacea (Coneflower)
Potentially one of my absolute favourite plants at the minute, the echinacea (or coneflower) is a charming perennial flower, which is characterised by its daisy-like appearance and distinctive cone-shaped centre. Because of their relatively small size and attractive, nectar-rich flowers, we’d recommend echinacea for any balcony garden.
We’d recommend placing your coneflowers in full sun or partial shade to keep them flowering for their full season (June until late August).
Aster
Asters are another great flowering perennial for your balcony garden as they are prized for their vibrant, daisy-like flowers that bloom in a large array of colours. They typically bloom from late summer into early autumn, making them a perfect flower for the end of the season.
Lavender
If you’re looking to fill your balcony garden with scent, then lavender is a great perennial for you. Known for its slender stems and clusters of small, aromatic flowers, lavender is beloved both for its delightful fragrance, and its culinary uses.
Hosta
Hostas are herbaceous perennials that are known for their luscious heart-shaped or oval leaves. Hostas love the shade, making them perfect for the darker corner of your balcony garden. Hostas come in a wide range of sizes, from large varieties to smaller types perfect for rock gardens, meaning that there’ll always be a variant that can fit your space.
Miniature Roses
Miniature roses are small versions of traditional rose bushes, prized for their compact size, abundant blooms, and vibrant colours. Miniature roses produce the same iconic flowers as their larger counterparts, albeit on smaller stems and with smaller blooms, so if you’ve been desperate to include a rose on your balcony, but haven’t felt that you have the space, then you’re in luck!
Heuchera
Heuchera, also known as coral bells or alumroot, are herbaceous perennials which are known for their attractive foliage and delicate, bell-shaped flowers. While their flowers are relatively small, their bold colours and dense foliage make a great addition to any balcony space.
Conclusion
With these 10 perennials, your balcony garden will be looking and smelling incredible for years to come. If you’re just getting started with your garden, we’d recommend that you check out our creative vertical gardening tips to help you get even more space out of your balcony garden and our tips for choosing the right pots for your new plants.
