The Best Low Maintenance Perennials That are Easy to Grow

As a gardener in a short growing season, I want flower beds filled with perennials I don’t have to maintain. Not only do I want low maintenance, I want cheap plants, too! Maybe that’s too much to ask for you’re thinking, but I’m here to prove to you that you can grow beautiful plants well on a budget.

These perennial plants are easy to grow and require minimal care, so you can sit back, relax, and enjoy stunning blooms and foliage all season long.

What makes perennial plants low maintenance?

Low-maintenance plants require less water, pruning, and fertilization than other plants. They are also pest and disease-resistant; some can withstand extreme weather conditions, making them ideal for busy gardeners.

Perennials are a great choice since they come back year after year and don’t require replanting. The plants on our list are hardy and easy to care for, making them perfect for those short on time but still want to enjoy a beautiful garden.

For Tips to Create low-maintenance perennial flower beds

Plant taller perennials at the back of the border and shorter perennials at the front. This creates a beautiful visual effect and ensures all the plants get enough sunlight.

Group plants with similar growing requirements together. This reduces the need for watering and fertilizing and allows you to focus on the plants that need more attention.

Choose perennial flowers with different bloom times to ensure you have a variety of colors throughout the growing season.

Add some ornamental grasses for texture and movement. They require minimal care and add a beautiful backdrop to any flower bed.

Here are some low-maintenance perennial flower bed ideas to get you started:

1. Use Black-Eyed Susan, Coneflowers, and Yarrow for a sunny, low-maintenance flower bed that attracts butterflies and bees.
2. Plant Geraniums, Lamb’s Ear, and Salvia for a part shade garden that requires little maintenance.
3. Create a cottage-style garden with Shasta Daisies, Phlox, and Bearded Iris.
4. Use Sedum Autumn Joy, Russian Sage, and Purple Wood Sage for a low-maintenance garden that adds texture and color.

Frikart’s Aster

This perennial plant produces daisy-like flowers in shades of blue, pink, and purple. It blooms mid-summer through to the first frost and is a great way to attract butterflies to your garden.

Frikart’s Aster grows best in zones 3-8 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Lemongrass

Not just for cooking, lemongrass is a low-maintenance perennial that is easy to grow. It produces tall, slender, grassy foliage and spikes of tiny flowers. It grows best in zones 8-11 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Blue Wild Indigo

This perennial produces spikes of blue-purple flowers in late spring to early summer. It is a hardy plant that is drought tolerant and grows best in zones 3-9. Blue Wild Indigo prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Geranium x Cantabrigense and Cultivars

This hardy perennial produces pink or white flowers in late spring to early summer and boasts attractive foliage. It grows best in zones 5-8 and prefers full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil.

Sweetheart Epimedium

This low-maintenance perennial produces heart-shaped leaves in different colors of green, bronze, and burgundy.

It blooms in the spring with small flowers in pink, white, or yellow shades. Sweetheart Epimedium grows best in zones 4-9 and prefers partial shade to full shade and well-drained soil.

Purple Wood Sage

This perennial produces spikes of purple-blue flowers in the summer. It is a hardy plant that is drought tolerant and grows best in zones 5-9. Purple Wood Sage prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Jack-in-the-Pulpit

Jack in the Pulpit is a captivating native plant that wins over gardeners with its unique appearance and adaptability. Ideally suited for USDA hardiness zones 4 through 9, this perennial flourishes in various climates, particularly shaded and wooded areas.

It thrives in part to full shade, making it an excellent choice for forested settings or shade gardens. This plant prefers moist, well-drained soils rich in organic matter, replicating its natural habitat of lush forests, woodlands, and boggy areas.

Reaching a mature height of about 1 to 2 feet, Jack in the Pulpit features a striking, hooded spathe (the “pulpit”) that encloses a finger-like spadix (the “Jack”), creating an intriguing visual that draws the eye. This plant’s foliage consists of large, trifoliate leaves that add a lush, tropical feel to shaded garden spaces.

One of Jack in the Pulpit’s notable contributions to wildlife is its ability to attract pollinators and provide sustenance to birds. After blooming, the plant produces bright red berries that serve as a bird food source, enhancing its value within the garden ecosystem.

Solomon’s Seal

Solomon’s Seal is a graceful and versatile plant that adds elegance to any garden setting. It thrives in part sun to full shade and is ideally suited for woodland or shaded garden areas, where its arching stems and delicate, bell-shaped flowers can add a touch of charm.

The plant prefers moist to wet soils, making it ideal for forest floors, woodlands, swamps, and marshes. It is best grown in hardiness zones 3 through 9. 

Reaching a mature height of 1 to 3 feet, Solomon’s Seal is a visual delight with its lush foliage and airy blossoms and a functional addition to your landscape. I’m excited to add this to our shade garden in the coming season! Thanks so much to a reader for sharing this one with me.

Wild Geranium

Let’s talk about the unsung hero of the shaded garden: the Wild Geranium. This little gem thrives partly to full shade, making it a perfect match for those tricky corners in your garden that don’t get much sunlight.

Its love for moist soil means it’s right at home in woodlands and meadow edges, reaching a modest height of 1 to 2 feet. Not only does it charm us with its delicate pink and purple blooms every spring, but it also rolls out the welcome mat for birds, 

Dwarf Plumbago

This flowering, low-maintenance perennial produces clusters of small, blue-purple flowers in the summer. It is a compact plant that is perfect for small gardens or containers.

Dwarf Plumbago grows best in zones 7-11 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Russian Sage

This perennial produces spikes of lavender-blue flowers in the summer and boasts attractive silvery-green foliage. It is a hardy plant that is drought tolerant and grows best in zones 5-9. Russian Sage prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Coneflower

This low-maintenance perennial produces large, daisy-like flowers in a variety of flowers such as pink, purple, or white, and attracts butterflies and bees to your garden. These make great cut flowers,saving you time and money.

It grows best in zones 3-9 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Shasta Daisy

This sweet perennial produces large, white, daisy-like flowers with yellow centers in the summer. It is a hardy plant that grows best in zones 4-9 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Daylilies

These perennials produce trumpet-shaped flowers in orange, pink, red, yellow, and white shades. They are hardy plants that bloom throughout the summer and grow best in zones 3-9.

Daylilies prefer full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil. These also look gorgeous in a flower vase, making them excellent cut flowers.

Yarrow

This low-maintenance perennial produces clusters of small flowers in shades of pink, yellow, white, or red. It is a hardy plant that is drought tolerant and grows best in zones 3-9.

Yarrow prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Blanket Flower

These beautiful plants have daisy-like flower in red, yellow, or orange shades. It is a hardy plant that blooms throughout the summer and grows best in zones 3-10. Blanket Flower prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Black-Eyed Susans

This is one of the easiest perennials to grow. It produces daisy-like flowers with yellow petals and a dark center. It is a hardy plant that blooms throughout the summer and grows best in zones 3-9.

Black-eyed Susans prefer full sun and well-drained soil. Another excellent cut flower, they are perfect for using in vases around your home and last for quite a while.

Hydrangeas

These perennials produce large, showy flowers in shades of pink, blue, purple, or white. They bloom in the summer and attract butterflies to your garden. They grow best in zones 5-9 and prefer partial shade and well-drained soil.

These are my favorite flowers to dry and use for decor all year.

Catmint

This low-maintenance perennial produces spikes of purple-blue flowers in the summer. It is a hardy plant that is drought tolerant and grows best in zones 3-8.

Catmint prefers full sun and well-drained soil. Our barn cats love this, and I’ll also bring some in for our indoor cat. This dries well.

Peonies

I almost didn’t put these on the list because I had a rough year with mine this year. A new location and they got powdery mildew! Besides that, they are straightforward to maintain.

These showy perennials produce large, fragrant flowers in shades of pink, red, white, and yellow. They bloom in the spring and attract bees to your garden.

They look amazing in a vase. Can you imagine how beautiful your garden will be outside and inside now?

They grow best in zones 2-8 and prefer full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil.

Ornamental Grasses

These perennials produce attractive foliage in shades of green, gold, or bronze, and can add texture and movement to your garden.

These drought-tolerant plants grow best in various zones depending on the species. Ornamental Grasses prefer full sun and well-drained soil.

Phlox

This low-maintenance perennial produces clusters of small flowers in shades of pink, purple, white, or red. It blooms in the summer and attracts butterflies to your garden. It grows best in zones 4-8 and prefers full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil.

Coreopsis

This perennial produces daisy-like flowers in shades of yellow, orange, or red. It blooms in the summer and attracts butterflies to your garden. It grows best in zones 3-9 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Bee Balm

This low-maintenance perennial produces clusters of small flowers in shades of pink, purple, or red. It blooms in the summer and attracts bees and butterflies to your garden.

It grows best in zones 3-9 and prefers full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil.

Salvia

This perennial produces spikes of small, tubular flowers in shades of blue, purple, pink, or red. It blooms in the summer and attracts butterflies to your garden. It grows best in zones 5-9 and prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Lamb’s Ear

This low-maintenance perennial produces fuzzy, silvery-gray leaves and spikes of small pink or purple flowers in the summer.

It is a hardy plant that grows best in zones 4-8 and prefers full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil.

Blazing Star

This perennial produces spikes of purple flowers in the summer. A hardy plant attracts butterflies to your garden and grows best in zones 3-9. Blazing Star prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Sedum Autumn Joy

This low-maintenance perennial produces large clusters of pink flowers in the early fall. It is a hardy plant that is drought tolerant and grows best in zones 3-10. Sedum Autumn Joy prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Bearded Iris

This low-maintenance perennial produces large, showy flowers in shades of purple, blue, white, yellow, or pink. It blooms in the spring and grows best in zones 3-10. Bearded Iris prefers full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil.

Whether you’re a lazy gardener who’s short on time or wants to enjoy your garden without all the fuss, low-maintenance perennials are the way to go.

With the above-mentioned low-maintenance flower bed ideas, you can even have a gorgeous display on your patio, balcony, or backyard that’s easy to care for. Try these effortless plants and reap the rewards of beautiful blooms with minimal effort.