These perennials bloom during the early growing season and are a welcome sight after a long-cold winter. Mix these spring flowering perennials in with your summer and fall-blooming flowers for a show of sequential blooms all gardening season.
Bergenia a.k.a Pigsqueak
Bloom time is April and May. This plant is called Pigsqueak because if you rub two leaves together it makes a squeaking sound. Bergenia love shade or dappled sunlight and a great alternative to the hosta. Bleeding Heart
These hearts bloom mid-May to June. Heart-shaped pink flowers that dangle from outstretched stems. Cool-moist areas are best with morning sun.Ajuga a.k.a Bugleweed.
These flowers bloom early May through June. It’s an aggressive spreading ground cover that helps choke out weeds. Commonly used for hard-to-grow shady area, erosion control or under Black Walnut trees since it’s resistant to Juglone.Fernleaf Peony
Deep red large flowers grow on fine-textured fern-like foliage that grows in a 1′-2′ foot mound. Provide 6 hrs of sun and they will bloom in late-spring. May need stem support to prevent drooping. Forget-Me-Not
They start blooming in May and can re-bloom later in the season. Pink or blue flowers of Forget-Me-Not create a blanket of small flowers over a short 5 inch to 12 inch plant. Used as a ground-cover in landscapes, this perennial is biennial and reseeds itself. Deadhead blooms to prevent re-seeding if you want to inhibit spreading. Squaw Weed a.k.a Round-Leaved Ragwort
Blooms late-spring to early-summer. Excellent ground cover with sea of long-lasting yellow flowers. Will flower in full sun to part shade and spreads slowly and easy to contain. Columbine
Blooms mid-spring. Blue, pink, or purple bell-shaped flowers great for part shade and woodland areas. Native Columbine has smaller red and yellow flowers that tend to have slightly more nodding in the flowers. Sweet Woodruff
Forms thick mats of foliage with small white flowers blooms April and May. Best grown in moist, shady areas. Can handle dry shade but won’t grow as prolific. Poppy
Poppies can bloom in cooler weather April through June. A shorter lived plant that easily reseeds itself for year-after-year blooms. These delicate flowers love growing in full-sun. Geum
This is a member of the rose family that loves full morning sun and afternoon shade. Mid-spring flowers perch atop fuzzy stems. Long-blooming flowers that butterflies adore! Dead-head old flowers to push more blooms.Cushion Spurge
The tiny yellows flowers are insignificant but the bright yellow bracts surrounding the blooms is what makes this cushion-shaped plant a lovely spring perennial. The leaves will also turn orange in the fall. Grow in full sun to avoid legginess. As part of the Eupohorbia family, it can handle drought once established.Lungwort
This early spring bloomer is a low growing plant with fuzzy white speckled leaves. Creates a clump of textured foliage with flower stalks that rise above the foliage. Great for shady locations and deer resistance.Vinca Minor
Prolific bloomer with deep lilac color flowers. Vining habitat that creates a blanket of gorgeous glossy dark leaves. Shade tolerant but produces more blooms in mostly sunny locations.Primerose
These extremely colorful flowers that come in multiple colors will bloom early to mid spring. They are perfectly happy blooming before deciduous shrubs leaf out. Great for moist, partly shady garden areas!
We hope you have found a perennial that caught your eye! Look for the perennials above in our nursery as well these other spring flowering perennials, listed below, when you are adding to your landscape this season.
If you are looking for more perennials to add to your garden, especially ones that can handle drought, give Top 8 Tough as Nails Perennials a read!
Early Spring Yard and Garden Tasks
The desire to start gardening and enjoy outside is hard to suppress. Each spring will bring us new weather patterns and it’s best to take Nature’s cues when it comes to accomplishing these yard and garden tasks
YARD AND GARDEN TASKS:
1. Wait to clean up dead perennial matter until temps are consistently around 55F-60F. Beneficial insects will be in their dormant state in leaf litter and dead perennial matter. You should wait to clean up dead plant material as late as possible into the spring.
You can top dress with compost as well as mulch around the root zone of your plants when you see perennials emerging.
2. Clean and sanitize your outdoor containers, bird baths, bird feeders, and garden tools. Check out the new garden decor and tools in store!
3. Prune off dead/damaged branches on shrubs and trees. Late winter/early spring is the best time to prune trees, before their buds are formed. Refer to our pruning guide in regards to shrubs and trees.
4. Clean debris from your vegetable garden and top dress the soil with compost at least two weeks before you plant. Avoid compaction of the soil by using designated walkways. Compaction of the soil will reduce the level of oxygen available for plant roots. Lightly till in compost if you notice your soil is compacted.
5. Early to Mid-April, depending on weather and ground temperature, is the best time to put down new grass seed or ground covers like clover. Wait to scatter seed until day temps are 60F+ consistently before spreading seed. Most seeds, including grass won’t germinate until the soil is 55F+. We carry bulk or bagged grass seed from Ramy Seed in Mankato. If you want to forego a conventional grass lawn, get a wildflower seed mix and scatter the seed in mid to late April.
Please note, if you want to do a weed killer in the same area you want new grass, you will have to wait to over-seed grass until summer or fall. If seeding is more important – forgo the crabgrass or weed killer and just use a lawn food
6. Apply crabgrass killer and weed pre-emergents just before we have consistent 60F days. Most products last 6-8 weeks and timing the application with the weather is important or you may need to reapply. Weeds germinate when soil is 55F. There are many turf products, likes Maxlawn Weed and Feed, that contain fertilizer as well as weed killers so you can accomplish both tasks if you have weeds throughout your lawn. Our staff can help you decide what is best depending on what you want to accomplish!
If you don’t mind weeds, use a lawn fertilizer around the time you have to mow for the first time.
Plant summer bulbs when the soil has warmed to above 40F and the soil isn’t soggy. Usually early April through mid May depending on the spring weather. The soil should be rich and well-draining to avoid bulb rot if cooler temps come back.
Find growing instructions in the store!
Cool Season Hardy and Semi-Hardy Vegetables:
Acidic Soil Loving Plants
Three Plant Needs
Water, Sun, and Soil (Nutrients).
Where does soil pH level come in?
Plants need nutrients and have a balanced relationship with elements in the soil which will contribute to the health of plants.
Plants also have pH level preferences. The soil pH level can affect the uptake of nutrients. Depending on the plant, if the soil pH is not ideal then you may have a stunted and unhealthy plant – and it’s not because there isn’t nutrients in the soil.
Put Away the Fertilizer – For Now
If you are noticing any issues like yellowing leaves, no fruit production, growth seems stunted, and not blooming, checking the pH is highly recommended first before using fertilizers.
For example, you may add fertilizer to your garden but it still has little effect on your plant health if for some reason your soil pH is off. Too much fertilizer can also inhibit nutrient uptake because of soil nutrient imbalances. In addition, nitrogen and phosphorous runoff is a huge environmental pollutant, especially to our waterways and lakes.
Testing your soil nutrients is good gardening practice and could save you money in the long run. If you know your soil pH is within the proper range and your plant is showing nutrient deficiency symptoms, use a slow release fertilizer (like Bio-tone) for in-ground plants to avoid excessive nutrients and run-off.
What is Acidic Soil?
The range of pH is from 0-14. Acidic soil is considered anything below 7.
Many plants like to grow within the 6-7.5 pH range for optimal nutrient uptake.
In Southern MN, you may notice a lot of clay soil with lime, which tends to be more alkaline – 7 pH or above. Water coming from hoses in this area are usually more basic, which increases soil alkalinity.
Other factors that affect soil acidity are rainfall, nitrogen fertilizers, plants (like pines), and subsoil acidity. The best way to know your soil acidity level is a quick home test.
Acidic Soil Loving Plants
Plants that prefer slight acidity, 6.0-7.0 range:
Most plants! Each plant has a pH range it can tolerate and many plants can handle down to 6.0.
Plants that prefer strong acidity, 5.5:
Trees and Shrubs: Raspberry 5.5-7.0, Pears 5.5-7.0, Peaches 5.5-7.0
Trees and Shrubs: Azalea 4.5-6, Blueberry 4.5-6, Hydrangea-Blue flowered 4.0-5.0, White Pine 4.5-6.0, Rhododendron 4.5-6 Flowers – Lily-of-the-Valley 4.5-6.0
Plants have a range of pH that they will grow in and thrive. Those plants that have very strong and an extremely strong acidic soil needs, may need additional amendments to keep soil pH down.
Changing Soil pH
The best way to improve soil pH is through addition of amendments and adding organic material. To increase acidity – add sulfur – and to decrease acidity – add lime. Add both of these amendments in small stages and increments as to not shock the plant if it’s already planted. Read the instructions on any product you use to properly adjust the pH.
Favorite supplements to adjust the soil pH that will not shock the plants – if used as directed:
Epsoma Soil Acidifer – Organic, Safe, long-lasting, and won’t burn the plants if used as directed. Repeat in 60 day intervals if needed.
Epsoma Berry Tone for Berries – Organic, Good if you need to slightly increase acidity, Use early and late spring, Use on blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries, Will help produce bigger plants and more berries.
Adjust Soil pH with Organic Matter
Add any type of compost to your garden beds. This is best to do in the fall since it takes more time to adjust the soil pH using this method but feel free to feed plants with top dressing of compost during the growing season. Reach for compost first when wanting to add nutrients, improving soil aeration, improving water retention, and adjusting pH.
Modifying your soil’s pH will take some time. Depending on the type of soil you are working with, the addition of supplements and organic material may be needed year-after-year.
If you test your soil and notice you’re having troubles with keeping your soil more acidic, don’t fight it! Choose plants that will tolerate more neutral or alkaline soils. There are plenty out there!
