Longest blooming perennials in my garden:
Nepeta
Gaillardia
Joe Pye Weed
Agastache (blue fortune and golden jubilee)

No perennial blooms all 4 months my growing season but the plants above bloom for at least half of that time.

Also consider:

Longest blooming carefree (no deadheading) annual: Melapodium

Longest blooming
gaillardia
rudbeckia hirta
hydrangea endless summer
verbascum Southern Charm

Reblooms if sheared back
coreopsis moonbeam
blue flax

reblooms if deadheaded/ seeds or pods removed
butterfly weed
echinacea

Also consider reseeding annuals like
cosmos
larkspur
nicotiana
melampodium
nicotiana
old-fashioned petunia like Laura Bush

Karen

The longest blooming perennials/shrub in my garden are:
-Geranium 'Rozanne' from early June until hard frost. Last year she bloomed until mid November
-Aster 'Monch'
-Sedum 'Aurumn Joy' - I keep seed heads on the plants all winter long
-Hydrangea 'Annabelle' - seed heads are very pretty in winter too

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The best way to prolong blooms in the garden is planting annuals to fill in the gaps as well as planting things that would bloom in succession + evergreen & plants/shrubs that give winter interests.

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**Spring: early - mid - late spring bulbs, early blooming flowers such as Primula, Dicentra, etc. that will bloom into early summer, reseeded annual forget-me-not, etc.

**Bridging spring & summer: Aquilegea, Lunnaria annua, Geum trifolium, etc.

**Summer: early bulbs such as Asiatic Lily, Lileum Regale, perennial forget-me-not picks up when the annuals begin to set seeds....then all the perennials start to open up. Perennial Geranium, Aster 'Monch', Geranium 'Rozanne', Clematis, etc. And flowering shrubs: Viburnum, Lilac, etc.

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Don't forget ornamental grass. They start to bloom in July - August, depending on species and give interest well into early winter. I keep Miscanthus plumes on the clump all the way to January -February or until they are all tattered from the wind & snow.

The list is endless. I also have different types of lilies that take turn blooming well into September.

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Right now I still have Hosta plantaginea, Rudbeckia hirta, Rudbeckia triloba, Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm', Echinacea purpurea, Helenium, Phlox paniculata, Northern Sea Oats, Rattlesnakemasters, Polymonium, Miscanthus 'Yaku-Jima', Geranium 'Rozanne', Aster 'Monch' in bloom.

The berries on my Viburnum opulus 'Compactum' are bright red. Beautiful. They stay on the shrub all winter long. I might replace this viburnum with a native viburnum so birds can enjoy the berries instead of leaving them along all winter long.

**Fall: Solidago, asters, Colchicum, fall crocus and other Miscanthus will open.

**Winter: Red Twig Dogwood, Winter Flame Dogwood, Scarlet Curls Willow, Coral Embers Willow, Sedum 'Autumn Joy' & Hydrangea 'Annaabelle' seed heads, Ornamental Grass, Betula nigra 'Little King' coral colored barks, Yucca and evergreen shrubs will be prominent features in my garden.

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I have planned, adjusted things in my garden to have something in bloom or give interest 12 months of the year. I mix colors, textures and heights. I also love to mix bold green leaves in my flower beds.

***Right now. I am in the process replacing some small, fuzzy leaves with plants with large and bold sizes and textures.

Fernleaf Bleeding Heart is the longest blooming perennial in my garden. It blooms for months on end.

You beat me to it Trudi. Might I add that it is available in old rose and white and red.

Can you keep Dahlia bulbs in the ground year round in your zone? Mine start blooming in late July and keep going until frost.

pitimpinai , thanks for the great information! Really useful post.

One perennial that blooms from spring until frost for me is campanula 'Blue Clips'. I keep it deadheaded.

I also have a short delicate salvia that has light blue blooms and blooms all summer if deadheaded. I don't know the variety as it was traded seed listed as salvia and has become a favorite. I like to share this with others since it is such a long bloomer.

'Caradonna' salvia is another that stays in bloom all summer but it takes constant detailed deadheading. New blossoms form slightly below the old blossom and many people cut them off when they cut the plant back.

Feverfew and sweet williams bloom all summer though they are biennials.

Cordyalis is a new to me plant that has had yellow blooms all summer.

Yarrow has a long blooming time and will give repeat bloom if cut back.

Some penstemons continue to bloom if deadheaded.

Clematis integrifolia 'Bushy Blue Bell' blooms from June until frost.

Some daylilies are repeat/continual bloomers.

Potentilla 'Monarch's Red' blooms most of the summer.

I also grow many of the others listed by others.

Like pitimpinai I plan my gardens so there is always something in bloom and include plants that add texture or color with their foliage.

I think the secret for long blooming plants is deadheading/cutting back.

We've kept dahlias going for about three years which seems to be the time between when we have a prolonged deep chill in winter. Deep cold is usually not a problem if it comes on slowly without preciptation, but that's not always the case. A few years back I had a nice set of dahlias growing well and in the ground year to year, but then we had a heavy and deep wet snowstorm at the end of January followed immediately by a few warm and sunny days. That big pack of snow partially melted, it super saturated the ground, and then a cold snap came and it froze hard into inches of ice which stayed nearly a month. All the dahlias and anything else that was vaguely tender perished. I also lost some rudbeckias and sedums.

The problem was caused by that partial thaw which trapped slush in the soil which then froze thick and solid for a month. My ground is very sandy except for an occasional patch of clay. I could lay a running hose on the lawn and walk away and come back hours later and not see a puddle. The water goes straight down immediately--we have terrific drainage here in East Meadow. But a winter wetness in the ground can be a problem for some plants. They don't like wet feet in the winter, they get root or crown rot and they die where they are.

T

Clematis 'Betty Corning' blooms from June until frost too. Mine is still blooming:
{{gwi:241310}}

My spouse has a rose that blooms from early spring until frost.

I want to thank you all for such great ideas. I knew I could count on this forum<:->Michelle

I am not sure when my rudbeckia cappuccino started to bloom, but it has been going for a very long time. I WS it last year and the blooms have been a real treat all summer. It is just starting to fade and produce seeds now. Love it!!
L

It is going against "Winter sowing laws" but plants which are sterile will bloom the longest.... like geraniums Rozanne, Nimbus, my recent favorite Cherry Orkney.
With careful deadheading I can get my Campanula punctata bloom for 8 weeks at the time. It is based on same concept- no seeds- must bloom...
supplementing you season with early bloom bulbs and late fall bloom bulbs will give you great extension on the use of your garden beds within same space, specially if you use small bulbs for it. Check out Van Engelen bulbs- best of the rest- section to see what you like.
Choosing shrubs for multiseasonal interest is great way to add to the garden bed. One of my favorite viburnums Cardinal Candy is standing now covered in red berries which will last well into winter...

Are you looking for long lasting with or without deadheading or cutting back?

You must be joking about the Black-eyed Susan's only blooming for 3-4 weeks?!?
I was going to suggest BES's because in my garden they are going for 3-4 months!! I don't even bother to deadhead these because the blooms are LONG lasting anyhow and new ones continue to open from beginning of bloom until about now....longer if I choose to water my prairie bed more often. Also the Shasta Daisy and Purple Coneflower are long blooming as well if kept deadheaded or used for cut flowers.
Almost everything else (except fall bloomers) I keep up on the deadheading or use them for cut flowers so there's extended blooming all season long. Some I just completely cut back by half and they are all just re-blooming now like Maltese Cross, Blue Flax and Golden Marguerite. I won't cut them back again, but will just deadhead them now as needed until the season is over (except Blue Flax). Lavender is another one that is re-blooming since harvesting of the first early spring flush of wands.
A few of my favorites for long blooming periods include:
*Feverfew 'Flore Pleno' (starts mid spring thru about end of July. Was cut back by half and started re-bloom last week.)
*Yarrow (however I'm removing it this year....mine is too aggressive and I need the space for new garden ideas!)
*Coreopsis tinctoria (non-stop blooming annual, but I like to remove spent blooms now and then for neatness, but not necessary).
*Clarkia amoena (annual...started blooming in June and hasn't let up with no help from me).
*Blue Flax (starts early May and is about spent up by July; cut back by half for mid August on bloom)
*Verbena bonariensis (annual)

Mind you if I plan to harvest seeds from anything I deadhead I make sure I start leaving at least one plant of each alone to do their thing after say around August 10th. Monarda fistulosa is the exception....seed has a long period from formation to maturity.

I'm so sorry! More of you posted and I got busy with work, school, and some fall clean-up..but anyway...

Vera, yes, long blooming without deadheading. I work 10 hour days in the summer so the little time off I do have is spent with the veggie garden.
Nope, not kidding at all on the 3 or 4 weeks for my echinacea, black-eyed susans and shasta daisies. I do have a few echinacea that are throwing out one or two blooms now but for the most part they were spent back in July.

I forgot to mention the catmint,lavender, and maraschino cherry salvia are all all-season long bloomers for me, but again 2 of the 3 plants are in the purple range of color. I just can't seem to get away from purple!

Rudbeckia cappuccino is definitely on my "want it" list.

Michelle