White flowers have a special feel to them, a strange mystique that goes with the candor of this color. Perennial flowers add to this the fact that they come back year on year.
White perennial flowers can lighten up the color scheme of a bed or border, and add scattered snowflakes in wild meadows. Actually, this is such a loved color with gardeners that white gardens have been popular for centuries. Maybe this is what you had in mind?
White is one of the most common colors in perennial flowers. The choice is huge and it goes from large trees like apples, to their relative, the rose, to small bulbous plants. While the color is the same though, the effect in your garden and care they need varies a lot.
From this wide range of white flowering perennials we have selected some of the best for your garden based on their aesthetic value but also availability, adaptability and how easy they are to grow. This article will lay them all out to you with great pictures but also handy tips.
White Perennials: The Brightest Color In The Garden
How can you use white in your garden though? White as a color expresses peace and innocence. But it also brings a lot of light and lightness to your garden. So, you can use it in many ways and here are some tips for you:
- Use white perennial flowers to soften the dark shades of foliage.
- Use white perennial flowers to lighten strong colors like purple, crimson, auburn, magenta etc.
- White mixes well with all other colors; unless you want to have a natural, “cottage garden” effect though, only use combinations of along two or maximum three gradients.
- You can use white flowers to bring light to dark corners.
- You can use white flowers as the base color and add just a few dots of other colors, like a blank canvas with a sketch on it. In this case, you can use a wide range of colors, as white will unify them.
And you can do all this choosing from the beautiful perennials you ate going to meet right now!
Trillium
Also known as a wood lily, these graceful white flowers are one of the most well-known and beloved spring wildflowers around. While they are native to rich woodland areas and often grow deep within heavy forests, they make the perfect addition to a variety of gardens. Trillium is known for stout blooms that delicately perch atop almost naked green stems. They require full to partial shade and they bloom best when they are grown in semi-moist soil in zones 4-8.
Lamium
With green or golden foliage and dainty white flowers, these low-maintenance perennials have a lovely fragrance and attract a variety of small birds. They prefer shaded gardens or containers in zones 4-8 and their flowers have long-lasting blooms that make it a desirable ground cover in shaded corners.
Lilyturf
Also called lilirope, these Asian natives have stalk-like flowers that bloom through fall in areas that offer moderate sun with partial shade. They typically grow from 12-18” and have slowly-expanding clumps of tube-like flowers that grow atop evergreen-colored foliage in zones 5-10.
Saxifraga
These yellow-white rosette blooms grow up to a foot in height during the summer months and burst upward from deep, silver-evergreen foliage that is often found in rocky areas. They prefer zones 5-8 and will not do well in humid or exceptionally hot climates.
Vinca
Commonly known as periwinkle or creeping myrtle, these whitish-blue flowers are commonly grown as ground cover for their enchanting evergreen foliage that will stay rich and lush all year long. They prefer zones 4-9, with some varieties of vinca growing best in zones 7-9.
Yarrow
These delicate white blooms grow in sprigs atop thin stems and are excellent additions to flower beds and herb gardens. Yarrow is often grown for its uses as a medicinal herb, aiding in the treatment of muscle cramps and minor wounds. It also has been used as a facial wash or astringent. Yarrow grows naturally in prairies and meadows and will thrive in zones 3-9.
Erysimum (Wallflower)
These easy-to-grow flowers are prized for their blooms that last from mid-spring to early fall and make a perfect border edge for any garden, looking especially dazzling cascading overtop a rock border. Wallflower prefers very sunny spots and gardeners appreciate its ability to attract hummingbirds and butterflies. These lovely white flowers grow best in zones 6-9.
Masterwort
These sparkling, star-like flowers are ivory white and flush with varying shades of pink, wafting a sweet scent from their blossoms. Their pinkish-white petals are both stunningly beautiful and very unique in color and shape. They grow from 1-2’ and will thrive in growing zones 4-9.
