Want non-stop color and lasting blooms in the hottest, sunniest spots in your yard? Discover Nature Hills' top-rated Full Sun Perennials!
These are your go-to garden champions that thrive where Ma Nature shines her brightest! These rugged, radiant plants handle intense sunlight with ease, producing lush growth, bold color, and pollinator-friendly blooms from spring to frost.
Full Sun Perennials are garden staples that come in all colors, heights, and bloom times, offering a long-lasting, low-maintenance show year after year. Whether you're looking for fast-growing, compact, tall, cold-hardy, or drought-tolerant types, Nature Hills Nursery delivers the best full sun plants directly to your door, just in time for planting in your growing zone.
These plants will reward you year after year with spectacular blooms, pollinator-friendly flowers, bird-friendly seeds, color, fragrance, and fresh-cut flowers all season long!
Full Sun Perennials are top performers in gardens that bask in at least 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight. They're resilient, beautiful, and perfect for landscape designs, rock gardens, borders, and even small perennials for containers.
Not just pretty faces, Full Sun Perennials come in a wide range of colors, sizes, shapes, and bloom times from spring until late summer and flowering until fall, and even some varieties with winter interest! Some even smell amazing! Each allows you to fill your landscape with something new from early spring until frost and even remain showy during the winter months!
- How To Choose The Right Full Sun Perennial
- How To Care For Full Sun Perennials
- Top Full Sun Perennials For Every Garden
- Where & How To Use Full Sun Perennials
- A Bright Idea That Keeps Blooming
How To Choose The Right Full Sun Perennial
When selecting full-sun perennials, start by confirming your area receives 6 or more hours of direct sun each day. Then, match plants to your Hardiness Zone, flower color, height, bloom season, and moisture needs. Ask yourself:
- Is the space sunny all day, or partially shaded later?
- Is the soil soggy or dry most of the time?
- Will trees or buildings grow to cast future shade?
Match plants to your soil type: For soggy spots, opt for moisture-loving species. For dry, poor soil, seek drought-tolerant varieties. Use a raised bed or 12-18 inch mound if your soil drains poorly.
Need more guidance? Your County Extension Office can help you select the best options for your microclimate.
How To Care For Full Sun Perennials
Caring for sun-loving perennials is easy, but success starts at planting time:
- Ensure well-drained soil unless you're planting water garden varieties.
- Keep new plants watered consistently in their first year. Use the Finger Test to know when to water.
- Use 3-4 inches of arborist mulch to help retain soil moisture and insulate roots. Do not let it pile up over the crown.
- Enrich the soil with compost or organic matter to boost moisture retention.
- Deadhead often to keep flowers returning.
- Pinch back leggy growth to encourage more branching.
Check out our helpful Garden Blog on Planting Perennials, dividing Perennials, and winterizing Perennials.
Top Full Sun Perennials For Every Garden
Nature Hills Nursery offers a vibrant selection of the best full sun perennials that handle drought, heat, cold, and humidity. Here's a curated list of favorites, some top classics, some bold show-offs. Every one of them is spectacular!
Tried-and-True Garden Classics:
These are what most people think of when they picture a sun-drenched perennial garden.
- Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia) – Golden daisy blooms that brighten borders and feed pollinators.
- Coneflower (Echinacea) – Colorful, drought-tolerant, and medicinal; a butterfly magnet.
- Daylily (Hemerocallis) – Tough-as-nails, trumpet-like blooms in nearly every color.
- Shasta Daisy (Leucanthemum) – Cheerful white flowers with yellow centers and sturdy stems.
- Bee Balm (Monarda) – Spicy-scented, vibrant blooms that attract hummingbirds and bees.
- Russian Sage (Perovskia) – Silvery stems with long-lasting lavender-blue spires.
Pollinator Favorites & Fragrant Beauties:
Support beneficial insects with these pollen and nectar-filled plants.
- Catmint (Nepeta) – Aromatic, compact, and full of tiny purple blooms all summer.
- Salvia – Fragrant spikes that bloom prolifically and attract beneficial insects.
- Coreopsis (Tickseed) – Cheerful daisy-like flowers in shades of gold, red, and pink.
- Penstemon – Tubular blooms in bold hues that bring hummingbirds dancing.
- Lavender (Lavandula) – Sweetly scented silvery foliage and purple flower spikes beloved by bees and butterflies, perfect for edging and drying.
Bold Blooms & Summer Stars:
Summer and late-season bloomers that take the heat and sunlight.
- Perennial Hibiscus – Dinner-plate blooms in late summer add dramatic color.
- Sedum (Stonecrop) – Fleshy leaves, drought-resistant, and fall-blooming.
- Asters – Late-season bursts of purple, pink, and white to feed the bees.
- Gaillardia (Blanket Flower) – Long bloom time and cheerful red-yellow bicolor blooms.
- Yarrow (Achillea) – Ferny leaves with medicinal history and flat-topped flower clusters.
More Sun-Worthy Additions:
Bring in the Hummingbirds with these sun-lovers.
- Hyssop/Agastache (Hummingbird Mint) – Fragrant spikes of blue, purple, orange, or pink blooms.
- Tall Garden Phlox (Phlox paniculata) – Large clusters of scented flowers in pink, purple, or white.
- Liatris (Blazing Star) – Purple spires with vertical drama and butterfly appeal.
- Sea Holly (Eryngium) – Unusual texture with spiny leaves and metallic blooms.
- Red Hot Poker (Kniphofia) – Torch-like blooms with tropical vibes and hummingbird traffic. Try Fire Dance or Flamenco Red.
And so many, many more!
Where & How To Use Full Sun Perennials
Read here about how to create the perfect Mixed Perennial garden; otherwise, try these other great uses
Sun perennials are endlessly versatile:
- Use as facer plants in front of shrubs or trees
- Cutting and Cottage Gardens
- Edge walkways or patio spaces
- Fill a sunny rock garden or rockery
- Brighten foundation beds
- Create a cut flower patch or pollinator sanctuary
- Anchor foundations with large Perennials
- Create drifts and large groupings in mass plantings
Mix different heights, textures, and bloom times for a full-season display that evolves through the months!
A Bright Idea That Keeps Blooming
Planting Full Sun Perennials is one of the easiest ways to bring lasting color and life to even the sunniest, driest corners of your yard!
With options that bloom from spring through frost, and even winter interest, these beauties thrive where others wilt.
Each of Nature Hills Nursery's plants is delivered safely to your home at the proper planting time for your growing zone. Including instructions for planting, care, and storage, so you can order knowing you'll have exactly what you need!
Happy Planting!
