Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
2 ratings

Friday - April 02, 2010

From: Ashland, MO
Region: Midwest
Topic: Compost and Mulch, Planting, Herbs/Forbs
Title: Perennial blooming plants for Ashland MO
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

I am beginning to create a flower bed in front of my house, I do not have a green thumb so I want to know what plants would come back yearly and I can plant now in Mid Missouri?

ANSWER:

Ashland, in central Missouri, is in USDA Hardiness Zone 5b, so we will check anything we recommend to make sure it is native to that area. We are going to go to our Recommended Species section, click on Missouri on the map, and then narrow our search by clicking on "herbs" (herbaceous flowering plants) under General Appearance and "perennial" under Lifespan. You can repeat this search, indicating if you have "sun" (6 hours or more of sun daily), "part sun" (2 to 6 hours of sun daily) or "shade" (less than 2 hours of sun a day) under Light Requirements. There are other things you can specify in that search, such as color of blooms desired, time of bloom and soil moisture. You will need to observe the area you intend to use as a garden for a day to see just how much sun there is normally, and where. Another thing we would recommend is that you work some compost or other organic material into your soil before you plant anything. This will help with drainage, provide some soil nutrients and improve the texture.

Since you are a beginning gardener, we recommend you read a couple of our How-To Articles: A Guide to Native Plant Gardening and Gardening Timeline. When you are looking at our plant list, follow each link to our webpage on that individual plant to learn more about it, including how to propagate and growing conditions; at the bottom of that page is a link to Google for still more information. We are specifying "perennials" under Lifespan because you wanted flowers that come back yearly. If you want blooms from them this year, you will probably have to purchase bedding plants, as perennials usually do not bloom until the second year from seeding. Missouri must be a wonderful place for gardening; we found 76 possibilities and selected 12 for examples. You can redo the search and find many others.

Perennials for Ashland, MO:

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine)

Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly milkweed)

Coreopsis lanceolata (lanceleaf tickseed)

Dicentra cucullaria (dutchman's breeches)

Echinacea purpurea (eastern purple coneflower)

Eupatorium perfoliatum (common boneset)

Geranium maculatum (spotted geranium)

Lobelia cardinalis (cardinalflower)

Lobelia siphilitica (great blue lobelia)

Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot)

Phlox pilosa (downy phlox)

Zizia aurea (golden zizia)

From our Native Plant Database:


Aquilegia canadensis

Asclepias tuberosa

Coreopsis lanceolata

Dicentra cucullaria

Echinacea purpurea

Eupatorium perfoliatum

Geranium maculatum

Lobelia cardinalis

Lobelia siphilitica

Monarda fistulosa

Phlox pilosa

Zizia aurea

 

 

More Planting Questions

Planting under Pine Trees in Pocatello ID
April 08, 2014 - Hi I was wondering if you could give me some ideas of what I could plant under and near some pine trees for my area. The trees are huge and so it is also constant shade where I want to plant. Thanks f...
view the full question and answer

Failure to bloom in hybrid lantana
June 30, 2008 - I live in Austin and have planted the newer lantana varieties which bloom with orange and pink flowers.They have been planted in full sun and get watered 2 times a week for about 15 minutes.They do no...
view the full question and answer

Fertilizer producing leaves over flower production in Austin
June 27, 2010 - Can you please list which Central Texas perennials' will favor leaf growth over flower production when fertilized? I have many in the "Grown Green" booklet and need to know which flowering plants s...
view the full question and answer

Transplant shock in Texas natives garden
August 20, 2007 - Dear Mr. Smarty Pants, I thought that my new Texas Natives garden was recuperating from ALL the rain. But, suddenly, my Texas Red Bud and the Eve's Necklace next to it have MANY yellow leaves. Is the...
view the full question and answer

Garden instructions from Austin
June 12, 2013 - I'm a beginning gardener putting in some new landscaping in my front yard in north central Austin, TX. The yard faces almost due east, so it gets full sun until early afternoon, when the house's sha...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.