With summer fast approaching, many property owners will be keen to get their yards and gardens looking lush and attractive again. However, knowing which flowers to plant in your specific growing zone to ensure that they will thrive can be tricky – especially where intense summer heat is going to be experienced. Below are some of the flower varieties that will not only add to your home’s curb appeal; they will thrive during zone 5 summers as well.
The Butterfly Weed
Don’t be fooled by this flower’s name. This perennial produces bright orange clusters of flowers on top of its stiff green leaves. Although the Butterfly Weed requires full sunshine to thrive, it is extremely tolerant to drought and very little watering is needed to keep them looking good.
Echinacea
Also called the Purple Coneflower, Echinacea is in fact native to the Illinois region and it produces cheerful-looking flowers that will attract butterflies and bees to your garden. These flowers are low maintenance and live for quite a long time.
New England Aster
These flowers are native to most of North America, with the exception of some Southern states and their purple-pink blooms return year after year without much effort being needed. Although moist soil is recommended when growing these, they don’t require a lot of watering and they will also attract bees and butterflies to your yard.
Campanula (Pink Octopus)
This is another flower that is easy to care for and they are a great choice for planting along garden borders. It blooms with Japanese lantern-like buds that open with an intense pink flower and they drop down from upright flowering branches.
Wild Quinine
Wild Quinine will perfectly complement any other bright and colorful flowers in your garden with their white buds. It does best in areas of full sunshine and requires just enough water to keep the soil around them damp. Beetles and bees will often feed on the pollen from these flowers as well.
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia Goldstrum)
These flowers are extremely showy and colorful and they can grow in sunny or partially shady areas of your garden. They bloom for a long time and their golden yellow flowers have dark brown cones in their centers.
Garden Phlox
Garden Phlox are known for growing extremely well all over the Chicago region and they prefer to be planted in sunny areas with soil that’s quite damp. These light purple flowers will often be seen blooming well into October.
Having even a few of the above-mentioned flower varieties planted throughout your Chicago garden will ensure that it looks bright and cheerful – even on the hottest of summer days. If you would like to get your garden looking good for summer, but aren’t sure where to start, get in touch with us today. We will be able to provide you with the advice you need or even the team you require to landscape your garden to perfection.