
Adam's Needle
Yucca filamentosa
This unique plant looks more suited to a desert climate, but it is found wild up and down the east coast. Its strappy leaves are crowned by huge spikes of creamy white flowers every other year.
This unique plant looks more suited to a desert climate, but it is found wild up and down the east coast. Its strappy leaves are crowned by huge spikes of creamy white flowers every other year.
These tiny blue flowers are some of the most shade tolerant of the spring flower bulbs.
Asparagus is an unusual plant that is primarily cultivated for its edible tender young shoots in the spring. When mature, it has large ferny foliage that is pale green.
Bee Balm is a tall summer-blooming perennial with brilliant red flowers subtended by a whorl of showy, red-tinged, leafy bracts. The aromatic leaves can be used for tea, but are susceptible to mildew, so this plant needs good air circulation. A member of the mint family, bee balm spreads readily by rhizomes…
This unique plant features bright blue-purple flowers on tall green stalks followed by interesting black seedpods. It forms a deep taproot and does not transplant well, so be certain of its location before planting.
Boxwood are the quintessential southern garden hedge plant. They are popular for use in knot gardens, parterres, edging, and as topiaries. While the historic English boxwood (Buxus suffruiticosa) are especially susceptible to a devastating and widespread blight caused by the fungus Cylindrocladium buxicola…
Butter and Eggs is pale yellow double daffodil with many frilly petals. Its height makes it well suited to the middle of the flower border.
Calendulas are an old fashioned herb with bright yellow or orange flowers. They are profuse bloomers in the spring and fall, but will stop blooming during the hot part of the summer. Their flowers can be used in salads and soaps.
This compact plant is covered in drifts of tiny white flowers in the spring. It blooms at the same time as many of the spring bulbs and provides a nice accent among them.
The vibrant red blooms of the cardinal flower makes it an ideal plant for the shady summer garden. It reseeds readily and is ideal for naturalizing and sharing with friends.
This cute perennial forms small masses of green foliage with bright yellow or red flowers in the early spring. It is particularly sweet when planted with bulbs or other spring ephemerals in the front of the border.
Early Louisiana is a petite yellow daffodil that is well suited to naturalizing. It does well towards the front of the flower border.
Fragrant spires of dark purple flowers above silvery foliage light up the garden border in summer. If trimmed after blooming, they will flower again. Their flowers may be used in sachets or as flavoring in baking and drinks.
Named for the time of day the bloom opens, four o'clocks will attract hummingbirds and nocturnal pollinators to your garden. This bushy plant reseeds readily, producing hundreds of large black seeds that resemble hand grenades.
Wands of bell-shaped flowers ascend from a broad, woolly basal rosette. This common cottage garden flower has an important role in the manufacture of heart medicine.
Germander is a small, shrubby herb with bright flowers and a distinctive fragrance. It works well as a short, clipped hedge.
An unusual flower for the summer garden, these blue thistle-like blooms add a unique texture. If cut back after blooming, they will send up new flowers. They make excellent dried and cut flowers.
This uncommon shrub produces tart green fruits in summer that are suitable for jams and desserts. They have many sharp thorns and some care should be used when working around them.
Hollyhocks are old-fashioned cottage garden favorites for their height and cheerful flowers in a wide range of colors. Most require staking to support their heavy stems.
The Hoop Petticoat is one of the smallest daffodils grown at Mount Vernon and is often crowded towards the front of the border for ease of viewing. It has unique flowers with large bells and slender, petite petals.
This versatile hydrangea tolerates a wide variety of conditions and is ideal for borders or natural areas. It benefits from an annual pruning in late winter to prevent the heavy blooms from flopping.
This silver-leafed groundcover does best in well-drained soil, but tolerates adverse conditions. Its purple flowers are attractive to honeybees and bumblebees.
Large fragrant bouquets of purple flowers make this shrub the queen of spring in the northern garden.
Maximus is a standard among daffodils for its height and large yellow blooms. It does well in the middle of the border where it can be easily seen.
This late blooming perennial adds height and colorful spires to the end of summer shade garden. It prefers afternoon shade in the southern garden, but will tolerate sun further north.
A fluffier flower sets this columbine apart from the simpler native type. It has cheerful magenta and white flowers on tall stems and reseeds readily.
Odorus Flore Pleno is a medium to small daffodil with double yellow flowers. It is strongly fragrant.
Onions are commonly planted in the fall for a spring harvest. Red and yellow types are available to grow.
Herbaceous, shrub-like plants bear single or double flowers in shades of pink and cream. They are an old-fashioned favorite in East Coast gardens.
The Pheasant's Eye daffodil is a clear white daffodil featuring a yellow cup with a red ring. It is one of the later blooming daffodils and it does best towards the middle of the border.
Potatoes are a tomato relative and are often mistaken for them, as their foliage is somewhat similar in appearance. They are an agricultural staple that ranks with wheat and rice as among the most important in the world. Their South American origin is often obscured by their fame as a mainstay crop…
Red currants are a small tart fruit best harvested in June. They prefer well-drained soils as well as cool summer climates.
Rhubarb is an old-fashioned vegetable, grown for its brilliant red stems which are often used in pies and desserts. While its stems are noted for their culinary qualities, its leaves are poisonous and must be removed before cooking.
This old-fashioned hyacinth has a sparser, more delicate flower than the modern types, but it is much more likely to stick around in the garden. It resists flopping under its own weight and is known to naturalize.
Seventeen Sisters is a multi-flowered daffodil which features many small white flowers with yellow cups held on stiffly upright stems. It is very fragrant.
Thick clumps of spiky foliage and bright purple or blue flowers are perfect for mid-border planting. Like their German cousins, these benefit from division so they don't grow hollow in the middle.
The Swan's Neck daffodil is a white daffodil that keeps its flowers bent toward the earth. It is fairly small and should be planted close to the front for the best viewing opportunities.
This summer blooming perennial has strap-like leaves and large orange flowers. Because it naturalizes easily, this daylily can be commonly seen in roadside ditches and marking the sites of old outhouses.
Twin Sisters lives up to its name, with each stem bearing two small white and yellow flowers.
Van Sion is a bright yellow daffodil streaked with green. It is double, with many softly pointed petals.
Wild columbines have dainty red and yellow flowers on long stems above clumps of bright green foliage. They self-seed reliably to form vigorous naturalized colonies.
Crookneck squash grow in a dense, leafy clump and produce many yellow squashes which need to be harvested nearly every day. They are susceptible to most squash pests, including squash bugs, powdery mildew, and squash vine borers.