How To Care For Perennials

Knowing how to care for perennials is the secret to a garden that comes back stronger and more beautiful every year. These reliable plants are the backbone of many gardens, but they do need the right attention to truly thrive.

This guide gives you simple, step-by-step tips to keep your perennials healthy. We’ll cover everything from planting to winter prep, ensuring you get the most from your investment.

Good perennial care starts with understanding their life cycle. They grow and bloom, die back in winter, and then regrow from their roots in spring. Your job is to support them through each stage.

Start with the Right Planting

Success begins the moment you put a plant in the ground. Getting this right prevents so many problems later on.

Choose the Right Plant for the Right Place: Check the sun requirements. A sun-loving coneflower will be weak and floppy in shade, while a hosta will scorch in full afternoon sun.
Prepare the Soil: Most perennials love well-drained soil. Work in several inches of compost or aged manure to improve texture and fertility. This is more important than fertilizer.
Plant at the Correct Depth: Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball. The crown (where the stems meet the roots) should be level with the soil surface, not buried too deep.
Water Thoroughly: After planting, give them a long, deep drink to settle the soil and hydrate the roots.

Smart Watering Practices

Perennials prefer deep, infrequent watering over frequent sprinkles. This encourages roots to grow down, making plants more drought-tolerant.

Water early in the morning so leaves can dry, reducing disease risk.
Aim for about 1 inch of water per week, including rainfall. Use a rain gauge to track it.
Soaker hoses or drip irrigation are ideal, as they deliver water directly to the soil without wetting the foliage.
New plants need more frequent watering until they’re established (usually their first full growing season).

Feeding Your Plants

Perennials aren’t heavy feeders, but they do benefit from some nutrition. Over-fertilizing can cause lots of leafy growth with few flowers.

A top dressing of compost each spring is often enough. It feeds the soil, which in turn feeds the plant.
If you use a granular fertilizer, choose a balanced one (like 10-10-10) or one lower in nitrogen. Apply it in early spring as growth starts.
Avoid fertilizing in late summer or fall, as this can promote tender new growth that will be damaged by frost.

The Art of Mulching

Mulch is a perennial gardener’s best friend. It conserves moisture, suppresses weeds, and insulates roots.

Apply 2-3 inches of organic mulch (shredded bark, leaves, or pine straw) around plants in late spring, after the soil has warmed up.
Keep mulch a few inches away from plant crowns to prevent rot and rodent damage.
In fall, after the ground freezes, you can add a fresh layer to protect against winter temperature swings.

Pruning and Deadheading

Regular cutting back keeps plants tidy and can even prolong bloom time.

Deadheading: Remove spent flowers by snipping the stem back to a leaf node. This prevents the plant from putting energy into seed production and may encourage a second bloom.
Cutting Back: For many perennials, cutting the entire plant back by one-third in early summer (the “Chelsea Chop”) can result in a stockier plant that blooms a bit later and holds up better.
Fall Cleanup: You can cut back dead foliage in fall, but many gardeners leave it until early spring. The dead stems provide winter interest and habitat for beneficial insects.

Dividing for Health and Vigor

Every few years, perennials can become overcrowded, with dying centers and fewer flowers. Division solves this.

Know When to Divide: Divide spring and early summer bloomers in fall. Divide late summer and fall bloomers in spring. If the plant looks crowded or the center is dead, it’s time.
Dig Up the Clump: Use a shovel or garden fork to lift the entire plant out of the ground.
Separate the Plant: You can often pull clumps apart by hand, or use two garden forks back-to-back to pry them apart. For tough roots, you may need to cut them with a knife or spade.
Replant Immediately: Discard the old, woody center pieces. Replant the healthy outer divisions, water them well, and treat them as new plants.

Staking and Support

Tall or floppy perennials like peonies or asters often need support to look their best.

The best method is to provide support early, so the plant grows through it. Peony rings or grow-through grid supports are perfect.
Place supports in early spring when plants are just a few inches tall. By mid-summer, they will be nearly invisible.
For single stems, use a discreet bamboo stake and soft tie.

Preparing for Winter

Putting your garden to bed properly ensures a great start next spring.

After the first hard frost, cut back any diseased foliage, but consider leaving healthy stems for winter structure.
Water your perennials deeply in late fall before the ground freezes, especially for evergreens.
Apply a fresh layer of mulch after the ground is frozen to prevent heaving from freeze-thaw cycles.
Mark the location of late-emerging plants (like butterfly weed) with a label so you don’t accidentally dig there in spring.

Common Problems and Solutions

Even with great care, issues can arise. Here’s how to handle common ones.

Poor Flowering

Cause: Too much shade, over-fertilizing (especially with nitrogen), or the plant needs dividing.
Fix: Move the plant to a sunnier spot, switch to a low-nitrogen fertilizer, or divide an overcrowded clump.

Powdery Mildew

Cause: A fungal disease that thrives in humid conditions with poor air circulation.
Fix: Choose resistant varieties. Space plants properly, water at the base (not overhead), and thin stems to improve air flow.

Pests Like Aphids or Slugs

Cause: Common garden pests attracted to tender growth.
Fix: For aphids, a strong spray of water from the hose often works. For slugs, use traps, diatomaceous earth, or iron phosphate bait.

FAQ: Perennial Care Questions

When is the best time to plant perennials?
The best times are early spring or early fall. This gives the plants time to establish roots before the extreme heat of summer or the freezing cold of winter.

How often should I divide my perennials?
It varies by plant. Fast growers like bee balm may need dividing every 2-3 years. Slower growers like peonies can go 10+ years without being divided. Watch for the signs of overcrowding.

Should I cut back perennials in the fall or spring?
Either is fine. Fall cleanup is tidier, but leaving stems until spring provides winter interest and habitat. Always cut back any diseased foliage in the fall to prevent problems from carrying over.

Why did my perennial die over the winter?
Common causes include planting a variety not hardy for your climate zone, soil that stays too wet (causing rot), or damage from frost heaving because the plant wasn’t mulched.

Do perennials need a lot of fertilizer?
Not usually. An annual application of compost is often sufficient. To much fertilizer, especially nitrogen, leads to weak growth and fewer flowers.

Caring for perennials is an ongoing practice, but it’s not complicated. By following these essential steps—right plant placement, deep watering, timely dividing, and proper seasonal cleanup—you’ll build a resilient and stunning garden. The effort you put in is rewarded many times over as these faithful plants return year after year, growing fuller and more beautiful with each season. Remember, gardening is a learning process, so observe your plants and see how they respond to your care.