Purple coneflower (Echinacea spp.) makes a beautiful addition to the perennial garden. Purple coneflowers are beautiful as cut flowers brought into the house. Attracting a variety of bees and butterflies, honey bees are common visitors. Blooming all summer in the full sun, the purple coneflower will grow up to 4’ and are hardy in zones 3-9.
Short of necessary repairs, lawn planting projects are better done in late summer.
Consider hiring a landscape professional for large weed or invasive plant problems. Visit mnla.com/directory to find a local professional today!
Sow tomato seedlings; try a new variety to compare to old favorites.
Prune summer and fall flowering shrubs such as clethra and panicle hydrangea.
Pansies can be purchased and planted outside now. Pinch off each flower as the spent petals curl. This will encourage additional flowers to bloom until it gets too hot. If you purchase heat-resistant varieties, they will bloom even longer.
Great for a damp, shady location is buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis). It’s fragrant, white flower heads appear in June and are a magnet for several species of bees and butterflies. Round, reddish-brown fruits follow after the flowers and will persist into winter. Growing 6’ tall and beyond, buttonbush is hardy in zones 5-9.
Plant Something Massachusetts is a project of Massachusetts Nursery and Landscape Association, and was originally established in partnership with Massachusetts Flower Growers’ Association.