Hardy Perennials Native at www.japanese-home-gardens.com

Hardy perennials are very valuable in the garden and play a major role, as most of them are relatively cheap, grow quickly, and can readily be increased in several ways, including by seed, division, or cuttings. Most of them, like trees and shrubs, live for many years. In addition, most of them, unlike trees and < shrubs, are herbaceous as they have soft stems which die down in the fall and grow again the following spring. A number of them have evergreen leaves, and one or two grow in the winter and die down in the summer. Not all herbaceous perennials are in fact hardy, but here we are concerned only with those that are. Herbaceous perennials may be used in a variety of ways in the backyard.

Phlox is a genus of about 60 species, mainly hardy perennials native to the US. Most are tall herbs with magnificent blossom. The Columbine (genus Aquilcgia) comprise some 75 species of the in woods and thickets, alpine meadows and the Rocky Mountains. >ell (Campanula rotimdijolia), also known as witches' thimbles and the Scottish bluebell, has a long, slender stem and drooping bell flowers.

Chinese lanterns (Physalis Alkekengi) are old-fashioned flowers whose orange, inflated pods are often seen in paintings on old tea trays from the '20s. They are hardy perennials but will bloom from seed the first year if started early. Put plants about 2 feet apart.