We all want the newest, jazziest plants available, but a garden is not complete without a backbone of infallible plants that provide interest whether your new investments flourish or fail.

Find some tough, multiseason stars for the South below. And discover even more reliable performers in Plants to Build a Bed Around.

1. Giant coneflower

Name: Rudbeckia maxima

Zones: 4–9

Size: 5 to 7 feet tall and 3 to 4 feet wide

Conditions: Full sun to light shade; prefers moist, well-drained soil but can tolerate some drought

Native range: Central and Southern United States

If you’re looking for a unique coneflower that also supports wildlife, this is the one for you. With bluish-green basal leaves that can grow 2 feet long, and flower stalks that tower 5 to 7 feet tall, it is sure to make any garden visitor stop and stare. This remarkable perennial is native from Texas to Missouri, and Oklahoma to Arkansas. In warmer climates the basal foliage stays green year-round, and goldfinches love to eat the seeds, making it an extra delight in winter. This coneflower is easy to grow, only needing its flower stalks to be removed in late winter or early spring.

2. Coral honeysuckle

Name: Lonicera sempervirens

Zones: 4–9

Size: 8 to 20 feet tall and 3 to 6 feet wide

Conditions: Full sun; moderately moist, well-drained soil, preferably rich in organic matter; tolerates clay

Native range: Eastern United States

My absolute favorite vine is coral honeysuckle. Easily twining up whatever trellis you choose, it charms from May to June, when it is covered in tubular flowers that butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds flock to. Following the brilliant flowers are showy red berries that birds gobble up throughout a good portion of the year. This is a host plant for the spring azure butterfly and snowberry clearwing moth. It would be hard to pick a better plant to support our native fauna, especially considering its huge native range. Heavy pruning of dead growth is occasionally needed in spring. Aside from that, maintenance is almost unnecessary.

3. ‘Dark Towers’ penstemon

Name: Penstemon ‘Dark Towers’

Zones: 3–8

Size: 18 to 36 inches tall and 1 to 3 feet wide

Conditions: Full sun; average to dry, well-drained soil

Native range: Hybrid of several North American species

Deep burgundy-colored spring foliage and striking flower stalks make ‘Dark Towers’ the centerpiece of any garden bed, despite its small stature. Its flowers are attractive to hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. Blooming pale pink in late spring to early summer, its flowers shoot up above the basal foliage on 3-foot-tall racemes, which can be removed after flowering. It tolerates heat, drought, and humidity, and is generally easy to care for. Be sure it has good drainage to reduce the likelihood of root rot, and good airflow to diminish the chance of powdery mildew and rusts.

4. Blue sage

Name: Salvia azurea

Zones: 5–9

Size: 3 to 6 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide

Conditions: Full sun; prefers well-drained soil but can tolerate clay, dry, shallow, or rocky soil

Native range: Southeastern and Central United States

Blue sage is a fantastic late-summer-to-early-fall-blooming perennial. Attractive to numerous pollinators including bees and butterflies, it is also deer resistant and drought tolerant. I adore it for its willowy structure that allows it to sway gently with the breeze, while its azure blue flowers are a wonderful contrast to various goldenrods (Solidago spp. and cvs., Zones 3–9) that bloom around the same time. Native to a large portion of the United States—from Utah to North Carolina and Florida to Wisconsin—this hardy native can tolerate many growing conditions. It needs little care aside from cutting dead stalks away in late winter or early spring. Pruning it back by half in mid-June will keep it from falling over in late summer downpours.

Megan Lankford, a native plant educator and enthusiast, is the horticulture supervisor at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Go back to collection

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

The Nature of Oaks reveals what is going on in oak trees month by month, highlighting the seasonal cycles of life, death, and renewal. From woodpeckers who collect and store hundreds of acorns for sustenance to the beauty of jewel caterpillars, Doug Tallamy illuminates and celebrates the wonders that occur right in our own backyards. He also shares practical advice about how to plant and care for an oak, along with information about the best oak species for your area.

Buy at Amazon

Pruning Simplified: A Step-by-Step Guide to 50 Popular Trees and Shrubs

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Pruning Simplified shows you exactly how to do it. This must-have guide offers expert advice on the best tools for the job, specific details on when to prune, and clear instructions on how to prune. Profiles of the 50 most popular trees and shrubs—including azaleas, camellias, clematis, hydrangeas, and more—include illustrated, easy-to-follow instructions that will ensure you make the right cut the first time.

Buy at Amazon

Planting in a Post-Wild World: Designing Plant Communities for Resilient Landscapes

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Featuring gorgeous photography and advice for landscapers, Planting in a Post-Wild World by Thomas Rainer and Claudia West is dedicated to the idea of a new nature—a hybrid of both the wild and the cultivated—that can nourish in our cities and suburbs.

Buy at Amazon