The house. The yard. It’s all a part of the American dream, right? But after a few seasons with raking, mowing, fertilizing, watering, weeding, pruning, and more, having a yard can feel more like an endless fever dream.
Having a yard doesn’t have to suck up every a moment of your life. The trick is picking plants and landscaping materials that don’t need tons of help from you to look good. Here’s what to plant so you can reclaim some time.
Perennials are the lazy gardener’s friend. Plant them once, and they’ll come back year after year.
- Coneflowers: They bloom all season and come in a rainbow of colors, but the varieties with purple or white blooms are the sturdiest. An added bonus: They’re great for bouquets. Cut them and bring them inside. Fresh flowers from your own yard! What’s not to love?
- Black-Eyed Susans: These yellow flowers look like the ones kids draw. They bloom from last frost to first frost and they can take almost all the heat, drought, and neglect you and Mother Nature can dish out. Also, they will plant themselves, dropping lots of seed so you’ll get new plants each spring.
- Russian Sage: Don’t fertilize it or water it too much, and it will reward you with a mound of silvery foliage and spires of violet-blue flowers that last all summer.
- Ornamental Grass: It makes fountains of wispy, slender foliage in reds, greens, golds. Varieties that are short and grow in clumps — like blue fescue, mondo grass, and liriope — are the best choice. And yes, there is grass in the name, but, no, you will not have to mow it.
- Golden Moneywort: This creeping vine grows fast, and once established, looks like a carpet made of tiny green-gold leaves. It keeps its color through the winter unless you live in Fargo.
- Ajuga: Another creeper (the plant type, not the human type who lurks at malls), this 2-inch tall plant has shiny, dark green leaves and, in the spring, blue flowers. It carpets the ground and will even grow in shade.
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