Wind Tolerant Perennial Plants

These five perennials and shrubs all do well in windy areas making them excellent choices for gardens where more tender plants would end up looking tattered or beaten.

Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica) – Zone 3-7. Full sun to part shade. This hardy shrub grows from 5-10′ tall and wide, and while the flowers are not showy at all, the whitish colored berries add winter interest to the garden. The fruits of the bayberry are slightly waxy on the outside and have been used historically for candle making and other crafts. The bayberries are not the only fragrant part of the plant, as the foliage is highly aromatic as well. Bayberry shrubs tolerate a wide variety of soil and growing conditions such as salty sea-spray and wind (or winter-iced roads that are salted), poor dry hillsides where erosion is a concern or wet moist areas that are slightly boggy in nature. Best as an informal hedge, the bayberry is a deciduous shrub plant that can spread slowly by suckers and will naturalize if allowed.

Boltonia or False Aster (Boltonia asteroides) – Zone 4-9. Full sun. A native plant in the eastern United States, Boltonia prefers moist soil but will tolerate poor, dry soil as well and holds up to windy conditions well. In the same family as the autumn blooming Asters, the False Aster is very similar in appearance. The Boltonia’s daisy-like flowers make excellent cut flowers. Powdery mildew can be a problem for the false aster plants if the air circulation is poor, but in a windy garden area that is less likely to be a problem.

Threadleaf Coreopsis (Coreopsis verticillata) – Zone 4-9. Full sun. Beautiful summer flowers and finely cut foliage make the threadleaf coreopsis one of the most popular perennials for gardeners. What’s not to love? Cheerful daisy-like flowers from early summer through fall provide several weeks worth of color while drought tolerance and the ability to grow well in poor soil make it a low-maintenance gem. Be sure to provide well-drained soil as Coreopsis plants can develop crown rot if they are too wet for too long but wind will help with air circulation to prevent this. Self-seeding can occur if you do not deadhead the coreopsis flowers as they fade so plant in an area where volunteer seedlings will be welcome or deadhead spent blooms. Better yet, cut handfuls of the plants and put in a vase to enjoy indoors.

Flax (Linum perenne) – Zone 5-8. Full sun to part shade. A shorter growing plant at 1-2′ tall, this perennial flax variety is perfect for rock gardens, border edges or informal cottage gardens. While perennial flax was once used for rope and linen making because of the sturdy, durable fibers that make it wind tolerant, it is typically the annual varieties used commercially today. This perennial flax is still great for gardeners however because of the bright blue flowers that last only one day each, but appear in large number for weeks late spring through early summer. Flax has narrow leaves that are a dusty green color and add contrast to broader foliaged plants in a mixed border. Perennial flax also tolerates a wide variety of garden conditions like heat, wind, and humidity and while an individual plant may be short lived self-sowing occurs to create informal, naturalized clumps.

Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) – Zone 4-9. Full sun. Russian sage is a favorite addition to fragrance gardens because of the aromatic silver-green leaves. Other gardeners prefer it because of the lavender or blue flowers that earned it the Perennial Plant Association Award for Perennial Plant of the Year in 1995. A middle to back of the border plant at 3-5′ tall Russian sage looks good combined with other pastel plants, roses or herbs. False sage tolerates drought well and has a long bloom time beginning in the summer and going well into fall. Russian sage needs little maintenance beyond pruning back early spring to prevent the plant from getting too leggy.