How to mix early, mid, and late-blooming cultivars to create flowery borders

People often ask me how I keep the show going so continuously at Cape Cottage Garden. Let's continue our blog series, the "Four C's of Continuous Color." Today, we'll talk about another "C" in my approach - cultivar selection.
The range of bloom times within a particular genus is astonishing. By planting a range of early, mid, and late cultivars that bloom in succession, I've been able to create an ongoing progression of flowers that bloom all season long. I first grasped the value of this approach when I sought to extend my tulip season. By being intentional about what I planted, I discovered I could extend my tulip season from a short 10-day period to nearly five weeks. See below for an example of the different cultivars that help my tulip season last. A "double early" cultivar such as 'Foxtrot' might open for me in mid-April whereas a "double late" cultivar such as 'Yellow Pomponette' often carries me through the second week of May.

Besides tulips, many other perennials, from peonies to alliums to astilbes come in early, mid, and late varieties.
To discover your options, it's helpful to do a little research online when making your plant selections. For example, when I was planning my allium garden, I consulted this handy bloom time chart from Longfield Gardens.

Source: Longfield Gardens
Using this chart, I was able to plan my allium season so that it lasts for months. The season here starts in mid-May with 'Purple Sensation' and 'Mt. Everest' and extends nearly to July with Allium sphaerocephalon, commonly known as drumstick alliums.
Salvias and nepeta are other examples of flowers that I get to enjoy for longer in my garden because I chose a range of cultivars as shown below.


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