Pond Side Perennials
The list below is a good starting list for pond side perennials that will thrive in the wet areas next to ponds.Unfortunately, it is not all-inclusive and the thing you should watch for in picking your plants is that while some members of a family love the damp soils, some other members might not.
A perfect example of this is Coreopsis or butter daisy. C. rosea does very well in damp situations. C. verticillata also survives quite nicely with a lot of water but C. lanceolata (commonly found in garden centers) will not grow well at all when kept damp. Or, rather I should say that it might grow well for a while but it won’t overwinter in damp soils.
So when looking for pond side perennials, do ensure your choices fit your situation. Here’s a good starting point with this list of plants. Note that some of them are linked to growing instructions and these numbers will continue to increase as I build up the sites. Please use the search box below to check on specific plants.
Acorus is a grass/iris/sedge resembling plant for bog or shallow water planting. One of the most popular are the Sweet Flag Acorus and the much shorter Japanese Rush Acorus
Andromeda or Bog Rosemary is a fine woody plant for always-damp, acidic soils. Rock hardy.
Arundo donax or Giant Reed is a dynamite bog garden plant for a large garden.
Astrantia or Masterwort(pictured) is an excellent plant for shady sites or wet spots. Here's how to grow it and propagate it.
Aruncus or Goatsbeard is a wonderful plant for sun or shade.
Asclepias or Swamp Milkweed is fragrant, deer and rabbit resistant and makes a great cut flower. What else do you need?
Astilbe are one of the highlights of the spring-summer-fall pond side garden.
Carex is a grass like plant that thrives in damp soil
Gunnera pictured is one of my favorite pond side perennials even though it is quite tender. Making up for its tenderness is it's "hugeness". :-
Q&A - I've got gunnera problems The stems are being eaten - what can I do?
Hosta care is easy in a damp garden if you take care of slugs. Here's how.
Hibiscus are one of the tallest and biggest blooming plants in the damp perennial garden. Here's how to propagate and grow them.
Iris for the pond side garden come in several different "flavours". One of the stateliest - and most intriguing are the Japanese Iris.
Lysimachia or Loosestrife is a vigorous spreading plant that will grow almost anywhere.
Myosotis scorpoides or Aquatic Forget Me Nots are wonderful blue flowering spring plants for the bog or shallow water.
Saccharum or Northern Pampas Grass is easily grown if you follow one growing rule.
Sarracenia or Pitcher Plants are superb bog plants
Tradescantia is a fine pond side perennial and is one of those plants that bloom almost all summer if happy and one that doesn't appear in most gardens. Here's how to grow it.
Questions and Answers
Please use the form below to ask questions about pond side perennials.
Please also understand that while we'd both love to get your question answered right away, I do get hundreds every week across my gardening sites. I do my best but there are always some that don't get answered. If yours is one of these, please accept my apologies.
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Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...
Overwintering Gunnera I bought a gunnera in a pot and kept in in my pond in about an inch or so of water where it didn't get much sunlight. (My pond is not in a full sun location....
Ducks!!!
Do you know of any plants which the ducks will not consider a buffet?
Doug says - ducks usually aren't a problem in ornamental ponds but can present ...
koi pond pergola Hello. We are from southwestern PA and built our pond 4 years ago. We have no shade in the yard and, therefore, an ongoing battle with algae. Pond plants ...
A grave question Can you suggest what we might do with that mound of earth created when we dug out our very small pond in a pot? We can't keep fish obviously, but would ...
planting on wet soil When your garden backs up to a pond how worried should you be about planting? Can you plant your tradtional perenials like a hydrangea,echancia butterfly ...
boggy site and winter
Hi,
I have a slope in my backyard which ends in a contiuously boggy spot. Instead of trying to get rid of the water, I would like to use it and grow plants ...
Pond side plants (dry and sunny areas) We have constructed a large pond and waterfall (using liners - so no damp areas) and have just finished phase II, two terraced areas next to the falls....
Japanese Iris
