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21 Practically No-Fail Perennials to Plant in Zone 3

Are you tired of perennials dying in your garden or yard? Do you live in Saskatchewan or near Zone 3? If you said yes – then definitely take a look at this list!

There are many beautiful perennials that can thrive in your zone, you just have to know the right ones. These plants below are going to survive and thrive in Zone 3, particularly in areas with a climate similar to my home near Saskatoon, Canada.

Disclaimer & Reminder: You still need to care for your plants the first year that they are planted. This includes weeding and watering.

NOTE: The 21 flowers that are listed below are categorized by their light requirements. HOWEVER, some of these plants could also handle other amounts of light. For example, Columbines can handle both part shade and full sun!

If you prefer watching videos, here’s one that has a lot of the same picks, but there’s a few surprises.

Now on to the perennials!!

Shade Tolerant Perennials

1. Bergenia

Bergenias are amazing for having long-lasting blooms in Zone 3. They typically come in this cute pink colour, red, or white!

2. Bleeding Heart

This uniquely named flower are super simple to grow and can add a pop to colour to the shady spots around your yard. They come in classic Valentine’s Day colours of white, soft pink, or dark pink!

3. Ferns

Over the past 2 years, I have probably pulled at least 200 ferns out of my backyard. And no, this is not an exaggeration. Saying this, a lot of people enjoy having ferns in their yards because they work very well in shady spots!

4. Hostas

Do you have that awkward part along your house that hardly gets any sun and looks so bare? Hostas are your answer! They are shade-lovers and come in a lot of different leaf designs.

5. Lily of the Valley

The adorable little flowers are in love in with Zone 3 because they are super easy to grow in this error. BUT these flowers are poisonous to pets if they are ingested.

6. Rockfoil

These plants are SUPER easy to grow and hardly require any attention. They do spread a tad so be prepared!

Part Shade Perennials

7. Columbine

These flowers are a good choice when looking for flowers that comes in many colours and awesome for Zone 3. Columbines are also an great flower if you’re looking to attract hummingbirds to your garden!

8. Day Lilies

Day Lilies are a classic garden flower that come in many, many colours! Although they are awesome in Zone 3, the orange-coloured ones seem to spread a lot. This flower has made the most-regretted list, but if you keep them contained or accept the spread – you will be golden!

9. Lady’s Mantle

Lady’s mantle add a unique chartreuse colour to your garden. They thrive in shady spots, and can add some cool contrast to the darker green areas of your garden.

10. Snowdrop

These endearing and awesome-named flowers provide a bright, calming white in your garden. These are unique for Zone 3 and similar zones because they aren’t a warm-air loving flower.

Full Sun Perennials

11. Asiatic Lilies

Asiatic lilies come in every colour of the rainbow colour! Plus, they are pretty low-maintenance. Put them in a sunny spot and they’ll flourish year after year.

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12. Daisies

Daisies are a very common flowers in gardens. But definitely be careful and be prepared for these flowers to take over your garden, they are super invasive!

13. Delphiniums

These stunningly tall flowers are ideal along the fence of your yard or against your house. Be careful where you put them because they can grow up to be 5 ft tall.

TIP: Be sure to stake them or provide a cage for them if you plant them in a windy spot.

14. Heliopsis

These guys here can also grow to be tall, so they look great against a wall too! These flowers are a yellow look-alike to daisies, and ideal if you are looking for less-invasive species.

15. Liatris

These cool shaped native perennials are a must if your looking for more looks in your garden, as they are very uniquely shaped and therefore eye-catching!

16. Maltese Cross

These flowers are bright red in colour and come in bunches of small flowers. They can grow quite tall, so plant them near the back of the flower bed.

17. Muscari (Grape Hyacinth)

Grape Hyacinths are small adorable flowers that grow closer to the ground. They’re definitely eye-catching and are a nice purple scent to your yard or garden.

18. Sedum

These flowers just look so funky, yet modest in a garden. It’s hard not to add these to your garden because of the amazing amount of options they come in.

NOTE: Sedums can survive hot weather if it’s looking like your area is going to experience some intense warmth this summer. If your looking for more flowers that can survive the heat, click here!

19. Tulips

These are very popular flowers in Zone 3 and come in almost every shade and colour!

NOTE: Like any spring-blooming perennial, you need to plant them in the fall, not spring.

20. Veronica

Veronicas are the perfect flower if your looking for something that will shine for most of the summer! Beware though, some gardeners I know have reported that these flowers spread like crazy!

21. Yarrow

These cute little flowers thrive in Zone 3, and come in an insane amount of colours. They also look great in bouquets of cut-flowers!

Looking for even more perennials that can survive in Zone 3? Check out my post of 53 Favourite Perennials to Plant in Zone 3 for the ultimate garden!

WANT TO CREATE A PERENNIAL GARDEN THAT CONSTANTLY BLOOMS FROM SPRING TO FALL, WITHOUT CONSTANT WORK?  HERE’S HOW. . . 

Everything you need to easily create your own perennial garden with constant blooms. You’ll get an easy to follow system, along with 5 templates and 5 done-for-you plans, plus fun bonuses.

LEARN MORE HERE!

How to Clean Up Your Garden in the Fall When You Have No Time

The vegetables have been picked, the temperatures are cooling, and fall has arrived.  You know you should clean up your garden for the year, but lets be real–you’re feeling the time crunch with back to school, a busy work life, or just plain being sick of your garden.  While a proper garden clean up is ideal, I’m going to give you my guide to what you must do–and what you can skip, so that your garden is dealt with in record time.

No time do a fall garden clean up? Here's some good tips on which jobs you must do with your vegetables and perennial flowers, and which chores you can skip until Spring. #gardening #tips #beginners #fall #autumn #garden #vegetables #perennials #chores #tasks
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25 Drought Tolerant Native Plants for the Prairies

Gardening in a drought is no fun. Sure, if you have access to city or well water, you can keep everything living. But nothing will really thrive. As gardeners, we like to be conscious of our footprint on the environment and save water where we can.

One of the best ways to do this is to plant native plants. Once established, these perennial flowers and bushes will help beautify your yard and be able to withstand a drought year. Plus, they are generally very low maintenance–win win!

Be Responsible, Don’t Remove Native Plants From Their Habitat

When I say native plants, I am going to be talking about mostly domesticated varieties that are available in garden centres. Please DO NOT scour country side ditches and transplant native plants to your home. It may seem like you’re helping an endangered species by giving it a controlled environment, but you’re actually hurting it.

Native plants need the specific ecosystem they are in to thrive. Your garden is not that ecosystem. Plus, you’ve just taken away a future source of seeds for that plant from the area.

Finally, removing native plants is illegal and there are steep fines. Ladyslippers and Prairie lilies are gorgeous, but are really best enjoyed in their native Prairie habitat.

Finally you can have a drought tolerant, low maintenance landscape in your yard...if you plant these native perennial flowers and shrubs. Help save water and have a beautiful yard at the same time. #nativeplants #zone3 #perennials #flowers

Where Do I Buy Native Plants?

The varieties I’m suggesting today should be available for purchase at most local greenhouses, or by mail order. However, if you’d like to go further into the world of native plants, your local Native Plant Society will likely have a list of places you can responsibly order seeds from. Here are links to the native plant groups in the three Prairie Provinces.

Do Drought Tolerant Plants Need To Be Watered?

In short, yes. Like any other bush or perennial, your plants need to be watered every day (unless it’s raining or the ground is saturated) the first year until they are more established. I personally would water them in the second year as well, especially if the weather is abnormally dry or hot.

After the third year, your native plants should require very little care.

Easy to Grow, Low Maintenance Native Plants for the Prairies

One last disclaimer–this list is intended for a beginner gardener in the Prairie Provinces or even the Mid-West of the United States. I garden in zone 3 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and my list is best suited for this area.

I’ve strived to pick plants that are readily available and drought tolerant. This means, they may not be the exact native variety, but a naturalized one. I hope you find this list with pictures helpful!

If you would like to go further in your native plants journey, I urge you to see the sites I’ve suggested above. Is there a plant you feel should be on this list? Let me know in the comments!

Edible Fruit Trees

Saskatoon Berry

Chokecherry

Buffalo Berry

Sand Cherry

Highbush Cranberry

Hazlenut

Shrubs

Dogwood

Prickly Rose

Showy Mountain Ash

There are lots of beautiful native shrubs, but unfortunately, it is not so easy to find stock photography of them. Please see this website for plenty of shrub options with pictures. I think the Mountain Maple and Smooth Sumac would also be beautiful options.

Flowering Perennials

Sage

Wild Blue Flax

Coneflower

Crocus

Gaillardia

Wild Columbine

Related: 5 Reasons to landscape with native plants

Aster

Goldenrod

Yarrow

Hyssop

Liatrus

Black Eyed Susan

Scarlet Mallow

Grasses

There are many beautiful grasses you can grow to add winter interest and movement to your garden. It is suggested that you grow at least one cool season and one warm season variety. Click here to read more and discover different varieties.

Vines

Wild Hops

Virginia Creeper

Virginia creeper can become invasive, so plant with caution!

Which one of these resilient plants will you plant? Or will you create a whole flower garden with them?

50 More Perennials You’ll Regret Planting

Perennials are a fantastic, low maintenance investment for flower gardeners.  Plant them once and they’ll return year after year.  However, some perennials are a little too good at their job and can quickly take over your flowerbed and crawl into your lawn.  What you thought was a low maintenance plant can quickly become your worst nightmare.

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Gardeners Worst Nightmares: 28 Perennials You’ll Regret Planting

Perennial plants are a good investment.  Plant once and have flowers that bloom for years.  However, some plants that seem innocent enough literally take over the garden and quickly spiral out of control.  Others bloom for such a short time that they don’t seem worth the trouble.  Here’s a list of 28 perennials I’d rather not see in my next garden.

Disclaimer: This post contains plants that are problematic in USDA hardiness zones 2 and 3.  Some of these plants may not be problematic in your area.  If you have difficult growing conditions, you’ll want to put these plants on your next shopping list.  🙂 

Disclaimer #2: Just because your favourite plant is on this list doesn’t mean it is “bad” or you shouldn’t plant it. This list is intended for brand new gardeners who think these plants are low maintenance, then aren’t able to keep up with them when they get out of hand. I just wanted to spare them some heartache until they get better at gardening and are able to keep up with any more aggressive plants.

This post also contains affiliate links.  If you purchase something from my link, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. You can read more about it in my Privacy Policy.  Thanks!

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Welcome!

Hi, I’m Kristen and I help new gardeners learn to grow their own vegetables and beautify their yards. I also share recipes that use all that delicious garden produce. Grab a coffee (and your gardening gloves) and join me for gardening tips, simple recipes, and the occasional DIY, all from the lovely city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

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