The Beautiful Long-Blooming Perennial Plant You Can Easily Grow From Seed

Who doesn't love a long-blooming, low-maintenance perennial with showy blooms that tolerates drought? Every gardener needs this kind of workhorse in the garden, and for many, the obvious choice to fill this niche is beardtongue (Penstemon spp.). It comes in many varieties, meaning there is one for nearly every use.

While beardtongue comes in hundreds of species native to North America and even more cultivars, they each generally include showy spikes of flowers that emerge in early spring and vary widely in height (up to six feet tall in some cases). Hummingbirds and pollinators love their colorful, trumpet-shaped blooms. For gardeners concerned with providing more native habitat, beardtongue is a great replacement for foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), which is considered invasive in some places outside of its native European habitat.

Generally, beardtongue thrives in well-drained soil — it will even survive in sand or gravel when necessary — and can handle full sun or light shade. Some varieties, like Penstemon digitalis, will also grow in wet soil. With so many different varieties available, it's advisable to spend time looking for the perfect one for your garden. Once you have located the suitable variety and purchased your seeds, there are a few things you need to know.

First, start with stratification. These seeds require a period of stratification — a fancy way to say they need to experience a cold snap to break their dormancy. So, the good news is you do not need to mess around with indoor pots or grow lights if you don't want to. Sowing seeds outside in the fall or early winter will let these plants grow naturally.

Dig a small hole to plant the seed up to a half-inch deep — consult the seed packet for your variety's specific needs — and keep the soil moist after planting to encourage germination. That's it! Beardtongue is generally pretty straightforward, but impatient gardeners will want to keep this in mind: It can take a year or two before you start to see blooms.

If you do not want to spend your fall and winter watering outdoors, you can get your seeds started inside. Prepare a mixture of moist sand and mix in your seeds. Then, to provide the needed stratification period, you will need to store them in the refrigerator for 30-60 days, keeping the soil lightly moist. Plant seedlings outside in the spring, and if you are looking to build out a low-maintenance garden, consider pairing beardtongue with other easy-to-grow plants.