7 Beautiful Low-Maintenance Perennials for Effortless Color in Zone 7b Gardens

Creating a gorgeous, thriving garden doesn’t have to mean endless weeding, watering, and deadheading. If you're gardening in Zone 7a and want reliable plants that return year after year with minimal fuss, low-maintenance perennials are the answer. These hardy, beautiful plants do most of the work for you—you just get to enjoy the blooms.

Here are 7 of our favorite low-maintenance perennials that will bring color, pollinators, and joy to your garden with very little upkeep.

1. Cat's Pajamas Nepeta (Nepeta x faassenii)

  • Bloom Time: Late spring through fall

  • Sun Needs: Full sun to part sun

  • Why We Love It: Compact, fragrant, and adored by pollinators. This tidy little catmint blooms for months and doesn’t need deadheading. Deer and rabbit resistant, drought tolerant, and ideal for borders or containers.

2. Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida 'Goldsturm')

  • Bloom Time: Mid-summer to early fall

  • Sun Needs: Full sun

  • Why We Love It: Cheerful yellow blooms brighten the garden and attract butterflies and bees. These tough plants tolerate heat, humidity, and even poor soil. Just cut them back in late fall or early spring and they'll return stronger.

3. Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia)

  • Bloom Time: Mid to late summer

  • Sun Needs: Full sun

  • Why We Love It: Silvery foliage and spires of lavender-blue blooms create a dreamy, airy effect. Drought tolerant and deer resistant, Russian sage thrives in hot, dry spots where other plants struggle.

4. Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)

  • Bloom Time: Summer to early fall

  • Sun Needs: Full sun to part sun

  • Why We Love It: A pollinator favorite with bold purple-pink blooms and seed heads that feed birds in winter. Once established, echinacea is drought tolerant and self-seeding.

5. Coral Bells (Heuchera spp.)

  • Bloom Time: Spring to early summer (foliage interest year-round)

  • Sun Needs: Part shade to full shade (some varieties tolerate sun)

  • Why We Love It: Grown mainly for its colorful foliage, coral bells add texture and color to shady spots with very little effort. Choose from a rainbow of leaf colors to mix and match.

6. Sedum 'Autumn Joy' (Hylotelephium spectabile)

  • Bloom Time: Late summer to fall

  • Sun Needs: Full sun

  • Why We Love It: Thick, fleshy leaves make this plant extremely drought tolerant. Late-season pink blooms attract butterflies, and the seed heads add winter interest if left uncut.

7. Shasta Daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum)

  • Bloom Time: Summer

  • Sun Needs: Full sun

  • Why We Love It: These bright white daisies with sunny yellow centers are long-blooming, cheerful, and easy to grow. They spread gently and return reliably each year.

Tips for a Truly Low-Maintenance Garden:

  • Choose the right plant for the right place (don’t force sun-lovers into shade).

  • Mulch generously to suppress weeds and retain moisture.

  • Water deeply but infrequently to encourage strong root growth.

  • Group plants with similar needs together.

With these perennials in your garden, you can enjoy a colorful, textured landscape with less work and more joy. Happy planting!

Pin it for later!
Want to remember these no-fuss favorites? Save this post to your Gardening or Landscape Inspiration board on Pinterest!

Garden Tonic