A clumping, multi-stemmed evergreen perennial from South Africa, grown for its unmistakable crane-head flowers — a horizontal green-and-pink spathe from which bright orange sepals and vivid blue petals emerge like the crest of an exotic bird. Bold, paddle-shaped blue-green leaves on long stalks form a 3-4 foot fountain of foliage. Winter hardy only in USDA zones 10-12 (frost-free subtropics); everywhere colder it is grown as a houseplant or summered-out container plant. It blooms reliably only from a well-established, somewhat crowded clump, so patience is the key to flowers.

A long-lived native perennial of central and eastern US woodland borders and prairie meadows with deep blue pea-shaped flowers in late spring, blue-green leguminous foliage, attractive black seed pods for winter interest, and a nitrogen-fixing root system (Fabaceae). Larval host for 6 documented butterfly species per NC State (orange sulphur, clouded sulphur, frosted elfin, eastern tailed-blue, hoary edge, wild indigo duskywing) — among the highest Lep-host-count perennials in the eastern flora.

A bold, moisture-loving native perennial of eastern North America that dies back to a woody base each winter and returns to throw up stout 2-6 ft stems topped with enormous 4-8 inch saucer-shaped flowers — white, pink, red, or burgundy, each with a contrasting central eye — from June into September. NC State Extension describes a herbaceous perennial hardy across USDA zones 4a-9b that thrives in wet to constantly moist soils, tolerates heat, humidity, and even brief flooding, and draws hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators. The tropical-looking dinner-plate blooms make it a dramatic focal point for rain gardens, pond edges, and the back of a sunny border.

A giant herbaceous perennial from Southeast Asia and the principal wild ancestor of most cultivated dessert bananas. What looks like a trunk is a 'pseudostem' — tightly rolled leaf sheaths — topped by a fountain of huge, paddle-shaped leaves that can run 6-10 feet long, giving an instant tropical effect. In frost-free climates (USDA zones 10a-11b) an established clump produces a drooping flower spike and a hanging bunch of edible fruit, then that pseudostem dies and is replaced by a sucker from the base. It is frost-tender: everywhere colder it is grown as a bold container or greenhouse foliage plant that is overwintered indoors and rarely, if ever, fruits.

A hardy, evergreen Great Plains yucca that holds a low rosette of narrow, pale blue-green dagger-like leaves and sends up a 4 1/2-foot stalk of pendulous, greenish-white bell flowers in early summer. Extremely drought- and poor-soil tolerant, it depends on an obligate mutualism with the yucca (Pronuba) moth — the only insect that pollinates it — so seed is not produced every year. The root has long been used to make soap, giving the plant its common name.

A tender tropical evergreen shrub grown for its enormous, flamboyant flowers — broad funnels of red, pink, orange, yellow, or white, single or double, each with a long protruding column of fused stamens. Native to tropical Asia (a cultigen of such ancient cultivation that no certain wild origin survives), Hibiscus rosa-sinensis blooms continuously in warmth above glossy, dark green, evergreen leaves. Each flower typically lasts only a day, but a healthy plant opens fresh blooms in steady succession from spring through fall — and year-round in frost-free climates. It is the classic hibiscus of warm-climate landscapes and patio containers: heat- and humidity-loving, frost-tender, and hardy in the ground only in USDA zones 9a-11b.