Rabbit-Resistant Small Border Plants for Full Sun

Bulb Companions

• Some small plants are effective in a mixed border with spring-blooming bulbs. Bergenia cordifolia, for example, is an evergreen that grows 12 to 18 inches tall by 18 to 23 inches wide and puts out flowers from mid-spring into early summer. In a cool-summer climate, try English primrose “Wanda Dark Pink” (Primula “Wanda Dark Pink”). This perennial grows 4 to 6 inches tall by 8 to 12 inches wide and produces fragrant flowers all spring. Both rabbit-resistant plants for full sun have deep-pink flowers and are hardy in USDA zones 2 through 9.

Long-Bloomers and Butterfly Attractors

• Enjoy a long-blossoming border that attracts butterflies from early summer through early fall with certain rabbit-resistant plants for full sun, such as blanket flower “Dwarf Goblin” (Gaillardia “Dwarf Goblin”). Growing 8 to 12 inches tall by 10 to 12 inches wide, it begets golden-yellow daisies with flame-red centers. The blooms are used in flower arrangements, and the plant is hardy in USDA zones 2 through 9. Dwarf coreopsis “Presto” (Coreopsis grandiflora “Presto”) is another option. It reaches 8 to 10 inches tall by 8 to 12 inches wide and begets semi-double, golden-yellow flowers. It is hardy in USDA zones 4 through 9 and tolerates hot and humid summers.

Crinkled Foliage

• Certain small, rabbit-resistant plants that grow well in full sun feature crinkled foliage, which adds texture to a border. Those plants include fancy-leaf coral bells “Blackberry Crisp” (Heuchera “Blackberry Crisp”). Its evergreen leaves emerge deep burgundy and mature to purple-black, and its white flowers appear from early to midsummer. Growing 12 to 18 inches tall by 14 to 16 inches wide, the plant is hardy in USDA zones 4 through 9. Spikes of violet-blue, butterfly-attracting flowers appear from midsummer to early fall on hybrid speedwell “Sunny Border Blue” (Veronica “Sunny Border Blue”), which also has crinkled foliage. Hardy in USDA zones 3 through 9, it grows 12 to 18 inches tall and wide.

Loads of Small Flowers

• Expect loads of small flowers to carpet your border when you plant dwarf sweet William “Barbarini F1 Mix” (Dianthus barbatus “Barbarini F1 Mix”) or Mexican fleabane daisy “Blood Sea” (Erigeron karvinskianus “Blood Sea”). “Barbarini F1 Mix” produces large clusters of small, bicolor flowers in a variety of colors, including red, mauve and purple, from late spring through summer. This self-seeding biennial grows 6 to 8 inches tall by 8 to 12 inches wide in USDA zones 2 through 9. The small daisies on “Blood Sea” begin white and mature to pink; they appear from early summer into mid-fall. The plant thrives in hot, dry weather and grows 8 to 12 inches tall and wide. It is hardy in USDA zones 8 through 10.