They don't bloom all year? So what? It's a shame to shun these seasonal perennials

A long time ago, while strolling through a shady garden designed by the late Julian Simone, I noticed lengthy, curving borders of peacock gingers (Kaempferia pulchra).

Simone, a landscape architect and second-generation nursery owner, told me the ginger – hardy to zone 8 – was rarely seen here because it’s dormant during the cool season.

Unfortunately, peacock ginger is emblematic of the scant regard local gardeners have for seasonally dormant perennials. Indeed, only caladiums — and, to a lesser extent, garden amaryllis and cannas — are common in Central Florida.

That means boatloads of great perennials are almost totally ignored. One of my favorites among these largely forgotten plants is Alstroemeria, including hybrids, which bloom in summer and autumn, and A. psittacina, from Brazil, with spring and summer flowers. Both are known as Peruvian lilies, grow about 30 inches tall in bright, filtered light and boast eye-popping colors. Once established, Peruvian lilies spread rapidly.

When it comes to making visitors stop and stare, nothing compares to the wow factor of South Africa’s blood lily (Scadoxus multiflorus). Flowering largely in spring or early summer, blood lily forms seven-inch globes of red filaments on lengthy stems. This plant grows best on moderately enriched sites in filtered light.

Amorphophallus is a genus of sort-of-spooky plants that are simultaneously beautiful and off-putting. The best species for our region is A. bulbifer, a two-foot-tall plant often called voodoo lily. It features a thick-and-smooth, snakeskin-patterned stem topped by deeply divided foliage. In spring, plants develop a large, striking inflorescence that has an aroma of rotting fruit and is dominated by a pinkish-white spathe.

A. bulbifer is unique among its brethren because of the small bulblets that form on its leaves. In late autumn, when plants go dormant and topple, the bulblets are scattered across the ground, a means of seed dispersion similar to many agaves.

Blue porterweedThis native perennial blooms year-round and is loved by butterflies and other pollinators

Under the heading "same thing, only different" is Dracontium soconuscum, a 6- to 7-foot-tall Tropical American species that dwells in seasonally dry woodlands. Ideal for folks who dote on strange plants, this perennial flowers before sending up its single stem.

The flowers – yes, they’re stinky – feature a large, dark-brown spathe that’s textured on the outside but has a lustrous interior. This species, similar to but unrelated to Amorphophallus plants, has a notably prickly stem that bears a single tri-lobed leaf. Provide organically enriched and mulched sites in moderate shade. Dracontiums grow from corms that are sometimes offered online.

Plant to ponder: Umbrella plant

Suitable for dry land and pond margins, umbrella plant (Cyperus alternifolius) grows 2 to 4 feet tall in sun or shade. Though often called umbrella palm, this African species is unrelated to true palms. Propagate by division.