Perennial plants are those that live for a long period and flower each year. Though most perennials blossom in the spring and early summer, some do not, waiting for July and even August before showing the world their typically bright-colored petals. These perennial plants can be found across the United States, with some widespread and others more regional.

Joepyeweed

Joepyeweed is a flowering perennial plant that grows on erect stalks as tall as 7 to 8 feet in some instances. It usually grows in large groups and is a common plant in the eastern United States, existing along roadsides or in moist ditches. Joepyeweed's flowers are lavender and pink, and one type of this plant, boneset, has white flowers. The flowers bloom in late July and throughout August, beginning to fade in intensity as September approaches. The leaves are coarse, have serrated teeth on the edges and grow in a circular pattern around the stem.

Goldenrod

Goldenrod is a common weed or wildflower, depending on your point of view. Entire fields of goldenrod, of which there are as many as 100 kinds in the United States, turn yellow in late July and early August as the flowers emerge. Most types grow between 2 and 4 feet in height and some have an almost stale aroma. Goldenrod is Nebraska and Kentucky's state flower.

Pickerelweed

Pickerelweed is an aquatic perennial that thrives along the shore of marshes, rivers and ponds. It can grow by itself or in large groups. By July, pickerelweed is typically ready to bloom, with one erect stalk rising from the water, topped with a series of purplish flowers. Each flower has one of its petals marked by a pair of yellow dots. The leaves resemble the head of a digging spade, and each plant has just a single large one.

Milkweed

Milkweed is a perennial plant found in meadows, fields and marshy areas across the nation. The plant has a milky sap that gives milkweed its name, and it blooms in July and August. The flowers grow in clusters. They are pink, white or cream-colored, depending on the species, and attract a wide variety of flies, beetles and bees, among other insects. Milkweed is famous for its seedpods, which open in the fall and scatter multitudes of seeds that seem to have a white "parachute" attached.