It could also be Boltonia asteroides, which incidentally I think it still is :) (not renamed yet.....) Probably not good for a formal flower bed...great in a mass planting or a prairie restoration, in either case. Butterflies love all asters and boltonias though...so it does have worth there too. I've seen migrating monarchs flock to them. This post was edited by dbarron on Wed, Sep 10, 14 at 8:12

though it is only marginally perennial in my area (zone 6), I have been using Verbena canadensis as an annual here. They are typically sold at a nominal price....they are perfect for the cascading wall effect.. they bloom heavily but aren't a single blanket of blooms... a single plant can spread nicely within a single year.. blooming continually until the fall... and they don't need to be tended at all. They will root down where the stems touch the soil, but are very easily to pull up after the fall or in the spring. And they come in a few color varieties.

Which do you think would work better in containers (and would overwinter if the pots were buried in the ground---in my backyard?) David Phlox or Miss Manners Obedient plant? I love everyone's suggestions.... I think these 2 are the front runners now because they would be the most dramatic. I love peach leafed bellflower as someone suggested, but I think it may be too delicate for this spot.

G'Day! - Jugs full of daffodils on the kitchen table here already! Also, as it's time to prune the fruit trees, so the branches dan't get too crowded this summer, i've forced a few vases full of pink and white blossoms, mostly plum and cherry flowers. - Grape hyacinth leaves are coming up, a promise of later colour. - Snowdrops are on my Want List. Lovely wee things! i put in half a thousand crocus last year, which covered perhaps a quarter or a third of the total amount of crucus i'd like. Still need a couple thousand more daffodils. - So early in the year, it hardly matters what colour a bloom is, it is welcome. Besides, most will be gone before the main spring colours come forht in any bed, so these early guys don't have to co-ordinate. - Just got my first three hellaborus in a postal trade this winter; they're still in pots indoors (didn't know if they could take giong from S. Cal. to MD winter), so they woun't bloom 'till next year. i am so looking forward to that! WOnder what colour they will turn out to be. - Happy gardening, -vlad