Palace Purple heuchera does fine in full sun 8 hours in Summer here two zones higher for years now - as long as it isn't allowed to go dry. Find it keeps its color without fading till the cold sets in, when it becomes burgundy. The leaves brown out during mid-late Winter some years, dissolve on their own by early Spring & grow back lushly. Needs good drainage in the Winter wet here & fairly rich woodland-type soil. Another you might consider is Salvia lyrata. That does keep its purplely leaves here all year round, can take moderate drought & grow in any soil, sun or shade. Bought it as a native years ago & planted it in a previously hopeless spot next to the driveway. Did so well & looked so fetching, started trying it elsewhere. Originally concerned it would reseed with abandon, have not found that in the last 12 years. Foxgloves reseed more gleefully here. Pleased with a few trialed as an edging, moving volunteers to form one now. The flower stalks give a similar impression as the heucheras, but are less showy, a bit more substantial & more enduring. Bees, butterflies & hummingbirds like them. If you want no reseeding, clip the flower stalks before they dry. Even left to dry & fall or be eaten by finches, reseeding not a problem here. Seedlings easily relocated or pulled, as are mature plants. I've become very fond of them. Well behaved & don't crowd out companions. Mine looks most like Purple Volcano due to its closed flowers, rather than Purple Knockout. The foliage has a velvety appearance. Here is a link that might be useful: Salvia lyrata This post was edited by vasue on Mon, Jun 9, 14 at 12:33

Also commonly referred to as Wax Begonias. The amount of ground each individual plant covers is dependent on how each individual plant grows for you. I've seen estimates of everything from 4 to 10 inches. With too much sun, the leaves can turn translucent and pretty ugly. Partial sun suits them fine and they don't mind being close together. I'm going to play Ken here and say your posts often leave out details that could be useful - are you wanting to cover a big space as in the Old Victorian practice of carpet bedding? A patch here and there? Or a border? How much space - as in footage - are you wanting to devote to this plant? Coverage might be trial and error as to the number of market packs you'd need. It's such a popular plant, Home Depot, Wal-mart, etc. carry racks and racks of them every year so not starting out with enough first time around is easy to remedy.

You have a point there about plants in the Commonwealth world and their first introduction to the US. I found an obscure reference to Charles Sargent growing Senecio pulcher, presumably under glass, in Boston around 1910. It was almost 100 years before Annie's Annuals reintroduced it to the parts of the US (Bay Area, PNW) where it could be easily grown. I believe it had always been cultivated in the UK in those intervening years.

These are some wonderful combinations, and reminders! I have a holding bed where I put plants I don't know where to place permanently. Hala - your post reminded me that I have campanula Superba. I also have the oriental poppy 'Angels Choir'. Now I know where they will go. Ianna - I have gotten more varieties of coneflower thru trades. I may put some in the bed. Aker - I hadn't thought of to many annuals in there, but coleus would be a great idea. xaroline - I also love the idea of poppies with the blue hyssop. Ontnative - I alread have Miss Pepper phlox in that bed and I have a pink anemone. Just to let you know Miss Pepper has been here 6 years and gotten mildew once. Never thought of them togther. Oilpainter - I'm not a fan of gallardias but I like the idea of that colour combo. Any ideas for another type of flower to put in front of the salvia? Thanks for the great ideas everyone. Keep them coming, it's a large bed! Marg