The tiny Volcano Phlox from Home Depot was blooming in June when I bought it and it's still blooming. No bugs, no mildew, just healthy foliage and flowers.

Miscanthus Morning Light so delicate and graceful.

Agastache Blue Fortune certainly has some good qualities. It never seems to need water, nothing eats the leaves or flowers, excellent attraction for predator wasps, and it blooms a long time. But the color is gray, I didn't expect that.

Foxgloves many varieties. Trouble free, pest free, drought tolerant, fantastic blooms.

Echinops ritro, another trouble free, drought defying, plant that has shot up like a rocket.

Just the above named plants would provide an excellent garden. Minimal labor, minimal water, maximum bloom.

Here's the best of the new introductions to my garden:

- Caryopteris 'Summer Sorbet' (I wondered about the heat tolerance of this plant b/c I wanted it to replace C. 'Worcester's Gold', which browned out in the heat. The report is: so far so good and so superior to C/ 'Worcester's Gold'.)

- Cerastostigma willmottianum 'Palmgold' (I've always been a fan of the straight species b/c it was undemanding. This cultivar provides chartruese foliage, which just lights up those part shade areas and the blue flowers in the fall against the foliage are perfect.)

- Chrysanthemum 'Country Girl' (This hasn't bloomed for me yet, but the foliage is very tall and strong. I think I'm going to like it.)

- Coreopsis 'Autumn Blush' (A great color...butter yellow w/ a brownish red eye. Apparently, in the fall, the flowers take on a rose cast. It's winter hardiness should also be better than some of the newer Coreopsis, but we all know how that goes. I thought the same for 'Heaven's Gate'.)

- Gaillardia aristata 'Fanfare' (a really nice little plant that just blooms its head off.)

- Sedum 'Purple Emperor' (A lovely companion w/ Allium senescens var. calcareum and Coleus 'Glennis'.)

- Solidago 'Golden Baby' (This was DH's choice, not mine, but this bloomed very well in its first year and it can take a wide variety of garden conditions. I can already picture alot of uses for a short solidago that blooms in July.)

The one that amazed me this year is a yellow carpet rose. It really has lived up to the hype--blooming non-stop with absolutely no care from me other than occasional watering and dead-heading. I'm also thrilled with my penstemons. They have gone from being two sprigs each to clumps 1 1/2 feet across! Sheesh!

I'm digging Dicentra 'Candy Hearts.' It is bigger than 'King of Hearts' & seems to bloom even better. I'm also glad that I finally got Hakonechloa 'Aureola.'

I've tried a few new to me varieties this year, and am quite pleased so far, especially with the Plum Pudding coral bells - holding up beautifully in a sunny spot with no fading.

* Plum Pudding coral bells
* Blood grass
* "Chocolate" Joe Pye weed
* Variegated bamboo grass (sorry, can't pull the Latin name off the top of my head, but it's something like Pleobactus, sorry if I butchered that).

The betony I purchased from Select Seeds are still quite small, but they're holding their own in this very hot, dry weather and should take off next year.

I'm still waiting for my "Anne Arundel" hibiscus to bloom. Not too pleased with the foliage - quite sparse compared to my Disco Belle hibiscus - but hopefully the flowers will make up for that, we'll see.

I've also got some "Matrona" sedum to plant, but they do look lovely in the pots, and sedum are generally trouble-free so I'm sure I'll be pleased with those. I also bought a couple coneflower (White Swan and a regular ol' purple one). (gasp) I've never grown coneflower before, so another new to me plant that I'm sure will do quite well, and oldie but goodie.

I thought I was the only one first trying coneflowers this year! lol I really like them. I have ruby star and Magnus. How does your chocolate Joe pye weed do for you? I have a large space for it, but I've read it doesnt like the least bit of dryness in the garden. Keep em coming!

Jen

I bought 4 of the new Sky Series Echinaceas and 3 of the 4 are blooming now. Love the colors and I hope they make it through this first winter.

Two new butterfly bushes that were planted last fall are finally starting to bloom after being set back by a late freeze. Pink Delight is just gorgeous and the butterflies love it.

May Night Salvia had not stopped blooming since it started the first of May and coreopsis Creme Brulee and Moonbeam are also blooming non-stop.

As to annuals, I bought a pink marguarete daisy (I hope I spelled this right) at Lowe's and I keep it dead headed and it also just keeps blooming. It's the prettiest shade of pastel pink, and I wish it was perennial here. I plan on keeping some seed for next year.

Linda

Phlox (pink and an unusual, dainty purple one), regular coreopsis (spreading too fast), lamium, campanula, lilies (stargazer were spectacular, disappointed in the white one w/yellow stripe), Regal leaned too much and had to stake but beautiful, gypsophilia paniculata, foxglove, siberian wallflower, iris, and three plants my sister gave me I don't know what they are for sure yet.

The gyp pan, foxglove, sib wall and iris won't bloom until next year if they survive the winter. Sib wall is a biennial, don't know if I can keep it going or not as I think it will have to self seed.

Am looking forward to getting my adenophora ladybells going from seed, am going to read up on winter sowing, probably too late to start them this year, says it can take up to 4 months to germinate, not enough time to get them in the ground and established before winter.

Oh, and roses, 20 new ones, the main event, have not done as well as I had hoped overall, battling everything with those except blackspot, RRD and one or two other nasties; next year I'm thinking about using a systemic.

Well, I put in at least half a dozen different types of heucheras this year, and most are struggling ... except the 'Creme Brule'. It's the only one without fried looking foliage.

Other new ones for me are
Coreopsis 'Autumn Blush'
Gaillardia 'Oranges and Lemons'
Geum 'Mango Lasi'
Delosperma basuticum 'White Nugget', d. kelaidis 'Mesa Verde', and d. congestum (yellow)
Daylillies (planted them late, only a few blooms so far)
Achillea 'Anthea', 'Terra Cotta', and 'Walter Funke'
Agastache 'Apache Sunset' (just starting to bloom)
Penstemon pinifolius 'Compactum' (also just starting to bloom)
Aquilegia 'Ruby Port' (petite, but very charming)
Sedum 'Postman's Pride' (love the color on this one)

Actually, the only I planted that didn't survive was a Scabiosa ochroleuca 'Lemon Sorbet'. I tried it in a container and it wasn't doing anything, so I moved it to the ground and it slowly withered away. I was very surprised, since all of the Scabiosa's I've grown before were tough as nails.

Tsangel - just planted the "Chocolate" at the end of June, so it's only knee-high. I'm not sure if it gets taller or not once established, but it is putting on growth. The foliage is very nice in color and is lush, even though it's a new plant. I've been keeping an eye on the watering, since it's a new planting, so I can't comment on the dryness issue. I don't baby plants after the first year, so I'll be able to comment next season. I like the foliage so much I bought two more for a spot in another bed that needs a shot of foliage color (and whether it gets a little taller won't make much of a difference).

I havenÂt planted too many perennials at all because I am renting but I really canÂt resist, so IÂve got a few. This year I added only about thirty plants; if I keep up at this rate over the years IÂm going to have soooooo many to move when I buy a home one day! My favorite this year are the Mums, but I do love the Wallflower, also. (Erysimum, ÂlilacÂ) ItÂs very delicate and airy, with lots of leaf growth at the bottom, but still very compact.

Last year, however, I bought some Purple Rain Salvia, and against my better judgment, put the plant in one of the gardens in the front of my house, the SE corner, which is mostly shade, because of the trees. When I planted it, the blooms all died, probably the transfer shock, but then the plant did not flower the rest of the season, although it did at least triple in size. I was thinking that I might have to move the flower to the back of the house for more sun, but gave it some time. This year, however, the plant has again tripled in size and has bloomed all season. IÂve saved many seeds and have enjoyed the lazy looking beauty all season! If youÂve never seen one, the leaves are pretty good size and in abundance. The blooms are purple spikes that come up and stand about 12-18 inches above the plant, itÂs beautiful!!

So, by far, my Salvia is my favorite, and you could probably consider it from this year since this year is the first for blooming!

Happy Gardening!

Brenda

New for me this year"

Coreopsis Zagreb -- bought at end of season last year, was totally shocked and awed by its performance. It's like a mini-shrub of golden yellow - gorgeous! Moonbeam is sulking a bit, not sure why but I didn't get a glorious lemon yellow display from it this year.

A little white lavender plant I picked up at the grocery store has really been a focal point in my garden this year. The flowers grew to about 3 ft and even before blooming, looked so pretty in the breeze. It still looks great in front of my echinacea and a black beauty bush.

Asiatic and oriental lilies I had never grown before, but suddenly rushed out and bought 5 when I pulled out my Biokovo geranium and had a nice empty space. I love them!!

Salvia "Marcus" - bought 2 last year and they didn't do much at all. This year they were brilliant. Well, one was. I broke the cardinal rule and moved the other one while it was at its best in bloom. It was hiding behind some tickseed coreopsis and couldn't be seen. Well, now it can't be seen at all because it's dead. lol.

Miscanthus Morning Light -- can't say enough about this beautiful grass.

I do notice that many perenennials don't do well for me until the second or third year so I think in the past I've been a bit too hasty to judge them!

Linum perenne isn't a new introduction and it isn't even the first time I've grown it, but it's the first time I've had mature ones in my garden and they've been great. Some are still blooming!

Calamint is in its second year and I'm still a fan.

Delphinium belladonna are blooming in their first summer from seed. The sky blue flowers look great in the vase with phlox 'David.' Now, if I can only get them to overwinter.

I agree with the poster who was happy with her coleus. I have several for the first time and love them! Also a pass-along dark purple basil with frilly leaves. Looks great in the border.

Notable failures:

'Traderhorn' gladiolas that did spectacularly in their first year have mostly not rebloomed, though the plants are green and good-sized.

'Stargazer' oriental lilies. Flowers much smaller this year - unlike 'Muscadet' which are large, clean and their usual fragrant selves.

I love this thread! Gardeners' recommendations are far better than the catalogs.

Gaillardia, Oranges and Lemons has been a roaring success. It has never been out of bloom since March.

Salvia Mystic Spires is new this year. I bought three. One died, and the other two are absolutely spectacular. They look like Victoria Salvia on steroids (about 2 feet tall) and have never stopped blooming.

Rozanne Geranium finally made its way to the deep south this year, and it's a real winner here too. Quite a feat!

Three new roses are winners: Nagadoches (yellow), Carefree Sunshine (yellow), Cassie (white). All have bloomed non-stop and have not been sprayed one time. It's now mid July and they look BETTER than they did in May.

These are oldies, but have been especially great this year: Crinums: Milk and Wine, Ellen Bosanquet, Frank Howard. I finally found the secret. Top dress them with composted manure in the fall. And Cannas. I combined Phaison with an old fashioned purple one (Wyoming, I think) around a Golden False Cypress. (Chaemycyparis, Aurea). What a stunning combination it is!

Oh my goodness, I forgot to mention my strawberries!! These are by far my favorite, not only because they are beautiful and delicious. I have tried and tried to find good plants at the nurseries, brought them home and planted them, just to learn that they were not dormant, they were dead!! I've finally got strawberries!! YAY!!

Well, my best new plant this year is Agastache 'Purple Haze'. It is a richer colored, slightly more refined version of A. 'Blue Fortune'. The flowers are smaller, more saturated and slightly pinker in color, the spikes are narrower but there are more of them. I also have come to love 'Black Adder'. In order of preference I would rank them Purple Haze, Black Adder, and then Blue Fortune (though all 3 are great and worth having). There is some question I think whether Purple Haze is fully z 5 hardy. I know Blue Fortune is, and Black Adder went through a fairly tough winter last winter no problem so I think it is too.

Another winner for the year is Salvia 'Eveline'. Lovely bicolor dark and lighter pink flowers, short plants but with tall inflorescences (2' almost), very different from the S x superba types, seems to be a very recurrent bloomer even without deadheading, and the spent flowers are shed from the old spikes readily, which means that even the old spikes are not unattractive. A winner. Also apparently some question of whether it is z5 hardy or z 6, here's hoping for z5. I haven't tried it, but 'Rhapsody in Blue' is supposed to be a blue version of the same plant.

Mid summer and already the lists are coming in fast and furious! Some of the favoured perennials tried, tested and true for 2007 would be:

Baptesia Twilite Prairieblues
corydalis elata,flexuosa (blue and golden panda), and canary feathers
gentiana dauhrica
codonopsis clematidea
penstemon mensarum and mesa
lobelia syphilitica
campanula "Kent Belle"
caryopteris clendonensis x petit bleu
keirengomesha koreana
arisaema fargesii

With the luck I've had this past year, I will need to find a bigger property next year!