Oy, when I inherited the bed there were hardy geraniums planted in it, and it's been the absolute devil to eliminate them. Not that I have a big problem with Cranebills, but the person who put these in was both color-blind and had no sense of where to plant things. I agree - they ARE effective at covering a big patch of dirt! The White Nancy lamium looks like a good bet to plant in the part of the bed with the clematis - it's Rebecca, and blooms a deep, deep red. And the Veronica Georgia Blue looks AMAZING! I wasn't familiar with that one at all. I had Veronica Goodness Grows in a bed with May Night Salvias at my old house - I didn't know that there were groundcovering, low-growing Veronicas. I did see Wooly Thyme at the Maine gardens - that was a first for me, and it looked good (and felt even better). I don't mind pulling the occasional weed, but this summer - even with our record heat and a big drought - I'd come back from a week vacation and find the entire bed utterly overrun with weeds. If I can get this knocked back to an hour a week maintenance (without engaging in the Mulch Wars) I'm going to be really happy. I know that eventually, the daylilies will fill in, and I'll only have to concern myself with weeds that make it to 2 feet tall. :) Thanks for the great suggestions!

Flora, The reason I will be purchasing 8 cubic yards of garden mix is to fill 2 new raised beds. They will be 16 inches high (deep) by 12 by 5 feet. The raised beds will have to be filled first and any left over will be used at the side of the house to expand the bed there. I live in a city and don't have the space or the grounds to generate enough to fill such big raised beds, wish I did. The raised beds will help to extend my years of gardening. Just thinking ahead. Also they will be filled with the Daylilies that I want to breed. No bending over to dab pollen and care for the Mommies. I looked up the Anthemis, nice, maybe a little full. Does it flow over a wall? I love Coreopsis, and it reminded me of it. The Rock Soapwort is Saponaria Ocymoides. I ordered seed today. Luckygal, I have grown annual sweet Alyssum in every garden since I was a girl, always from seed direct sown. She will do her part again this summer in addition to the Soapwort. The little workhorse of the garden that ties all the unfinished ends together. Elizabeth

Oh that's so right. Thank you. Thank you! I did forget full sun for the ground cover. I appreciate your answer. I really think I better remove the groundcover and let the day lilies have the bed. I can use the groundcover in another bed. I may go out in a bit and do just that. Its a beautiful day today!

Eileen, three years ago (up north) my favorites were--large tree, red maple; small tree, Japanese maple or panicle hydrangea; shrub, Diablo ninebark, black lace elder or bridal wreath spirea; ground cover? wild ginger; perennials, too numerous to mention--Asiatic lilies, Husker red penstemon, trandescantia, Shasta daisies bee balm, rose campion (a biennial), hostas, rudbeckia, and so on and on. Hostas!!! Now, large tree, oak; small tree, Japanese maples (not that I've had one--they're SO expensive), crepe myrtles; shrubs, crepe myrtles, snowball hydrangeas, mock orange; perennials, I make no distinction between perennials and self-seeding annuals now; not interested in ground covers now. I had many favorites up north that would not do down here at all. But have discovered many new favorites--unfortunately have not yet zeroed in the sure things for my yard--so much depends on microclimates, soil, shade/sun. Dawn and many others have had several years, as have others, to discover that. I haven't yet, and so will keep experimenting. I know what isn't working in my yard after 3 summers of gardening: crazy though it seems, I have about had it with morning glories--bugs (aphids) eat the heck out of the leaves; zinnias, rudbeckia, and bee balm get bad cases of powdery mildew; phlox, that was a non-starter--began with a couple lovely pots; mildew attacked instantly. I'm a bit paranoid about crepe myrtles now, with the crepe myrtle disease circling the state (a virus, right, guys? ditto with rose bushes.) By far and away my favorites now are my four o'clocks, datura and brugmansia (thank you, Dawn), and nicotiana--more for their fragrances than their actual flowers, though all have great flowers. Brugs most likely are not hardy in your area, though on the FB OK gardening network, many folks in 7 have said theirs come back well each year (with proper placing in microclimates and mulching.) I'm hoping for that, but even if it doesn't come back, I'll have cuttings to begin new ones next spring. They can grow from 20 inches to 6 feet in one summer. I still love tradescantia, and it does well here in partial shade or mostly sun. The ones I've mentioned are not picky about the soil, or sun/shade, and most, drought. I babied the brug and kept grass clippings piled around it in the well amended soil and provided plenty of water. One I love but haven't planted yet--but will as soon as I get my sunny rock garden going is autumn sedum. Can hardly wait, I'm going to plant it everywhere there. Another one I can't kill here is yucca. They get enormous (they'd take the place of "shrub") and produce a single amazing stalk of beautiful white flowers. Hyacinth beans did an awesome job for me this year, and I'll be growing mostly them instead of morning glories now. There are just so VERY many to choose from down here, Eileen, that you would do well to focus on what is lovely to you, and then to decide if it might do well in your yard, based on your soil, your zone (cold AND heat); the amount of sun vs shade you have, if there are lots of deer or rabbits in your neighborhood--then go for it. You will have some failures, and you'll have some successes. One of my big surprise successes was endless summer hydrangeas. I'd never grown them well up north, but would get some blooms each early summer. I lucked out and put a row of them in the PERFECT place here, apparently. Although they did turn pink instead of the exquisite blue (alkaline rather than acid), they are monstrously big, and for the first time ever, have actually bloomed all summer since May. I am astonished. It has been a big big big learning curve for me, and doubtless it will continue to be until I die or cannot garden anymore. But so fun and worthwhile. Hey Dawn, I don't know if you remember, but where I lived in Wyoming, I mentioned that we could have made pottery! Actually, had I stayed in that location forever, I'm sure I would have tried it. A funny aside. I have adored climbing hydrangeas. . . has been a longtime dream to have one. So got one my first summer here, put it strategically against a large oak nearby that I wrongly assumed got a lot of dappled shade--nope--gets full hot sun from about 3-6 pm. Poor thing's oak-climbing tendrils shriveled up and died. Second summer, I planted a nandina in front--fast-growing, thought it might shade the hydrangea--but it didn't grow tall enough fast enough and tendrils again died. Imagine my laughter this year, discovering that I had many new growing vines/tendrils growing on the NORTH side of the tree. Deader than a doornail on the west, but new ones growing happily on the north side of the tree! We may have lift-off with blooms yet if I live long enough! LOL It's all a crapshoot--but the more we study and learn, the more the odds will be with us--right?