Few perennials have long bloom seasons, but I have quite a few stone retaining wall and I plant iberis (candytuft) along a lot of them. I am zone six, it stays evergreen with interesting and trailing/mounding foliage and has lovely bloom in spring and sometimes again in fall. It's extraordinarily easy to grow, makes a great groundcover, and bulbs can grow up through it.

Calliope thank you for taking the time to respond. I have iberis already in other locations....Hmmm... never thought of it as trailing. Definitely something to consider. Thank you very much

Alexis

Alexis- Are you in Spokane? I only ask because my mom used to grow candytuft in Spokane and it would turn brown in the heat and need to be deadheaded. It is a pretty plant when the blooms are white and will make a nice display, if you don't mind deadheading, when necessary.

There are lots of groundcovers and small flowers that will bloom in your area. What did you think of the alyssum last year? It will usually reseed once it becomes established and it actually looks better when it does that, in my opinion. The little plants from the nursery don't seem to spread as well, but when they reseed, they come in thicker and more hardy...again, mom's garden :)

CMK (GW member) lives in Spokane and visits this forum quite often and will probably have some good ideas for your area.

I know that some of the Thrifts (Armeria species) have a long bloom season, though we use them as winter annuals.

Kevin : )

As Calliope indicates, few perennials offer a very long bloom season....a few weeks at most. For a season long flowering effect, annuals will provide a much better show.

However, there are some very nice spreading/cascading perennials that will work and some can be in bloom for as much as 6 weeks. I'd consider rock soapwort, Saponaria ocymoides; sunrose, Helianthemum nummularium 'Wisley Pink' or 'Chevoit'; or various cultivars of the thrifts, Armeria maritima. All should be perfectly hardy in your zone.

Another possibility is one of the dozens of hardy geraniums or cranesbills that offer pink flowers - they have a range of sizes and habits and are generally extremely adaptable to a wide range of garden conditions.

Well, one of my favorites is an ornamental oregano, Origanum rotundifolium 'Kent Beauty'. It has purple blooms that emerge from cone-like bracts that are a tinged with purple. It looks good all year and needs no dead-heading. Just cut it down in spring to make room for new growth. And it would work really well since the cones are pendulous and the plant has a 'cascading' habit.

I agree perennial Geraniums are very nice. My Geranium cantabrigiense 'Karmina' has pink/purple flowers in spring and nice foliage that turns reddish in fall. Geranium sanguineum 'Vision Light Pink' might also fit the bill. Can rebloom in later summer if given a light pruning.
CMK

Perennial geranium would be perfect. Mine bloomed here in northern CT until the middle of November. It needs no dead-heading and loves full sun. Lamium is also a carefree ground cover that has pink flowers. It doesn't spread as fast or as far as the ajuga.

Alexis,

A good choice for your needs would be Gypsophila, also known as Creeping Baby's Breath. I have it along a rock wall and like the foliage and the blooms. The blooms will last all summer. There is an initial strong burst of blooms and then it continues to bloom throughout the season in a more delicate way. It comes in white and pink. My preference is the white, but I do have some of the pink as well. The white is more vigorous and can withstand -20C with windchills of -40C at the edge of the wall during winter.

Thank you so much for all your suggestions. Sorry I haven't responded sooner, please don't think I'm ungrateful. I've been trying to research all of your wonderful suggestions.

lavender lass: Yes, I'm in Spokane. Good deduction by the way. :) The alyssum did quite well and for the most part fit the bill perfectly. I'm just trying to minimize the amount of annuals I plant each year.

Gardengal: Thank you for those suggestions, I really like the Saponaria Ocymoides, it is going on my definite maybe list.

CMK: Also thank you very much, I'm adding the Origanum Rotundifolum 'Kent Beauty' to the above list. I really like this one too.

Also looking at the thrifts that you all have mentioned and for a low growing perennial geranium.

If I didn't thank you all individually, forgive me. I do appreciate Everyone's help. :=)

Alexis

Great to see another person from Spokane on the forums!

Not sure if you are interested Alexis, but Manito Park holds some great plant sales twice yearly (on in spring the other in fall). They have a great selection and are quite reasonable on prices. Most of the proceeds go to maintain the grounds.

Anyway, hope you find the plants you are interested in. I am sure your garden will look wonderful. Take care!
CMK

CMK, also glad to see someone else from Spokane. My main hangout is the hosta forum. I don't post alot but i'm surfing and lurking in alot of forums on gardenweb every day. Doesn't Manito have great plant sales. I've been going to them for about the last 3 years. Except I missed this last Spring, got the dates confused, boohoo!!.

Alexis

That is so neat! Hope to see you around the forums more (I ususaly frequent this and the Cottage Garden forum). I just love the Manito Plant sales- I look forward to them all year (especially over our long winters, lol)! They have such a great selection that I hardly ever need to go to any local nurseries. Have you ever gone to the Garden Expo at the community college?
CMK

Thymes will cascade and form a ground cover. By selecting several different ones you can have plants that will flower through out the summer along with the heady scent. Some are temperature sensative and should be treated as annuals in your area. These are generally the varigated ones. Some such as the orange scented one I purchased last spring look like small grey trees.

If you want a long bloomer with little care try Portulacca. It is an annual but it drops it's seeds readily and loves the heat and sun. It requires no deadheading and will bloom all summer. Plant some this summer and save some seeds this fall. Then in the fall plant some spring bulbs like Crocus or Hyacinths or Snowdrops. Then sprinkle some of your saved Portulacca seed between the bulbs. The bulbs will give you spring color, and allow the Portulacca seeds to sprout and grow. By the time the bulbs are finished the Portulacca will take over.

Alexis- You raised the level of your front yard? That must have taken some work. Are you using that for lawn, or is that a garden too?

It's so interesting to see what other people are doing with their garden areas. I'm still pretty new to all this and change my mind a lot, but that's okay in the planning stages. Once I start putting the plants in (hopefully) I'll have a better idea of what I want to accomplish. I want to have a vegetable garden and a shade garden, but I keep getting sidetracked with roses :) I tried some the last few years and really like them, especially the antique roses.

What kind of shurbs and hostas do you like?