I love the patio area! That's a really nice view of the surrounding land, too. Have you considered adding a pretty birdhouse or bird feeder? I'll bet you attract bluebirds, chickadees and goldfinch with all that open space.

So this is a part-shade site? How much sun do you get?

You can add bulbs next fall for spring blooms of Dutch iris (blue/white is pretty), jonquils/daffs and Spanish bluebells. Phlox subulata is a nice spring-flowering evergreen ground cover. It is available in white, magenta and blue.

If deer aren't a problem, you could add a few azaleas for spring color or hydrangea for summer color if you want more shrubs. I have Encore azalea which blooms in spring and again in fall. The only problem that I've had with Encore is that the multi-colored (like lavender/white twist) may revert to the solid color parent.

With white, I like blue, purple, magenta and yellow. What colors do YOU like with white? White goes with everything IMHO, so it's a matter of color preference for you. Do you use any pillows, pots or other accents of color on your patio in season?

What time of day do you use the patio? If it's in the evening, then white and yellow blooms will shine in the evening light.

In my fragrance garden, I use white and magenta colors. I started with all white, but then had so much sun around the outer edges that I added magenta/pink as it echoed colors of my colocasia leaves. It just evolved that way.

White blooms are: sweet bay magnolia, kousa dogwood, gardenia, osmanthus fragrans, ginger, confederate jasmine.

Magenta: buddleia 'pink delight', monarda 'blue stocking', winter daphne, akebia chocolate vine. The veins in the leaves of colocasia esculenta and the leaves of purple heuchera echo the magenta.

I have a few lime heuchera and yellow/white variegated ligustrum thrown in there around the patio edges for some evening shine and a curly willow for texture and movement.

Cameron

I think dark colors go great with white. So I would use dark foliage and darkish purples. That would go with the mauve althea. I recently planted a Dark Horse weigela, blooms in spring but has purplish foliage. How about purplish coleus, sweet potato vine "Blackie," sages, purple butterfly bushes, there's a purpley lantana, see if there are dark daylillies. Even some dark mauvey roses. Check out old garden roses. That's the palette I would choose, I think.
Laurie

My suggestions is to search out what's in bloom around your neighborhood, and underplant with plants that are in bloom at the same time your shrubs are blooming.

Here's how I handle my 15 ft tall 8ft wide mock orange.

Bluebells at the base for spring
Mock orange blossom alone
Plant a late flowering clematis on the shady side of the MO and let it climb and blossom through the branches.

Libby

How about some hellebores near the evergreen, Nell? You could mix those with the bluebells. I think that the blue and white would be pretty.
Amsonia is easy and likes part-shade. You get fall leaf color too, then there are some blue grape hyacinths, blue asters... Caryopteris booms here in the middle of summer for me...and how about a vitex in this area like neguno?
Salvia black and blue, and georgia blue veronica makes a lovely ground cover right now, especially with white phlox or "thrift". Speaking of phlox, how about some Phlox David near or under one of your trees that is not blooming in the summer. It would be a nice counterpoint to the crepe myrtle.

GGG

Thank you to everybody who responded. All were good suggestions. I'm going to improve the areas in front of the existing shrubs and wait to plant until I see if we're in for yet another drought.

Instead of phloxes and amsonia, I decided to use plumbago ariculata. Caryopteris died out for me before, but I've thought of trying it again. No hellebores, but cardamon ginger would work well. Variegated Alpinas next to the pumphouse. I have those.

Libby, I had clematis growing through crape myrtles where I used to live. That would work with the philadelphus.

Herblady, I AM the blooming neighborhood. My neighbors lean toward pill-box sheared azaleas with the buds lopped off, soldier-straight rows of Bradford pear and well-soaked lawns. The idea of looking in the immediate neighborhood reminded me of some nicotiana in the front yard....

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Everybody was too polite to mention the bottle tree, but it's going to be engulfed in Cassia alata for summer instead of yanking it out.

There ARE dark daylilies. I have 'Dominic' but it's a brownish dark. I will look for Bela Lugosi, a purple purple at the daylily sale. I have Pandora, a white with the purple eye.

There are blue pots tucked out of sight, full of my Night Blooming Cereuses. The foliage is awful but they should green up now that they're in some shade.

Later I'll plant some Hawera daffodils. They are the perfect spring yellow, softer than the usual daffodil. There are already a few Ice Follies, also pale. If there was room, I'd tuck in a Lady Banksia Rose.

In the fall, I'll start some yellow snapdragons and blue violas.

Oh, wait, I forgot about the butterflies. I don't do buddleia, but they'll be happy with blue porterweed and some yellow and magenta zinnias, some anise hyssop and/or Verbena on a Stick; there, all done! Thanks again.
Nell