Potentilla a little shrub might work, blooms all summer and come in several colors.

Annette

Tough as old boots??!! That's what you need. What about rugosa roses? They use those in building parking lots here. Also, ornamental grasses(not sure what kind) and stella d'oro lilies - the ever-blooming kinds. All of these get used in grocery store 'hell-strips', etc, here. And yes, potentilla too, but I never saw it as long-lasting. Not in Z4 anyways!! (sorry Annette) The only enemies the above have are people walking over them - if you are able to stop that from happening, you are golden!! As they say.

Nancy.

Short spirea? Some are only 3 feet tall and I think they're hardy to zone 3 or 4 :)

I knew I'd seen a spirea not too long ago, that I wanted to put in my shrub border. Neon Flash spirea is supposed to bloom all summer, only get 3' x 3' and is hardy to zone 4. I saved the picture because the flowers look purple, but according to the description, they're supposed to be red. Cute little shrub :)

So they are sanding your roads in winter instead of salting or using anything else? That's good!

I have some things you can't do, but you could do:
black eyed susans
shorter bearded iris for the spike foliage
Mother of Thyme
Phlox
candytuft
dwarf mouse ears coreopsis "nana" and threadleaf coreopsis

Just some ideas. I use low growers punctuated by some taller items. I also add in annuals such as gomphrena, dwarf zinnias, annual vinca and love in a mist.

Memo Please post a photo of the strip. Before planting anything I was wondering if there is anything that can be done structurally to prevent the sands from getting into the area. Obviously if these is a part of the yard that gets dumped on, that needs to be rectified first.

I did research on Potentilla last night and it is hardy to zone 3. I read that while most people think it is a short lived shrub the poor looks of them is usually due to people not knowing how, or not bothering, to prune them properly. To prune properly, 1/3 of the oldest branches need to be removed at ground level every couple of years. To rejuvinate them, clip them to the ground in early spring before the leaf buds open and they will come back as a nice fluffy little shrub again. Sounds easy enough. I fell in love with "Sunset or Red Sunset" but couldn't find it online as a plant (except for $$wayside gardens$$), only as a root. I'll have to check the nursery across the road when it opens to see what they have.

Spirea would be my next choice as they are the perfect size and so many colors are available. Thanks for that reminder, Lavender Lass.

Nice list GGG, thanks. I have seeds for some of those things you mentioned and can get more seed readily when I go to the larger town. I would have to direct sow them though, no room for seed starting in my house. I also have seed for three different decorative grasses that are 12-18 inches in height. I have ajuga (purple) coming out my ears and also lamium and wild Dakota vervain. I also have seeds for strawflowers (mixed colors), tall zinnias, verbena bonariensis, nastutiums (dwarf jewel mix) and coneflowers though they would be annuals here. Butterfly flower (24 inches), lavender, and cupids dart (white). would any of those work?

They do use sand, primarily, for the roads but since it's a state highway they will use the liquid salt slurry stuff if the roads get icy. We have a lot of semi traffic that comes through here at all times of the year.

Ianna, I'll get a picture for you as soon as my daughter gets back home. She has a cell phone camera. My camera is in the fifth wheel out at the ranch and I keep forgetting to grab it when I'm there. Nothing planted yet, still planning. Thanks!

MeMo

Probably all those will work in your climate (I'm not so sure how long nasteurtiums will hold on for you. They'll be OK if your evenings are cooler than the daytime) Consider how tall tall zinnias and verbena bonariensis will get for you. You want to keep it very low.

I've never been able to get the VB seeds to take for me so didn't know how tall they would be. I'll pull them out of the mix of seeds. The Zinna seeds I have are about 24-30 inches. Still too tall you think? I thought I'd plant them more toward the yard side and not close to the street. Yeah, maybe too tall still.

Thanks,
MeMo