I second catmint and salvia, but with the little warning that if you have cats around, they love to roll in the catmint; they tend to like the dayllily foliage too, unfortunately. I also like daisies, and since you are in a similar zone to mine, you might like to edge with some of the wax begonias. Portulaca is another good low mounding plant, and foxgloves are good background for summer. If you haven't already, take a look at some of the archieved entries in Floota's blog and look at Julias old posts. And be sure to look at Celeste's Pictures They are beautiful, but her zone is very different, however you will still get ideas. And Cindy, who also has a blog. Her garden is a dream. You are going to have such a good time, and remember, any garden is a work in progress. kay

This is my third year growing Emmaus. The first year I had it, it bloomed huge flowers about 10 inches off the ground! That really looked funny, but I was pleased to see any blooms at all on it. Lexington Avenue is quite a nice flower. I've had mine for many years and enjoy seeing it every summer. Here was a first year picture of Lexington Avenue Linda

Hi phylrae, I live near Binghamton. I have some daylilies, a lot to some people (75+), but a pittance to "serious" collectors. I would love to trade in the spring. Most of what I have is on my exchange page, but that list needs to be updated. I don't have many spiders ('Stoplight' and 'Lady Neva' and 'Twiggy' come to mind right away - 'Lady Neva' is HUGE, and gorgeous), and only a few UFs, but I have some real BOLD ones if you're interested. Listing favorites is kind of like asking which child I love best, but I have some I never get tired of seeing: 'Night Beacon,' 'Bright Sunset,' 'Ida Miles,' 'Green Eyed Pat,' 'Winter Chill,' 'Dallas Star,' and I could go on and on. GEP was amazing this past year. Laurel

All of them now blooming, and it took less than a month after planting. I guess the bulbs had an adequate chilling in a cold warehouse. I only have a container garden, so no ability to plant out in garden soil. What I was thinking of doing to save the bulbs for next year is to feed lightly and consistently with a chemical fertilizer (rather than risk rot using something like Alaska Fish Fertilizer) after all blooms fade and leave them in a sunny spot until the foliage dies back.