Some of my favorite mixed garden companions that have not already been discussed (I think): 1. Seseli gummiferum. Much like Campanula, I love umbellifers. But unlike Campanula, I seem to live in climate that most umbellifers despise. I have had very limited success with Angelica gigas, Chaerophyllum hirsutum 'Roseum' and Pimpinella major 'Rosea'. This year, I got maybe 1-2 weeks of bloom from each of them during a milder than normal summer. After bloom, they just faded into the background and looked weedy--far removed from the romantic cottage garden effect I had in mind! Other umbellifers I have tried just died without explanation or were eaten by rabbits. Seseli gummiferum, however, has striking waxy glaucous foliage and stayed in prime bloom for a good 6-7 weeks, followed by seed heads which were almost as attractive as the blooms. It seemed to thrive is my sandy loam soil. I loved it this year and so did the hover flies! 2. Crambe maritima. Another star performer that requires absolutely no care or maintenance other than a good full plant chop after blooming in early summer. Striking, handsome, architectural glaucous leaves and lovely full heads of white flowers with a wafting honey fragrance. 3. Hardy geraniums. Many people have already mentioned them, yes, but I want to mention a few others. 'Rozanne' is exquisite and I have at least 20 of them in various places throughout my tiny garden (!) but many others are just as worthy. Geranium soboliferum 'Butterfly Kisses' is a wonderful fall bloomer that started producing its starry magenta blooms in early September and is still going strong now. 'Blue Sunrise' has gorgeous chartreuse/yellow new growth and was in stunning full bloom from late May to late July this year. 'Tiny Monster' and 'Nimbus' have been blooming off and on from late May until now. 'Derek Cook', a selection of Geranium himalayense, produces huge, striking white blooms with lavender veins from late spring to midsummer. 'Eureka Blue' and 'Orion' are both exquisite and vigorous with huge blooms that are much "bluer" than 'Rozanne' in high temperatures. 'Blue Cloud', much like its name implies, produces clouds of amazing pale blue blooms that stand out in the garden and contrasts nicely with the blue shades of other geraniums. Geranium erianthum bloomed continuously from early June through mid August. Geranium maculatum 'Elizabeth Ann' has striking irridescent bronze foliage and wonderful lilac-pink blooms for a good month in late spring. I am itching to get my hands on 'Lilac Ice', a stunning lilac-white sport of 'Rozanne'. 4. Calamintha nepeta. One of my absolute favorites. About 12-18 inches tall with a spreading growth habit, it starts blooming here in July and soon becomes a never-ending frothy cloud of white blooms (that have a lavender tinged when viewed up close). Mine are still blooming now. Absolutely loved by bees and other pollinators. 5. Pycnanthemum. So far, my favorite is Pycnanthemum muticum with its ornamental silvery-grey flower bracts from July till now. Rumor has it that it can sometimes spread vigorously (it is in the mint family), but so far it has been well behaved for me. In any case, it has shallow roots and is easily pulled up, ripped out, transplanted, etc. I grow several other species and all are nice, with varying heights, blooms seasons, and very different foliage textures. The tiny whitish flowers attract a greater variety and quantity of happy pollinators and beneficial insects than I have ever seen in my life! 6. Agastache. 'Blue Fortune' and 'Golden Jubilee' are lovely and wonderful for bees and other pollinators. I grow both and love them. But I want to put in a good word for the hybrid agastaches from High Country Gardens. 'Blue Blazes' has been a stunning plant in my garden, huge and everblooming with gigantic bracts of blue-lavender blooms that glow when backlit by the sun. Bumblebees adore it and it easily survived last year's harsh winter with no snow cover and countless freeze-thaw cycles. 'Ava' and 'Desert Sunrise' also appear to be excellent, but are not yet mature in my garden. 7. Daylilies. I used to be a snob and say things like "Daylilies are too common and I will never grow them in my garden." Ha! The joke was on me. In my extreme ignorance, I did not realize the vast amount of daylilies available, how much hybridizers have improved them during the past 20 years and how many of them are now truly architectural, showpiece plants. While I still find those with round/frilly/flouncy flowers to be a bit twee and boring (sorry, just an opinion..no offense intended), the spidery/unusual flowered types are gorgeous and many people--gardeners included--don't even recognize them as daylilies. Great strides have been made in selecting for improved foliage habits as well. Check out the websites for Woodhenge Gardens and Heavenly Gardens for a mindblowing education about contemporary hemerocallis. 8. Alliums. They have already been discussed by many people above, so I have nothing to add other than to say I love them and want to encourage other people to plant them. And don't overlook the rhizomatous types that bloom later in summer or fall with foliage that remains glossy and attractive all season. 'Millennium', 'Sugar Melt', A. nutans 'Pam Harper', A. thunbergii 'Ozawa' and A. tuberosum are particular favorites for me in this group (be sure to trim off spent flower heads of A. tuberosum if you do not want it to reseed). A. obliquum and the allium sold as "perennial leeks" by Southern Exposure Seed Exchange are two bulb alliums with stunning ornamental mid-summer blooms that are all but unknown among most gardeners...yet.

There's nothing quite as cool-looking(temperaturewise) as BLUE flowers. I grew Phacelia a few years ago, best blue i ever saw, next to cornflowers. The bell-shaped blue flowers with icy-white anthers were beautiful, and stirred up images of cooler weather. They do have a short bloom time, hot weather just about stops the show, cutting back helps somewhat. Give 'em a try, i believe there are 2 or 3 varieties. Good luck, and enjoy.

I had a couple of pink flamingos in my yard for awhile. I named them 'Tongue' and 'Cheek'. They finally died. I think of,embarrassment.

Well I'm NOT a blue person. Indoors I have NO blue. My husband doesn't understand this. I have no idea why I feel this way. Outdoors things are different! I have a blue/yellow/white garden bed which I love. Yes, delphineums, catananche, campanulas, baptisia and more, are mixed with trollius, coreopsis moonbeam, peony Claire de Lune and low growing white clematis and aquilegia. It is a big mix and wouldn't be any fun at all without the blue! There are loads of clematis that are purple or blue/purple, but also some very nice blues I think. You do get into the question of "what is blue?" My husband and I think this could well be a male/female issue! Also, by saying a flower is blue, perhaps a catalogue gains more sales? * Posted by: coolbeans (My Page) on Sat, Feb 2, 02 at 13:12 This is my VERY favorite thread, and I totally agree with all those who feel that there is just "something" about blue flowers; they ARE magical, they ARE very special; and they make me happier than any other color flower. Don't know why...I just started a flat full of Bluebird delphinium seeds I saved from my one lonely plant last year. A bunch of them germinated, so now I can't wait to have a huge stand of them! Maybe they won't bloom this year, but maybe they will. And also "true blue" penstemons, I'm trying for the first time. I can't get enough of this precious color. * Posted by: Anne_Marie_Alb (My Page) on Tue, Feb 5, 02 at 17:47 WOW....... Did anyone realize that this thread started almost 5 years ago... on Feb. 15, 1997!!!!! I am amazed it has survived that long. Probably, the oldest thread still on the top page! I wonder if "Clare B" (who started the thread) is still an active member of the Garden Web!!! I personally love blue flowers (I mean blue, and not purple, which I also like). I can't believe how many blue flowers I am starting from seeds this year... and that was just a pure coincidence! I also love RED flowers.. Maybe, I should start a "red flower" thread! I will first check the archives! * Posted by: Clare (My Page) on Thu, Feb 7, 02 at 20:34 Yes, Ann_Marie, I am still here! I will be a bit sad to see this thread fade away when it hits the 100 posts mark. After that, the threads are closed. I don't think I have any true blue flowers still. "Victoria Blue" Salvia is the closest thing. I use it a lot. It is such a heavy, long bloomer, and about one in twenty of them will survive winter here. Just wish I could predict which would survive so that I could save seed from those alone and perhaps work up a more hardy strain. By the way, the Hydrangeas in Memphis, Tennessee are incredible. Some are so saturated blue that I'd have to call them navy. * Posted by: Dswan (My Page) on Sat, Feb 9, 02 at 22:37 I'm going to add to this extremely long thread only because there really is something to true blue. I grow from seed a very difficult plant to propagate called Penstemon cyananthus or Wasatch Penstemon. I cold stratify and plant these every year in hopes of gettting one or two in my garden every year. Absolutely gorgeous. * Posted by: Rosa (My Page) on Mon, Mar 11, 02 at 10:24 Did no one mention Gentians-now those are blue! (along with my favorite penstemson of course-some are indeed blue). * Posted by: pineshade7b ) on Mon, Apr 15, 02 at 11:02 i agree with gloria mc coy. i love blue and green , they are my favorite colors in anything. just look in my house and closets. blue..ocean, blue jeans, my own eyes are blue and my husband's are green. many reasons to answer -why blue. although i do not "hyperventilate" , if i should go into a nursery and ask for a blue -flowering plant and the staff looks down their nose at me, i'll know now that they are only doing it because they think I'M a snob. until i adopted gardening as a serious hobby i had no idea that blue was a "snob" color. i just naturally began to look into flowers in the colors i liked personally. you learn something new everyday. i would have been hurt and confused to walk into a nursery and be looked at like a pariah, what did i say? now i know, thanks clare. * Posted by: DesertGardner (My Page) on Fri, Apr 19, 02 at 12:38 Wow - I never knew there was such a controversy over the color blue in the garden. After reading all the posts, I now understand why some gardeners prefer the color. And I have to say that I've never met any gardeners whom I would consider snobbish. Most of them are really quite down to earth! (if you pardon the expression...) I recently tried planting a red, white and blue flower bed, with 'Victoria Blue' Salvia being my blue color. It's a little too purple and doesn't look right as a "patriotic" design. I will probably tear out the red and white and keep the "blue" (purple) since it seems to like this desert heat. Someone mentioned black flowers, and I remembered seeing black pansies in the most recent Burpee catalog. They're a beautiful velvety black with a spot of yellow in the center. I think I'll plant some this winter, and start an obsession with black flowers! (just kidding Clare...) -Kara [* Posted by: yeona_sky (My Page) on Mon, Jun 24, 02 at 0:37 I just bought a blue poppy and am nervously watching its progress. My success with blues has been an up hill battle, but that hasn't changed my desire to spotlight it in my garden. Why blue?, again it's a passion with me. Clare, I hope you get the last word on this thread, and I hope you understand Why blue, a little better. * Posted by: Duster (My Page) on Wed, Jun 26, 02 at 23:56 I agree with the many others about getting annoyed when purple is referred to as blue. Maybe that's why I take up the cause of truly blue flowers! 99% of my Delphiniums are the true electric blue ones. I'd love one of the Himalayan Poppies but just not right for my little yard. I like the blue flowers, rather than the blue foliage plants. And no, blue is NOT my favorite color - I have nothing blue in my home decor. I just like the uniqueness of the TRUE blue and my stubbornness to get people to stop calling it purple!!!!