I love all this tomato enthusiasm! I started with about 50 varities, but due to some unforeseen illness not all made it soon enough so I bought about 15 transplants which, for the same reason, mostly are awaiting planting. Oh well, it's still June! However, I don't know that I will have any actual plants to save the seeds from. Around here it seems like the heirlooms are the "new" ones on the block that gardeners don't grab up, as evidenced from my somewhat late dash around the nurserys. I hope they are doing well since I haven't been able to get out and check on them, although I did start a "one of each" tray when I realized I had pretty much lost my black crop of tomatoes. So I took 1 or 2 seeds of all the veggies I could round up and stuck them in small plastic cups (2 oz?) and it didn't take any time at all for them to germinate so hopefully they will represent my late garden. Well, it all sounds late to me right now, but hey you all carry on the good fight because it's sounds like a great season!

I love the way your garden looks, especially in photo 2, but if you want some changes, then go for it. I can't guarantee all of these can take your full sun, but they are deer-resistant and I think bunny resistant. We have some rabbits in the neighborhood--I see them all the time--but pretty much all the damage I get is obviously from the deer. White swan coneflower--I really like it, I'm wondering why you aren't sure it'll look great? I bet it will. Tall, yellow, fairly big blooms: Heliopsis, summer sun (golden yellow double) or lemon queen (lemon yellow, very tall) or others. There are also a couple of short ones. Summer sun is 3.5 ft for me. Coreopsis grandiflora, a tall version like Tetra Giants (I'm not sure which mine is): mine has blooms that are about 1.25", golden yellow, gets 3-4' tall. I've heard the yellow species echinacea, I think it's Echinacea paradoxa, is a tough plant, not like the hybrids made from it. Is there a white monarda that is tall enough? If not, it may stretch to compete with neighboring plants just fine, I think mine do stretch in fruitless hopes of getting more sun. Agastache: there are a couple of yellows, one is hardy only to zone 6 or 7, one is hardy up here. I just got the zone 5 one this year, A. nepetoides, so I may have seeds in the fall. It grows to 7 feet and photos of the blooms look light yellow to white. There is also agastache golden jubilee, which has chartreuse foliage to lighten the scene. The deer almost never touch my shastas. I've had shastas for 4 years, and the only chewing was last year on my supposed crazy daisy seedlings. They left them, and all the others, alone this year. They leave my eryngium completely alone. My deer love to eat mums, and asters, and maximilian sunflower, just about anything that blooms in the fall--except goldenrod. I think they leave that completely alone. Montauk daisy is nibbled early but usually left alone in fall. My deer leave the "red" Centranthus ruber alone, as well as Culver Root. I haven't grown Ironweed yet. Verbena hastata also has branchlets and violet flowers, and is deer-resistant here. My mom's red Centranthus in almost all-day sun is upright, although a bit floppy. Mine, in ok sun, was totally floppy and I gave it away. I don't give my Culver's Root any extra water, maybe I should. It does fine, but is not spreading. Did you direct-sow the cleome? I had no luck with cleome the first couple of times. When I dumped a lot of fresh seed straight into the garden in autumn, I finally got sprouts in spring.

Hi GGG, I've got Purple Pixie, which grows 1-2' tall and 3-4' wide. Its supposed to stay very purple (mine has so far, and its been in full sun since I planted it in spring). I like it so much I just bought another one. I've also got Purple Diamond, which is supposed to be "the first loropetalum with leaves that are purple all the way through, on both the top and underside of the leaves." It gets 4-5' tall. I planted it only a week ago, so I can't comment on how purple it will stay. I got both of these at Lowes (Edgewood) recently. I think Plum Delight is another mid-sized one (4-5'). One of the lower-growing Weigela wine-n-roses series would be good in your bed as well, although not evergreen. Nice purple foliage and very bright pink flowers. The hottest pink flower I have is Spirea "Neon flash", but its neither evergreen nor purple leaved!

I kind of like the hedge look you have going with these, but I agree you need more of a contrast against all the greens. Perhaps variegated hostas in front of these? Shrub-wise: Carol Mackie Daphne - nice contrast to the darker greens, has spring flowering. Lighter green leaves edged in a cream color. Pics don't do it justice. Semi-evergreen (spray with 'wilt-stop' in November to keep moisture in leaves). Pigmy barberries are nice and compact with great color, but I agree about the thorns. Been there, done that, tempted again once I saw my friend's pigmy variety (I had the 'rosy Glow' that I wouldn't do again). So pretty. Smaller variety rhododendron (or azalea depending on light), though only spring blooms, right? Virginia Sweetspire 'Henry's Garnet' will be a nice fall contrast against the greens. V.S. foliage turns reddish in the fall, with white spires in the spring. Weigela, Wine & Roses - nice foliage contrast and pretty flowers in summer/spring, though mine took a couple of years to bloom, then wow! Deadhead for repeat blooms. Purpleleaf Sand Cherry (the shrub not the tree variety, though you can trim the shrub variety into a tree form if you prefer). Trim annually to keep from getting spindly. Euonymous Gold Splash (or a variety of euonymous hardy to your zone) for contrast. Other ideas: Amsonia Hubrechti (herbaceous perennial turns yellow in fall), planted with Bergenia ('Bressingham Ruby' - foliage turns reddish in fall and has red flowers in spring, though foliage is green otherwise). I have Euphorbia (cushion spurge) 'Polychroma' planted alongside these for a nice yellow contrast. 'Polychroma' turns red in fall. Nice fall color combination. Astilbe does well in shade, I have Red Fanal Astilbe, Heucheras (plum pudding and citronelle heucherella??), Hostas, Brunnera Jack Frost, Japanese Painted fern near my spireas (neon flash). Jack Frost is directly in front of my spirea. Annabelle Hydrangea? Don't fertilize once established as the plant can't hold blooms otherwise. Brunnera Jack Frost, perennial, a SPECTACULAR contrast to evergreens and thrives in full shade. A nice "pop" in the shade. I have variegated hostas in front of my house with my evergreen yews, and in another area I have lamium 'white nancy' (full shade) with boxwood. I also have other lamium in half sun, 'silver beacon', ok as long as it gets ample moisture. Pulmonaria (lungwort) is also nice for shade/part shade ('Benediction' is supposed to be nice). Variegated foliage. Ajuga 'chocolate chip' is a nice compact groundcover with blue flowers in summer (I deadhead for reblooms through summer). Artemisia 'Silver Brocade' is nice for contrast as someone mentioned earlier, though pretty informal for a front planting bed (as are some others I've mentioned).