have you tried the little leaf zinnia, z. angustifolia? it is mounding, disease-resistant and drought tolerant. i have grown them in about 5 hours of direct sun and they do fine, although they will lean toward the east if shaded from the west. still lots of flowers. colors include yellow, white and orange. also, the newer sunpatiens would work with that much sun though they are not cheap. the small red, pink or white-flowered begonias are traditionally thought of as shade annuals but many public places grow them in containers or island beds in practically full sun and they bloom prolifically. the extra sun also causes the foliage to darken, even taking on a reddish tint. some coleus have been bred to take more sun than the traditional cultivars from the past. 'alabama sunset' is available locally here every year (also know elsewhere as 'texas parking lot' and some other names). look here sun-tolerant coleus for more choices.

Thanks so much for the suggestion, Jeff. I didn't find the zinnias and the alabama sunset coleus at my local garden center. I do have a couple of the sun tolerant coleus on that list and I think I'm going to try that. If I visit any of my family in Alabama soon I'll look for the alabama sunset coleus over there. Thanks again.

I should have added to my answer that I am trying one of the newer sunpatiens in one of those spots thanks to your answer. In the past I haven't had luck with sunpatiens in pots but I'm going to try a newer one I saw there thanks to your suggestion. I don't like the regular small begonias for these pots, need a bit more height there, but maybe I will try them next year if I'm spectacularly unsuccessful this year. For this year I'm going with sun-tolerant coleus and blue daze evolvus, Japanese forest grass, a new sunpatiens and some caladiums that say 2-8 hours sun. Also some wire grass. Crossing my fingers.

Double impatiens or Torenia. Both bloom their heads off in partial shade. Torenia also works better than million bells for hanging baskets that are partially shaded by an awning or patio cover.

Thanks for the suggestion, raestr. I see you are in central Alabama, so I would love to know if your torenia and double impatiens thrive in containers with this kind of sun? The sun in this problem area starts about 10:00 a.m. Do you do anything special to help them along in this much sun? Water twice a day? Add baby diapers to the bottom of the pot?

I love torenia and impatiens walleriana is my favorite flower, so I would love to grow them here. I've tried torenia and impatiens (walleriana) in this spot and they aren't happy. I grow torenia and impatiens walleriana in many other places in my yard and they are great in more shady areas. This area I'm asking for help with gets too much sun, I think, to perform well there, but if yours thrive in areas with this much sun then I should be able to grow mine in sun, too. So I'd love to have any tips you'd care to pass along.

Hmmm, I think my torenia don't get quite as much sun as yours. The closest I have similar to your conditions were in pots andreceived full morning sun until about 1:00 pm and then they were shaded by the house. I do know torenia does not like to dry out. It has a hard time recovering if I miss watering for a couple of days. What about dianthus? It is usually full sun, but I think it can take some shade as long as it get several hours of sun. I have some on the back of my house that don't see sun until about 12:30 pm, but they get a lot of afternoon sun. Also, I have Dusty Miller in shade areas and sun areas. For me, Dusty Miller does better with half day sun as opposed to full day sun. Also, dianthus and Dusty Miller are drought tolerant, so they don't mind if you forget to water them for a few days. Regular begonias work well for me in partial shade, too. I haven't tried the dragon wing begonias, but that's disappointing they didn't work for you. Let us know what you decide to use.

Raestr, I didn't see dianthus in my local garden center; I usually see it in the early spring there but not later in the spring. I love dusty miller and may try it next year to tuck in my pots, but I like a lot of splash and am looking for a rock star rather than supporting cast type of plant. I'll try a test pot of dianthus next year.

I have dragon wing begonias all over my yard in containers, but I put them in areas with more shade than this spot. So if you get the chance to try dragon wing begonias then you should go for it. Since my impatiens got downy mildew my dragon wing begonias have shouldered the burden in my shady spots. They aren't as beautiful as big baskets of all-colored impatiens but they come close. I really love them. I don't "tuck" them into pots but give each plant a pot of its own because they need the room. My mother grows them in more sun than I do, a blast of late afternoon sun, and hers are beautiful. I have them underneath a big potted stained glass hosta and beside some caladiums and they are beautiful.

I planted my pots now and I went with sun coleus (Flamethrower chipotle and one other kind), blue daze evolvus, gold japanese forest grass, caladiums that say 2-8 hours sun and some Bounce impatiens that say 4+ hours of sun. And a bit of angelonia.