The purple flowers at the top of the fence are from Clematis Etoile Violette, a viticella clem that is very easy to grow. It is a very dark purple which is set off well by the very pale pink of the New Dawn rose. The picture was taken June 14, 2007. The bluer purple flowers at the bottom in the shade created by the rose are Zwanenberg Blue Spiderwort (Tradescantia). I just realized that I didn't show you any of the hybrid daylilies that are in the niddle portions of the long narrow bed. Didn't want you to think that there are only the orange ditch daylilies (Hemerocallis fulva) that are shown in the 1st picture! The fulvas (spreading not clumping dls) are in the northwest corner in almost total shade due to the northern exposure and an overhead tree. These started blooming this year on June 10th. The dozen hybrid daylilies in this narrow bed are all new plants and eventually I'll have to move about half of them somewhere else when they grow too crowded. So don't be too concerned about overcrowding your bulbs - most all of us overcrowd something sometimes and then have to move things around. LOL I also wanted to mention that I tried to stagger the daylily bloom (mostly July bloom) in between the early June blooming Asiatic lilies & the late July blooming Orienpets, but tried to keep most things in the same red/yellow/cream color scheme because there is bound to be some overlap. The only exception was the New Dawn rose which is at the far south end near the fence - because that's the only space I have that is big enough. She can put out 20 foot long canes which I wrap around the corner walls on both sides. She has one main flush in early June and some scattered later bloom as does the clematis. The rebloom clashes a bit with the daylilies strong colors, but not enough to matter much. I am just mentioning all this to give you an idea of the progression that goes on in the bed through the season, even though it is a very narrow bed. I still have one cream-colored daylily , copper colored helenium, Orange Perfection phlox (not really orange in color) in bloom, along with some bronze-colored mums that are just starting & some rebloom on the spiderworts and clemmies. Oh, and I forgot to mention some blue berries on the Variegated Porcelain vine which is on the wall between two of the clems. Here are some of the daylilies. With various dls blooming at slightly different times, I get some nice punches of color over a period of about 6 weeks. Not boring waiting and watching for each to show its stuff. Francois Verhaert Larry Grace Royal Frosting Ruby Spider

Nancy is right. They will make it there, but they might not be as vigorous or especially floriferous. The JPW will be fine. I grow my biggest and best in morning sun until 11 am and then 'bright shade' the rest of the day. Another you might consider, aside from Linda's great suggestions, is Phlox Paniculata. I have many that are in sun part of the day then shade the rest. The plants which do the best are on the northeast side of the house. They were a 'mistake' placing. I had taken out a huge footing planning on giving it to someone. Just plunked the whole thing right on the lawn next to our main entrance. In late fall I realized it was still there and just threw some leaves on it. Next spring it started to grow and DH said to leave it there. By August it started to bloom and WOW!! It get's a bit of morning sun until 9 am, then the sun returns at 4pm. The soil there never dries out and seems ideal. Oh, another contender - Astilbes!!!

Hi Jenn - I know this is old but I'm taking a chance that maybe you're still around! If you do check in, just wondering what you've learned over the last few years. Our backyard is in the exact same orientation, and we have the same conditions -- only 4-5 hours of sun, but it's afternoon sun in the summer growing season. And then very little direct sun in the winter. I suppose I could just take a chance and plant, right...??? ;)

My herb garden gets about 3 hours of sun (afternoon sun) a day and does very well. It also get reflected light as it is against the house with very light siding. I grow tarragon, basil, lavender, rosemary, oregano, cilantro, parsley, chives and am blanking on the rest.