Common name:Purple Coneflower
Botanical name:Echinacea purpurea

The Purple Coneflower is a long-lived, reliable standby for the perennial garden. And while not xeric, it manages quite well with just weekly watering. Rosy purple petals fall below the prominent orange-tinged cone and blooms in late June to September. Foliage is large, with a rounded lance shape. An excellent cut flower, they provide nectar for bumblebees and butterflies, and the seeds provide forage for migrating song birds, so don't cut them all!

Common name:New Mexico Sunflower
Botanical name:Helianthus maximilianii

A stately perennial, bringing glorious color to the late season garden. Golden yellow flowers appear in September to October along the ends of stems that reach 6 to 8 feet tall. Foliage is narrow, finely textured, and densely packed, making it a handy seasonal hedge. Use at the back of a perennial border, behind lower ornamental grasses, or in the shrub border for a fabulous late season display. Attracts butterflies. Cuts well.

Common name:Chinese Wisteria
Botanical name:Wisteria sinensis

Chinese wisteria is a vigorous, vining plant that can grow 30 feet or more. Long racemes appear in May, are fragrant (though not as fragrant as Japanese wisteria) and are soft blue-violet to white, depending on the cultivar. Foliage is pinnate, emerges before blooms, and is bronze turning to soft green.

Common name:Mugho Pine
Botanical name:Pinus mugo

Mugo Pine is an evergreen shrub or small tree that grows slowly, from 5 to 20 feet tall and half as wide. There is a great deal of variation in size, depending on source. Needles are long and dark green. Cones are 1 to 2 inches long, oval, and tawny to dark brown. Generally a bushy, twisted, somewhat open pine, mostly grown as a shrub. If you are wanting a dwarf mugo, make certain the plant tag reads P. mugo v mugo or P. mugo pumila.

Common name:Shasta Daisy
Botanical name:Leucanthemum x superbum

Shasta daisy may very well be the archetype flower with is distinct rays and sunny eyes. There are dozens (hundreds?) of daisy cultivars, with petal colors ranging from pure white to cream, to buttery yellow, arrayed singularly, doubled, or unbelievably frilly. Eyes are yellow to golden to green. Leaves are green, with older foliage lobed. They range in height from less than a foot tall to 40 inches, many with equal spreads. Not very drought tolerant, they still fit in a medium to low water perennial or cottage border.

Common name:Elfin Creeping Thyme
Botanical name:Thymus praecox arcticus 'Elfin'

All of the thymes are relatively low growing creepers. Elfin Thyme has attractive, soft, gray-green foliage that forms a slow spreading, tightly matted mound. This is a perfect plant for between pavers and if you have the patience, it makes a nice lawn alternative. The lavender-pink flowers bloom in early summer and attract bees and butterflies. Grows 1 to 2 inches tall, with a spread of 12 to 18 inches.

Common name:English Lavender
Botanical name:Lavandula angustifolia

English lavender is a dependably hardy, heat tolerant, drought resistant perennial, well suited to our arid, cold climate. Aromatic, green to grey-green foliage has a rich, resin scent, and grows in tight clumps 1 to 2 feet in height and width, depending on variety. Flowers form at the ends of stiff stems, in whorls of blue to lavender to purple, again, depending on variety. Flowers may add another 6 to 12 inches of height. Use in any sunny spot, such as perennial border, herb garden, parkstrip, lining a pathway.

Common name:Butterfly Bush
Botanical name:Buddleja davidii

Butterfly bush are an attractive summer blooming shrub, well suited for the shrub or perennial border. Varieties range from 3 to 12 feet tall; dwarf forms are as wide as they are tall, and taller forms have widths generally half to 2/3 the height. Shrubs are mounding to upright and arching. Leaves grey green to silver. Fragrant flowers are spire-like and appear in mid to late summer. Colors range through the pinks and violets, and also white, yellow, and deep purples. Attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees; deer resistent.