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:Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass
Botanical name:Calamagrostis acutiflora 'Karl Foerster'

Karl Foerster feather reed grass is a garden favorite, and for good reason. Its green, fine-textured foliage is gently arching and grows to about 2 feet tall and wide. Oat-like plumes stand very erect over the foliage, growing as tall as 5 to 6 feet. Plumes open whiteish green, later turning a dusky rose, and then tawny colored by winter. Blooms early summer with the plumes lasting into autumn. Holds its presence well into winter. Excellent in mixed perennial or shrub borders, or massed.

Common name:Elijah Blue Fescue
Botanical name:Festuca cinerea 'Elijah Blue'

The icy-blue coloration of this little grass makes it a stand-out in the garden. Its evergreen, clumping habit make it well suited for edging borders, mass planting, or ground cover. Grows in full sun to part shade. Generally under 12 inches, even in flower. Soft tufts of greenish white flowers emerge in early summer and turn tawny by summers end. Excellent for parkstrips.

Common name:Powis Castle Artemisia
Botanical name:Artemisia 'Powis Castle'

With its finely dissected, silvery foliage, Powis Castle Artemisia is a wonderful foil for other plants with colored foliage or brightly colored flowers. Its silvery foliage is attractive over a long season, helping to bridge those gaps in the perennial border between lulls in flowering. Stems are useful in flower arrangements, and it is undisturbed by deer and rabbits. It may grow 2 to 3 feet tall and wide. I admit to liking this cultivar so much more than Silver Mound.

Common name:Apple Serviceberry
Botanical name:Amelanchier x grandiflora

A hybrid between A. arborea and A. laevis, the new leaves of this species have the pubescent foliage of the former and the purplish cast of the later. Summer foliage is a soft green, turning orange to scarlet in the fall. This hybrid has larger and showier flowers then either parent. Numerous cultivars have been selected from this species, including 'Princess Diana,' 'Prince William,' and 'Cole's Select.' Generally 18 to 25 feet tall and about half as wide. Grown as both a single or multi-stemmed small tree or shrub. Lovely as a specimen or in masses.