A glossy evergreen, Bergenia provides year-round interest. This low-growing herbaceous perennial reaches just a foot high but slowly spreads to form clumps up to three feet wide, making it a good groundcover.
In late spring to early summer, foxglove puts up tall, showy spikes of pink, tubular flowers with speckled throats. This biennial blooms only in its second year of growth but readily reseeds to form a permanent planting.
Rodgersia produces soft panicles of tiny, pale pink flowers held above the foliage, which continues to provide beauty after the flowers fade
A striking plant, lupine blooms in late spring to early summer with large spikes of vibrant pealike blossoms. The compound leaves, often palmate, add their own beauty.
The large, showy blossoms of rose mallow reach up to eight inches wide with broad, papery petals and a deep red center. Though individual flowers are short-lived, the bloom time lasts about a month in late summer to early fall.
Peonies' big, ruffled blossoms are popular. These short-lived, sometimes scented blossoms are beautiful, and planting many cultivars can extend the flowering season from late spring to early summer.
A dense, spreading plant, creeping phlox forms a mat six inches tall and up to three feet wide. In spring, a mass of flowers blooms above the needlelike foliage, continuing more sparsely through summer.