Lupin

• The variety of Lupin known as Morello Cherry blooms with cherry red flower spikes in late spring to early summer. Seeds are started indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost or outdoors after danger of frost has passed. Rub the seeds with sandpaper and soak overnight before sowing them in finely graded potting soil or outdoor loam. Once started, plants are spaced 12 inches apart in full or partial shade. They grow to 42 inches in height, prefer soil enriched with organic matter, and reproduce through seed drop in the fall. There are many varieties of Lupin native to all regions of the country.
  
  

Shasta Daisy

• Shasta daisies are easy to grow and tolerant of many soil conditions. They produce large, fluffy-double white flowers on the end of a single sturdy stem each year from early to mid-summer. They are a favorite in the perennial garden because they spread easily, creating new colonies of plants each year. Shasta daisies also attract butterflies and other beneficial insects to the garden. Seeds started indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost date bloom the first year.
  
  

Feverfew

• Like Shasta daisy, feverfew is in the chrysanthemum family of flowers. It blossoms profusely with tiny white, single petaled daisylike flowers. Feverfew foliage is strongly scented and is used in traditional medicine systems to heal migraine headaches. The plant reaches 42 inches in height and its seeds are self-sowing. One feverfew plant produces seed that spread on the wind to all areas of the garden. It is sown outdoors in warm climates or indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost in cooler climates.
  
  

Salvia

• There are many types of salvias indigenous to various regions of the country. The Violet Queen cultivar is a perennial that blooms the first year with spikes of dark-purple flowers. Its seeds are sown and lightly covered with soil indoors in winter or outdoors when frost is no longer expected. Violet Queen salvia is drought-tolerant and easy to grow. Its root system sinks deep into the ground to absorb the available moisture. Supplement with water when the topsoil is bone dry to the touch.