Perennials For Hot, Dry Locations

I need some suggestions for a hot dry location in my back yard. It receives full sun and little care from me. I want some perennials that will look good even in the tough zone 5 conditions.

Try Coronation Gold, Parker's Gold or Moonbeam yarrow (Achillea). These yellow flowering plants thrive in hot dry locations.

Consider Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) as a background plant for the garden. This tall, 4-5 feet, plant produces light blue flowers with gray-green foliage.

Gayfeather (Liatris) with its blue or white spike-like flowers can add some added interest.

White, pink or purple coneflowers (Echniacea), black-eyed-Susan (Rudbeckia), and sedums will also do well in these tough conditions. The coneflowers and Rudbeckias will reseed and may need a little spring thinning.

Add some spring flowering bulbs, creeping phlox and rockcress (Arabis) for spring interest. Start small (size of garden and variety of plants). It is always better to expand a successful garden than sod over a large disaster.