Two that come to mind that would look good there are, Lavatera "Silver Cup", and Cosmos of any type. Lots of color for lots of weeks.

I second the Cosmos...the colors would really pop against the gray.

The morning shade could be a problem for zinnias, but they would like the heat and come in a wide variety of colors, flower forms, and plant habits. The new Profusion zinnias might be suitable. You could start them inside about a month early to get a head start on your season.

Petunias might also succeed in that spot. That spot could use some of the taller growing varieties. The same for marigolds. The taller celosia might be another candidate.

I have never grown Cleome, but the new Sparkler Hybrid grows only 3 to 4 feet tall and doesn't have the sometimes "weedy" look of the older Queen series, which can top 6 feet. "Weedy" is not necessarily bad. I have seen some very tall cosmos that looked quite good when massed.

MM

Lavatera doesn't bloom all season, at least in my experience. I plant it out mid-May (after starting indoors), it starts to bloom beginning of July, then peters out the beginning of August. Blooms like crazy for the 4-5 weeks in bloom, but that's pretty much it. This year I'm going to do two sowings so I can extend the lavatera season. It is a beautiful flower, put perhaps won't fit the bill here.

Zinnia are a good choice. There's a place of business that puts out a huge planting of tall zinnia every year in hot, full, blazing sun near a driveway, and it is a showstopper, can't miss it as drive by. Easy to grow from seed, and you can get a nice mix of colors (reds, yellows, off-white, warmish pinks) to do swatches of separate color or mix them all up, or hey do all one in blazin' red, that would look great against a gray house!

Vinca are another great choice for hot, dry areas, but I don't think would be tall enough, they usually top out around 12", perhaps 18" at the most. Would be nice to edge in a row or two of vincas, the seeds are easy to grow. If you did flamin' red zinnia then did an edging planting of white vince with red eye (Peppermint), it would be gorgeous!

How about Coreopsis tinctoria (Plains Coreopsis)...will bloom from late June thru frost. They grow to about 2.5 to 3' feet high and are very well branched. They like it hot. A good shearing when blooms look spent mid summer will soon be loaded in blooms again thru late fall. They are literally covered in blooms. I have colors in all yellows, yellow/maroon and all maroon colors. Another thing is that they will re-seed for you. They perform well on minimal water, little to no fertilizer and poor soil which drains well. Actually one of the annuals which performs better when crowded.

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Vera

I'm not an annual expert, but I love the cosmos idea - but combined with Verbena Bonariensis. That would be gorgeous!

I also like the rudbeckia 'prarie sun', but I think of that as more of an accent plant than a specimen. I think a whole bed of it would get tired.

Wow, thank you so much for all the input! I've not heard of the Bonariensis variety of verbena, so I'll do a search for that. I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of cosmos for some reason...but I admit that it sounds sort of like the "right plant, right place" choice.

Can you get Cosmos in just one color? There are a lot of people around here who have stands of Cosmos...pink, red, white...and I'm not fond of that. Maybe all hot pink would be pretty.

For Zinneas...could I do seed right in the ground there...and if I did, how soon would they bloom...and will they keep going all the way until frost if I deadhead them? I've never had zinneas, so I'd love to hear from some people who have a lot of experience in keeping them look nice for a long time.

I admit I was leaning towards the lavatera, but now that mxk3 says they don't boom all season, I'm having second thoughts.

And are there any votes for amaranth?

Thanks again! Mary

Here's Verbena bonariensis mixed with annual butterfly weed Asclepias curassavica. Does water get into your basement even if you use a soaker hose on a timer?
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Pinetree Garden Seeds and Nichols Garden Nursery both have some single colored Cosmos listed in their catalogs:

www.nicholsgardennursery.com

www.superseeds.com

Cosmos are wonderful- for the garden and for picking. Check out swallowtailgardenseeds.com. They have a wonderful list of annuals that you may not have thought of. Might give you some inspiration.

You can always add a few lavatera here and there as an accent. They're gorgeous ;0)

I have had great luck with the Silver Cup Lavatera blooming right up until a fairly hard frost. I seed it directly in the place I want it to grow. Cosmos do come in a hot pink color. You might want to mix in some of the sea shell variety as well for added interest. Another plant that seems to be really hardy is the rose mallow and it comes in a pink color. I have grown all of these in a western facing garden that is hot, windy and dry. They seem to survive on less water and care.

Zinnias will take morning shade if they have long, sizzling sun in the afternoon. I've never grown 'Envy' but plan to this summer. The other zinnias I've had were incredibly easy. The only "problem" was goldfinches, and I love goldfinches.

If you like the pom-pom form of zinnias, don't count out the tallest forms of marigold. They are very easy and very bright. Their foliage is ferny and attractive. They don't have bugs. I tend to like the solid yellow ones best.

Have you looked at the annual salvias? Some of the purple ones are very drought tolerant. But I don't grow them so I can't say "grow them, they're super-easy" like I can about zinnias and marigolds.

If you plant cosmos, be sure to get the sonata series, the other cultivars are quite large and will ultimately flop over onto the walkway. For some reason, I can never stake cosmos without them looking artificially trussed up, they just don't stake nicely for some reason. Zinnias would be perfect there, especially if you use pastel shades against the soft grey. I've grown this strain of pastel zinnias before from Seeds of Change, and they were tall, not too floppy and bloomed all summer. zinnias have to be one of the five easiest annuals to start from seed, if you have little experience. The only condition is they need warmth to germinate.

Here is a link that might be useful: pastel zinnias

It's too bad that you cant go just a tad bit shorter than 2 to 3 feet, I had lots of suggestions for you that stays with the same one plant, but with color varations. One suggestions was to go with the Cosmic cosmos--all three colors red, orange and yellow which are totally stunning and vibrant mixed together. And incredibly easy to grow from seed! Another suggestion was Magellan zinnias, which will grow like dwarf hydrangea shrubs smothered with handsized blooms that last for months. I had blooms that did not need be removed for 4 months, I kid you not! And there is just about every color available, coral, ivory, yellow, pink, scarlet, cherry, orange, salmon. I am growing over 400 of these this year. Another suggestion was a mixture of Celosia 'Fresh Look' colors in red, orange,and yellow. Most people hate celosia because they have never had good luck with keeping them going, but the Fresh Looks are very stunning, lush, healthy plants that get just under 2 foot tall, if I remember correctly. Another suggestion was to do Gomphrena, in a mixture of colors. Gomphrena, if plants are kept together and properly spaced will grow to a 2 foot tall airy "shrub" that stands up to rain, drought, etc. I grow the "All Around Purple', 'Strawberry Fields', and other colors from Park Seed, including white, rose and bicolor rose. Dont underestimate those small colored balls! They can REALLY make a huge standout, if they are grown correctly.

I second the idea of using Profusion zinnias. These are like the perfect daisy like flower! Also, the blooms did not need removed for 4 months, available in colors: cherry, white, orange, Fire (reddish orange) and Apricot (my favorite). Very easy to grow from seed.

You may want to check into the Tidal wave Petunias. If you space them about 2 foot apart, they will spread out like you wouldnt believe and grow to about 2 foot tall. I have never seen a petunia grow like this before last year! Though, the silver would blend right into your house color, but they do make a purple, hot pink, and cherry color that I will be doing this year. Tidals have a massive branching system to them. Do a search on gardenweb and you will find lots of pictures and ideas for them.

I've had great luck growing Dahlias from seed. I like Bishops Children as the foliage is dark and the flowers are brilliant.
They can get pretty tall and are one of the few plants that look great towards the end of summer into fall.

I've found zinnias can have problems with powdery mildew in humid areas (when I lived in California). Anyone else have that problem? Same with dahlias. The suggestion of plains coreopsis is a good one -- I still have some coming back from a neglected wildflower garden planted five years ago, and they're good performers.

If you went shorter, you could use California poppies, which don't need much water, and you can get them in lots of colors other than the traditional orange.

I second the cosmos suggestion, too. They'll grow very fast and bloom for a long time. I've also had great success with annual rudbeckias, and they bloom quickly and for a long time.

{{gwi:4025}}Although these are perennials, you could also try gaillardias (tall ones, not the 'goblin' variety, which looks strange being so short anyway). I've grown them many times from seed, and they grow fast, they flower the first year, they get 2-3' tall, and they don't need a lot of water. They flower like annuals -- you'll get a long, long season of color from them. Here's a photo of some of mine, mixed with some rudbeckias:

{{gwi:4027}}There's also a maroon variety, like this:

Gaillardias just might be my favorite flowers.

I would go with Zinnia hands down in that location. Last year I went to kmart and got the perfect mix of zinnias all in one pack put out by martha stewart. They ranged from 1-1/2 to 4-1/2 feet tall and came with a little planting guide if you needed it.

However you would definitely want to start them indoors right about now to get blooms early enough. If you sow direct in the ground it could be August before you see a flower.

I spray my zinnias with rose spray to keep the powdery mildew at bay.