I would go for any kind of rudbeckia, shasta daisies, echinacea. They bloom all summer for me..in your zone you could probably cut them down after blooming for another great show in the fall. They will spread, and self seed, making new plants that you can keep replanting where you want them.

5.5 hours of sun is not going to do for flowers that require full sun. Stick with shade-loving types.

Balsam
Begonia
Browallia
Caladiums (buy bulbs)
Coleus
Elephant Ear (buy bulbs)
Fuschia
Hypoestes (polka dot plant)
Perilla
Impatiens
Nasturtium
Perilla
Torenia
There are a bunch others, but those are the most common.

The list I gave you above is for annuals--duh! (very, very long week hwere and it's not even over!)

I'll paste in a link you can review--it's got loads of varieties that will do well in part shade.

Here is a link that might be useful: PS Perennials

Trudi: Have you ever been to Alabama? When it comes to hot and humid I think Al is just this side of hell. I think 5 1/2 hours of sun in Al would be fine for things like echinacea and rudbeckia. And, they're easy. I think fussy shade plants like impatiens would need constant watering and attention to perform.

Remember, though, EG, that many perennials won't bloom until 2nd year. You might get some to flower in Al in first year that don't flower for me but they probably won't do a whole lot of blooming, at least not early summer in first year. Getting some started this year is a terrific idea but stick in a few annuals, too, for cutting this year.

Karen

Having read EG's blog and living in the same zone in NC, I know that 5.5 hours is plenty of sun for plants in our areas. My perennial bed gets less sun than that and has performed well. The heat lingers so a little shade actually helps.

Since you're shopping seed racks, some good wintersowing candidates would be black eyed susan, shasta daisy, echinacea/coneflower, salvia (purple perennial type), red hot pokers, Achillea, Blazing star, Columbine, foxglove, painted daisy. These are perennials and some won't bloom til their second summer.

So I'd mix in some annuals like cosmos, African daisy, zinnias, marigolds, and sunflowers.

Cosmos will bring in the bees which your veggies will love. When you plant squash (and I know how you love to squish those bugs), plant a couple nasturtiums in the same hole with the squash and zucchini plants. The squash bugs don't like nasturtiums. You'll have to spray less. Any type will do. If you trellis your vines, the nasturtiums can climb a little too. Marigolds are good to plant with tomatoes. Basil can be planted there also. These are companion plants that will help each other and might improve the flavor.

The seed racks really don't have many choices for perennials. They mostly sell annuals and veggies. A google search for first year blooming perennials might be in order.

Wendy - I bought a pack of seeds at Lowes today, that has about 5 different kinds of flowers in it. Shasta Daisy and Echinacea were 2 of them, but I don't remember the rest right now...

Trudi - thanks for the shade selections, because there's a big shaded area behind the house, too.

Karen - yeah, it gets pretty hot down here, and I need something that won't require too much maintenance. Great info on the perennials not blooming much during the first year - I didn't know that!

Token - I'll definately plant some cosmos, because I love my bee friends! Thanks for sharing those different varieties - i'll WS several this year.

EG

EG: We're happy to help, but at a price. We expect you to post pictures of your pretty flowers as payment.

Good luck,
Karen

I'm in zone seven too--I live on an island. There is not enough baby powder in the world to get through summer here. I understand the humidity ;-)

Any coneflower will bloom in part shade but with lanky stems leaning towards the light--it's okay, but it's not great. Also, because of the humidity rudbeckias may be more effected by powdery mildew in part shade than in full sun--by August I usually have to yank the volunteer black-eyed-susans out of the back of borders because they have PM.

Everyone has different experiences in their own garden. But I really do know zone 7, in heat and humidity.

T

Monarda's do well wsown and draw bees like crazy. Some suffer mildew later on and I cut mine back after that. I think they bloom with the shasta's too. They are part of the mint family and grow exponentially though.

When it comes to monarda (bee balm), we do best with the annual varieties like bergamo and citriodora. They can be wintersown too. I did mine last year in early winter, but am waiting this year until March.