Asiatic or oriental lilies? I don't know what all they attract, a tiger swallowtail made a brief stop at some of my Black Beauties, maybe passed them up in favor of pink phlox which they like. Everything else I can think of that gets tall is pretty wide except delphs and foxglove. There is a yellow true perennial variety of foxglove. Some others that come to mind don't get as tall as you want.

There's always sunflowers, there are some pretty varieties out there, but some of them get ratty. They're an annual though.

The tallest lilies I have are the Black Beauty and one called Red Velvet (has the fringier leaves). The red velvet is stunning, but not having total full sun, all mine lean or bend. It's trying to multiply and would do better if it had more room.

The other problem with lilies is that they don't bloom very long but sure put on a show while they do and the foliage is interesting.

Someone will doubtlessly come up with a better idea.

Eupatorium purpureum or E. maculatum sound ideal in terms of height, width and attracting butterflies. They are not fragrant however, as far as I can recall. There are several named varieties with slightly differing heights and flower colours. They have the rather poor common name of Joe-Pye Weed.

Thanks for your input! I'm not sure about the oriental lillies, but I'll think about it. Also, I've heard that foxglove are super poisonous. I do have a pet dog, so I'm not sure how safe he would be. How poisonous are they really? I've heard some horror stories, but are they real?

Undoing the cloaking device and telling us where you are would probably help. Lilies would be a bad choice in New England with the red lily beetle, and Joe Pye weed would be a bad choice in an arid area.

I'm in New England, but I haven't seen or heard of red lily beetles untill mad gallica mentioned them.

What about evergreen shrubs? You know, in England, they plant hedges of yew to enclose their gardens. Large boxwoods might do well too, or even a nice row of conifers like Emerald Arborvitae (three feet wide, fifiteen feet tall, no pruning required). These would have the advantage of year round, permanent enclosure and would make a beautiful background for whatever colorful plants you put in front of them.
Vines also come to mind. If you by chance had a chain link fence or could even put up stakes or teepees to support vines, they would give you the blooming "wall" you want. You could use roses, or honeysuckle, clematis, climbing hydrangeas....endless possibilities.

If you plant lilies you probably will hear of the dreaded lily beetle soon enough! LOL! They really are horrible little creatures. I finally removed every lily from my garden because they were so destructive.

How long would the "wall" be? I agree with Joe-Pye weed although it blooms more Aug-Sept. Did you want all the same plant? You could mix Joe-Pye with Ironweed, some grasses and Hibiscus. That would make a nice late-summer/fall border. Some annual Verbena bonariensis would give you an earlier bloom. However, no winter interest. Not sure if that is something you are hoping for. Donnabaskets idea of evergreens is a great one. I guess it just depends on how much length you have as to how much you can pack in for variety.

I have also had great luck with Joe Pye Weed, actually I have the variety "Little Joe" and it is at least 6 ft tall. It is way over my head and has spread quite nicely this year. It is a lovely shade of pink, attracts butterflies and bees and has a nice fragrance, if you can get close enough without disturbing the bees. I also like phlox for height, you can cut it back after blooming and it usually reblooms. My monarda is also reblooming after cutting back.

Great ideas everyone! Thanks! The "wall" has to be 7-8ft. It also just occured to me that this is on the southern end of my garden, so I must be carefull not to block out the sun. So I can't quite have a dense "wall." Here's the direction that I'm thinking in. I have this short stone path starting at the southern border and leading to a stone bench. I'm consitering putting an archway over it and letting clemetis climb it. Then, I was thinking about putting in some delphinium for a few feet and maybe mixing in some cardinal flowers. At the end,I was pondering a white butterfly bush. Do you think this is a good idea? Are clemetis fast growers? Would delphinium be alright in zone 5? I heard that it is too warm for them here. Please let me know what you think.

I think all around, considering all your criteria, white butterfly bush sounds like a winner!

Oh, and no foxglove with dogs - can be very toxic. I believe it's on ASPCA Poison Control Center's top ten list of poisonous plants.

Butterfly bush is very safe for dogs - it's one of a handful of things I have allowed space in our backyard with our dogs. :) I don't know if the white is fragrant, but I have a Black Knight that smells incredible! They get about 7 feet tall, not too dense or wide, bloom a long time if deadheaded, and don't require a lot of special care. I think that would be a great choice!

How poisonous are they really? I've heard some horror stories, but are they real?

Good question. I really don't worry about it for myself but dogs might tend to eat things my cat wouldn't touch. And some kids will put almost anything in their mouths. I suppose they are real just as I'd never imagined how dangerous chocolate could be for dogs. I've only grown a few of them, started from seed, germination rates have been low for me, hope they don't cause a problem.

The butterfly weed does sound wonderful, wish I had enough room to grow some. Sorry the lilies weren't such a good idea.

I've got some blue delphiniums I started from seed in cell packs waiting for them to get large enough to put into the ground and hope they'll survive the winter, been a bad year starting from seed.

I've seen delphiniums grown successfully here by one couple who were real plant lovers. Beautiful. But I think most people think they are too hard and probably do have to be staked. I'll stake 'em if I can get them to grow, have to stake enough else. Mostly lilies. So many of my tallish plants have toppled from all the rain.

I was glad to read the other suggestions and would like to try a few myself.

How about Chelone? - I have 2 huge clumps that I love & maintained with in a 3-4' x10'+ kidney-shaped island bed - makes a great wall - bees love 'em ... they've never bothered me all these years ... too busy doing their jobs!!! Â;)

Don't you like to try, a wall of P.Cone? - definitely attracts Gold Finches, Bees & Butterflies!

Good luck!

Yes, digitalis is poisonous, but so are the ubiquitous yews that line the foundations of every house in suburbia. And nobody every worries about yews.

Digitalis and delphiniums are both basal rosette plants that send up a flower spike that dosn't last all that long. While they are blooming, they would work as a visual divider of the space, but while not in bloom are fairly short, mounded perennials. They also don't bloom in mid-late summer, but in June.

For a solid wall, grasses are probably going to be the winners. Rudbeckia Herbstsonne is a good, tall narrow summer bloomer if you can keep the deer away.

Thanks all! Yes, I have devised a way to get the deer away. I use this thing that we have nick-named the "machine gun."LOL It has a motion dectector and when a large animal walks by, it makes an starteling noise and sprays water. It definately works, and it makes a really fun prank to set it off on a friend! Here's what I'm thinking about the plants that I'm going to use. Thanks for reminding me that delphinium wouldn't bloom exactly when I want them to. My revised plan just replaces the Delphies with Chelone "Black Ace." I know almost nothing about it, so any info would be helpful. I might even mix in some Cardinal Flowers. I already have 2 varieties of Rudebecia, so I'm not too keen on adding more. On the grasses topic, I think I'm looking for something more bloomy and showy, but I'm still thinking about it. Does anyone know how quickly Clemetis will grow? Any more info would be helpful. Keep the ideas coming!

organicgardenlover

Not sure that Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium maculatum) would work so well - mine has grown ENORMOUS this year - about 10 feet tall and 6 feet wide. I think I have to move it, as it is towering over the rest of the flowers in the bed.

Perennial Sunflowers (Helianthus species) - most of them grow large and are beloved by pollinators. Helianthus 'Lemon Queen' is a beauty. They slowly spread wider by rhizomes however - and can grow into monsters too.

One option might be Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum). This is a coarse plant, but has pretty flowers and is fantastic for wildlife. Grows very tall and upright, and the vegetation is not too dense. The large leaves grow fused to the stem, and form a "cup" which holds water and attracts wildlife. Butterflies, Hummingbirds, and birds have visited the flowers, as well as a zillion bees. Supposedly the birds LOVE the seeds, but this is my first year with flowers so we'll see (started it from seed last year).

Grasses are an excellent idea. Some of them grow tall and upright and have beautiful flower plumes. You could alternate perennials and grasses. The Miscanthus sinensis 'Gracillimus' in front is already 6 feet tall and about 3 feet wide. They make an effective screen along the road.

I like the idea of Perennial Sunflowers. I don't thing that I can ever grow anything so well that it will turn into a "monster" LOL. I've researched Chelome and have decided that the soil would be a bit too dry for it to be happy. The soil is well drained. About grasses: They aren't really me. I'm just not that type of person. They're cool and all, but I've never really been impressed with them. Thanks for the idea though. I think I'm leaning towards the Sunflowers because of their uniquly late bloom. However, I will need to remove some Rudebecia so as not to have too much overwhelming yellow. So far, that's the winner. Still open to more seggestions.

Fast growing Clematis in my zone 5 garden have been mainly viticellas. These are group 3 (refers to pruning type in clem-speak) clems and can be cut down to the ground in early spring, since they bloom on new growth. Most of them are not the large flowered ones offered so often in our local nurseries. IMO the smaller flowered ones often fit in the best in perennial gardens.

Here are some group 3s that have grown very quickly for me:

Betty Corning - (viticella) pale blue-lavender bell shaped blooms. This one blooms almost continuously for me. 12 foot

Madame Julia Corevon - (viticella) wine red flowers, great rebloomer, not quite as tall as BC 6-8 ft

Etoile Violette - (viticella) deep blue purple flowers, heavy bloomer, great with pale pinks 8-12 ft starts later that the first two then blooms for about 6 weeks for me.

Polish Spirit - (usu. listed as viticella) deep purple with hint of red, very vigorous grower, in zone 5 would probably not outgrow an arbor, but might need mid-summer trimming. I use mine along a fence, up the gutter and wall, and across Endless Summer Hydrangea planted in the corner formed by the fence and house wall.

Duchess of Albany - a texensis (despite the name it is very hardy here) - pink with red bar, quite a nice saturated color in my full sun conditions, flowers are small upright and tulip shaped, great grower & blooms for at least a month, also some rebloom August/Sept.

Blue Angel (Blekitny Aniol) (viticella) - pale blue fading to white in center 4 inch flowers, large flowered for a vit, with a fairly heavy substance. 10-12 foot - planted next to the Duchess for a smashing combo.

Sweet Autumn (sometimes listed as paniculata) extremely vigorous grower, masses of half inch creamy white flowers in fall (Sept-Oct) 20 foot - can definitely make a wall if you have a structure for it. I grow 2 of them to make a 40 plus foot privacy fence in an area too small for shrubs (along a concrete walkway and patio area).

I have to agree with terrene about the Joe-Pye, it will get really large after awhile.

Hollyhocks are tall, but are prone to rust and aphids. The severity differs from region to region and garden to garden. Some people have litte trouble with them.

Thalictrum rochebrunianum is tall (nine feet) and airy, which would fit your 'no dense plant' need. I have seen hummingbirds around it once or twice. It does fine in full sun, but does need somewhat moist soil. That could be a problem for you.

Perennial Sunflowers would look great. So would Rudbeckia 'Herbstonne'. It looks a lot like the common Rudbeckia but gets up to nine feet tall. Yellow flowers with a green-ish eye. Dark foliage. Isn't too dense. It can get wilty on a hot day, but will perk back up as soon as it gets some water.
CMK

Here is a link that might be useful: Rudbeckia 'Herbstonne'

Thalictrum rochebrunianum is beautiful! I haven't seen it anywhere locally, but it might work. Thanks. Keep the ideas coming!