Hi Damask: Thank you for that pretty shot of zinnias. I'll going to try that from seed ... hopefully I'll get some luck like you & Jim.

Tall summer phlox (the wild variety) can tolerate drought and harsh winter well. The wild variety comes in: white, lavender, and bright purple. The hybrid variety comes in: red, dark red, dark purple, and salmon. My hybrid varieties got wiped out when it dropped down to -30 last winter. My wild varieties are everywhere, they sow by seeds. I can send you some in late fall. See below a purple wild phlox.

Beautiful color, Thanks for the idea Strawberry.
I've never grown phlox and didn't know it grew tall.
Every February Fred Meyers usually has a half off sale of Lily Miller and Ed Hume seeds, but the popular seeds sell out fast by the time I figure out what to get.
Two of my neighbors are not well enough to garden so I put in some bedding plants for them the last two summers. Another neighbor wants me to plant flowers for her too this year, so I'm trying to plan seed starts for everybody. Phlox will definitely be on our list.

Nice Zinnias and phlox pics... :)