Where are you located (nearest big city, state)?

Southeastern Michigan

I trust you've been enjoying Ken's White in the Garden thread. Your post sounds as though you're choosing between salvia and veronica. You have a rather long bed so I don't see why you can't have some of each. Also consider nepeta (there's a white one!), calamintha nepeta, shasta daisies, chrysanthemums and white daffodils. All are highly deer resistant.

How about a Huldine clematis between those two smaller windows?

Regarding the clematis, would it be able to take the heat? I looked up that variety and it’s very pretty. Perhaps if it was behind some other perennials it would be ok??

Cecily 7A - if I had multiple varieties, would you suggest that I group in some manner, like three of one, then three of another, or maybe a bigger group design like this (each letter is a different variety). CBBAAABBC, repeat

Yes! I'd do groups of 3. Also, I'd widen your border enough to add silver foliage plants as well. I'm a sucker for silver foliage with white flowers.

I discovered calamintha last year and found it to be a lovely, long blooming perennial that bees love and deer seem to leave alone. I, too, am plagued by those voracious creatures and have found that they’ll eat almost anything, including ”deer-resistant” plants such as goatsbeard and catmint. I’ve had some luck spraying with Bobbex, and plan to do that again this year.

Calamintha:

https://www.bellabotanicaboutique.com/naturally-bella-journal/have-you-met-calamintha

I wanted to mention Shasta daisies also. Not very glamourous, I know, but I have never had a single one eaten by the local deer, even when I don’t spray, I planted several last year; they’re sun-loving and dependable and quite pretty!

@lovemycorgi there are some really neat new shastas that I've been ogling. Last summer I saw a gallon sized Double Angel Daisy in bloom at a local nursery and did a double take. DH was with me and said it was the prettiest flower he'd ever seen. I foolishly didn't purchase one because it was mid summer and our weather was very dry - not a good time of year to add new plants. Bluestone has it and there's one in my cart.

lets be clear.. SE michigan has been under a snow storm alert for two days... those are summer pix.... lol ...

i need more coffee and to ponder this.. im struggling with the fact you have a lot of garden bed ... and sound like you dont want to really spend all that much time gardening .. like i dont want to anymore ...

soooo.. in other words.. though you sound like you are willing to invest the time to remove and plant some stuff ... and hopefully after a year of watering new transplants properly.. you want it mostly carefree ... and therein lies the rub ...

i also note.. i really like that you have already come out into the lawn with those two garden beds ... so as to breakup the huge expanse of green lawn.. in front of the ranch house ...

but i note on the house side of the circular drive.. your foundation beds seem to be barely a few feet deep ... and that limitation will probably be the problem ... as my gut suggests ... you need some shrubs planted there ... halfway between the house and the driveway ... and you need ones that arent going to get huge .... as you dont want to be out there shearing them once or twice a year ...

ken

Veronicastrum is a pretty native with spikes of white flowers, like Veronica. It's tall and hardy. A touch of asters will give you some late season color, too.

@cecily 7A , thank you, Double Angel daisy sounds lovely, I’ll have to check them out! I’ve also become interested in ”Daisy May” shasta daisies and will be on the lookout for those this year, too. I think they bloom a bit earlier than my Beckys.

I’ve really come to appreciate daisies and coneflowers as they have been darn near deer-proof for me, whether I spray with repellent or not.

The first twelve years of my life were spent in Holland, MI. Lake effect snow causes several feet of white stuff to collect each year. Evergreen foundation shrubs will be invisible in winter, buried under snow.

I am curious if you are expanding the front narrow beds to include shrubs. Where I grow peonies, daylilies, and iris, I also grow strawflower, dianthus, abelia, and lambs ear. What about a Soft Touch holly, or a native holly? There are some very low growing crepe myrtles now, but that's my zone 7 talking. If you're open to daisy/echinacea/rudbeckia type coneflowers, a little planning can make sure someone is always in flower. PowWow White is off patent now so you can propagate your own.

You can totally plant the whole thing in white veronica and salvia, that sounds adorable. I'd add liatris alba and an artemisia too.

Karoliberty okc zone 7a, I’m not going to expand the beds, because anything wider will get crushed with snow if we have to rake the roof. Now and then the snow is so heavy on the deep eaves we rake it off, and it plops down just beyond the existing beds. I do plan on mixing the plant varieties. I think I’ll also make spaces between the row of iris in the back to put a tall white for some height interest. That will repeat across the whole length.

Regarding the Huldine clematis……mine is planted on the south side of my house and gets sun most of the day. I am in 5a about 50 miles west of chicago, mine has done great. It also has a fairly long bloom time here……..I recollect more than 6 weeks.

Sherry

Love that Huldine Clematis!

Try Michigan Gardener or MSU Extension for suggestions for shrubs with winter interest. When I lived on SE Michigan my garden stunners were Boxwoods and blackeyed susans

If you restrict your existing bed to evergreens and then expand it, you can easily put whatever herbaceous perennials you want in the extended area. They will die back to the ground every year anyway so plopping snow on top won't bother them.

I’m late to the party but I wanted to chime in with my support for speedwell Sunny Border Blue! I’m in z5b, north Missouri, and I just love my blue speedwells. They are a workhorse for me. My largest bed of them is around my mailbox in full sun all the time and they bloom their hearts out. When they’re done I cut them back and they bloom again. Bees love them.

Yes, if someone is choosing between salvia and veronica (if you only want one species to create a traffic stopping "Wow!" display), the veronica is a prettier plant and gives more reliable rebloom. I'm still hoping that the OP will diversify and find space for both but there may be lurkers who only need one.

Because it’s such a long border, is it worthwhile considering some ornamental grasses to break up the long white line? If so, which grasses would pair well with white perennials?

Few perennials bloom all season. If you want grasses because you like the appearance of them that's cool but you're going to get green foliage from the non-blooming perennials.