I have several penstemons (strictus, mensarum, grandiflora), plus a couple of geums (Totally Tangerine, borisii and a Cool Violet salvia Greggii, euphorbia oblongata,and a couple of hardy geraniums all currently blooming together, with a coupla eryngiums, sanguisorba and catanache caerulea just coming along behind (before the grasses, patrinias and echinaceas start to get going)...so mostly blues and purples with a splash of orange. and lime contrast.

I have to remove all but one Nepeta. I used to plant them with roses but they grew huge. Mine is the regular type

Second geum. Should be a good companion. I can imagine the Blazing Sunset would be a good companion

And maybe poppies too

I have Penstemon but they aren't syncing up with the Nepeta. Flower buds haven't formed even, while the Nepeta is in full bloom with pollinators on it. I do have dark leaved Penstemon, I don't know if that makes any difference....but, nope, I have green too and that has no buds yet either. I was noticing as an aside, that I've never seen the dark foliage looking so great! We did get a lot of rain this spring.

Geum is something I tried once and couldn't love it. The flowers are small? Not a lot of impact? That is a pretty Blazing Sunset, if I could get to the nursery, I'll give them another look. I have poppies, but mine are cream color. They are blooming but I rely on rebloom and I only have a little on the other side of the garden. I think I am imagining a larger flower to contrast with the skinny spiky flowers of the Nepeta.

AH, I grow both Eastern and Western penstemons - the western ones such as Rocky mountain penstemon are in bloom while the eastern digitalis types are only just showing buds. Paeoia are all out at the same time as nepeta and a heap of geraniums such as himalayense and magnificum. I have alchemilla dotted around which always loks good with the catmints, along with early umbellifers (zizia, orlaya, chaerophyllum)

Geum flowers also come in 2 types...the water avens,( geum rivale, not too far removed from your prairie smoke and the much brighter chiloense (such as newbies Blazing Sunset). The chiloense ones have larger flowers and generally much moe impct.

I recently saw a really nice planting of an early-blooming Nepeta and Baptisia australis with Geum 'Totally Tangerine' and Papaver rupifragum. I agree that 'Totally Tangerine' is a bit "muted" and not my favorite Geum, but the poppy (which was new to me) had a much larger and more impactful bright orange flower that contrasted beautifully with the Nepeta. I don't grow P. rupifragum, but apparently it has a much longer blooming season than P. orientale, is hardy to zone 5 (with good drainage), and while not very long-lived, it reseeds nicely.

My Achillea “ Moonshine” is in full bloom, along with some Walker’s Low.

Thank you for all the ideas....I just realized I do have Oriental Poppy 'Victoria Louise' which is a coral color with a black center. That hasn't started yet either, but, it should hit the Nepeta bloom period. I love Achillea but in my small garden, it really is just too vigorous for me to keep up with. I just noticed my Iris are blooming. And they are a purple/white combo. I could move them to be near the nepeta.

I have Nepeta in 3 locations and one is by the Baptisia. I probably have a photo of the pairing somewhere. I just have one location that is pretty bland right now and have to rethink it.

@prairiemoon2 z6b MA, Oriental Poppy 'Victoria Louise' is beautiful. Glad you find a good match

Here is a photo of the Nepeta area and the Iris I'm thinking of moving near it. The Poppy is not blooming yet.... hmmm....Houzz is not letting me up load photos here

I don’t have these things planted with Nepeta since it is oddly fussy for me and won’t grow in my front garden, but here are things that bloom for me simultaneous with the Nepeta…

Firewitch Dianthus

Lanceleaf Coreopsis

Columbine

Baptisia -there are so many awesome, more compact varieties in bright colors.

Poppy mallow (Callirhoe involcrata or bushii)

Peonies.

Lanceleaf coreopsis is a favorite of mine and I encourage it to seed around the garden.

Sorry, Markay, I missed this one. I love Lanceleaf Coreopsis. I used to have it but it's been awhile. Maybe time to add it back in. I have a Baptisia in another location and I long ago gave up trying to move it. Once they are in the ground...they are tougher than all the shrubs I've dug out. And I have no room near the Nepeta I'm trying to accompany. Calirhoe! I had forgotten about that. I love Calirhoe and I lost it somehow and I don't even remember how. I might be able to fit that in there. Do they bloom at the same time?

I had forgotten about that. I love Calirhoe and I lost it somehow and I don't even remember how. I might be able to fit that in there. Do they bloom at the same time?

@prairiemoon2 z6b MA My Callirhoe involucrata is just coming into bloom now with Nepeta 'Walker's Low' while my earlier bloomings Nepetas like 'Summer Magic' and 'Blue Wonder' have already been at "peak" already for a week or so.

Nepeta starts earlier, but has such a long bloom time that they have a good overlap.

Maybe adding another few spots of interst will lessen the need for a quiet blue like Walkers low to be a centerpiece when it is not its nature. It is still early in the season so there arent a lot of perennials that are tall enough to pair it with. Seems as though it needs something substantially taller, which leaves shrubs.

Maybe thats why it ends up at the feet of roses. Do you have any shrubs it will work with.? The name’s slipped my mind …white single or double blossoms wonderfully fragrant One variety is Innocence- dang brain…..Philadelphis?

Do you have alchemilla molis? Thats in full bloom now and its acid green flowers would be a nice counter point to the nepeta . ( Not next to it though) Zizia is wonderful but im not sure if its past or coming into bloom now. Its not very substantial and may not provide structural contrast)

i had several Walkers Low but they were too big. They flopped with the flowers and didnt look great after i cut them back . they did not rebloom for me. eventually i got rid of them.

there are at least a dozen post- Walkers Low nepetas and some shorter, less floppy and a richer color.

it may be time to just move on.

ps My fringe tree is in bloom and any shorter blue or purple nepeta would be lovely underneath it. ……

im not quite ready to eat my words but i just did a quick computer search and was disappointed. Many of the suggestions were good in theory but unworkable in practice, such as echnacea , which as you pointed out, doesnt bloom st the same time.

an early shasta?

my Becky is two weeks from bloom.

Sah67 - Thanks for confirmation that they bloom together. I think zone 5b and 6b should be pretty similar. You have a lot of Nepeta. Which is your favorite variety?

Thanks Markay.

Marie - It is next to a Hydrangea which is a long way off from blooming and Lilies behind it that I can’t remember if the bloom overlaps. So I don’t have room for another shrub.

Yes, I’ve heard it used with roses, but I try to make sure they get a lot of air circulation and as you noticed, they tend to flop. So far mine are not flopping, they are in full sun, but I have it in part shade in the back and it’s already completely opened up and is splayed on the ground. And if memory serves me right, it hasn’t rebloomed well for me. I’m going to pay attention this year to whether it does. Maybe look at some of the newer varieties that might rebloom better.

Would love to see a photo of your fringe tree. :-)

maybe i missed this, but is there no where else for it? you said it is too floppy for roses but out of curiosity how is the color with your roses- that gorgeous pink.one. ? its too subdued for Julia’s complexion isnt it, wrong placement aside)

you are good with computers - i know you are ar least competent- have you

done an image search or phrase search?

its much more fun to ”talk” to us but ive found some excellent if obscure blogs snd commentaries that give me ideas. (no insult intended by stating the obvious)

you are more patient than me, PM. at this point Id dig it up and pot it and try to find the right plant for the garden as it is now.

do you like alchemilla? its beautiful with roses, the flowers are effective from a distance snd the foliage is a pleasure up close. Doesnt flop, no pests, and there are a few varieties.

I have two companions I grow with Walker's Low. Butterfly weed or any orange echinacea.

Thank you, Marie, for all your suggestions.

Gawdinfever - I do like the orange with the purple. Thank you.

For a bright pop of colour and distinct contrast in leaf and bloom, how about one of the earlier flowering hemerocallis? I have a yellow one planted with orange Californian poppies and nepeta in the background in a different border, but squint and the three together look good!

Nollie, I am unaware of early blooming daylilies, I'll have to look that up. Thank you!