Which Plants/flowers Do You Recommend?

Snapdragons, they come in all sorts of colors - are frost tolerant - and...even though they aren't supposed to they come up every year. I never do a thing with them and they are great!

Look for bulbs that you plant in the spring. Those are typically summer flowers that will bloom all summer. Not sure if it's too late to plant them this year, the weather is just crazy.
I enjoy daisies and purple cone flowers. Lupines are colorful and multiply quickly. There are several types of sedum to choose from, they seem to keep shape well in my flower bed.
The nurseries will also want to know what type of flower bed you want. Do you want it filled and covered, with no space (typically called a country garden)? Or would you enjoy a more formal garden with spaces inbetween, filled in by mulch? Personally my goal is to fill my flower beds to keep weeding down, plus I don't like spending money on mulch every year. Although, my flower beds are huge, so mulch adds up quickly.
Adding annuals in a few spots in your flower bed can really add color all summer. One that grows easily by seed is cosmos. They bloom all summer and are just gorgeous. They grow tall, so you'll want them toward the back so they don't cover the other flowers.
Good luck, you can always get ideas from seed catalogs like Burgess. You have to be careful ordering from those too though because it's not always clear what zone the plant is for. We're a little north of you and we're zone 5, you're probably a 5 possibly 6 (check a zone map). Something labeled winter hardy is a good sign.
Have fun!

Any daisies come back and bloom from mid june through the end of august. Some pansies come back. You might google perrenials and see what comes up that you might like. You could also ask at a garden store like Bordines about the perrenials. For annuals, I like begonias...they are hearty, don't need much water and bloom til frost time. They make nice borders and come in several colors. They really don't care about sun or shade either. Have fun!

Yes, go to Home depot ask first and then shop around in the nurseries around your town for cheaper prices , even flea markets sell good plants . We have roses, and they seem to bloom year round. try to stay away from the shrubs that bloom with flowers, they bloom and dry really fast. so waste of money. you want plants that will bloom on their own every year.

I am not far from you, have lots of full sun and some shade (though morning shade and afternoon semi-shade). For full sun I have daisies, coneflowers/echinacea, climbing roses, and russian sage for color. The great thing about coneflowers and daisies is you can dead-head them when they turn brown, dry the heads and have tons of seeds to plant next year to propagate them in other areas (as well as they come back on their own without reseeding). In the spring I just rough up the soil a little and then spread more seeds. I also have butterfly bushes, one of which grew from a two-foot high plant to a 10x8x12-foot high bush that went to the eaves and covered my southern window.

For the shade, I have luck with different varieties of hostas (some have some pretty flowers that grow on stalks), astilbes, and coral bells. For deep shade, there's bleeding heart.

And if you want to fill in a large sunny area with a delicate green and mauve color, go with mint - it's fast growing, very invasive (took over my herb garden) but looks very pretty.

I would call a reputable local landscaping company and just ask them what sort of perennials they recommend for your area. Lowe's and Home Depot places, in my experience, often have mislabeled items or items for sale that aren't really intended to grow in your area. But because they are pretty, or sound good, people will buy them.
I live in the deep south, but these stores sell apple trees. !! We can't GROW apple trees here. We don't get the right temperatures for it.

It really depends upon where you're going to plant them - is the area in full sun, partial shade, or full shade? The trick to successful gardening is planting the right plant in the right spot. I am in a completely different gardening zone from you, so I don't know if what works for me will work for you.

In full sun, Petunias are great for color, and will bloom all summer. They are annuals, so when they die, they don't come back. For a larger plant you could go with a Daisy (they come in every color from white to yellow to purple, even). Some of them will grow into shrubs that do die back over the winter, but will come back next year. If your climate allows, Lavender or Russian Sage are pretty and require very little water (and can get big and fill up a good-sized space).

For partial to full shade, I have Impatiens, Hydrangeas, Rununculus, and Primroses. My Hydrangeas have to be babied along, because it's really too hot for them here. They may work better where you live.

Another thought is that many times you can use edible plants as part of your landscaping. We have Swiss Chard planted right now, and it has stalks that are orange, hot pink, and various shades of green, topped by their big leaves. I also have a trellis, and I'm growing tomatoes up the trellis like a vine. Basil can fill in nicely (but it likes hot weather, so wait until it's hot to plant it, or it will sulk).

Roses are always great. They require very little maintenance and will bloom year after year. Personally I can't stand the long-stemmed types. They are great for cut flowers, but tend to look out of control by the end of summer.

I guess the best advice I can give you is, either call the Master Gardeners in your area for advice (they LOVE to talk about plants!), or simply talk to the people in your neighborhood who have landscaping you like, and ask them what types of plants they have.

Go to a good local nursery(not lowes or home depot).. They will know what grows well in your soil and summer temps. In the past I have copied what is put in the medians because the landscapers pick flowers that will bloom the longest. Happy planting!

Boxwood and Barberry bushes have nice colors but will have a good shape next to your house
Salvia (flower) will bloom
Wieglia (sp) is a bush that flowers that comes in many sizes
Daylilly flowers and comes in a million (ok that might not be true) colors
Some Hydrgena (sp) comes in lots of color (also check if it is for sun/shade because they can be picky)
Hope you find something you like.
Good Luck!

I would reccomend going to your local green house/Lowe's/Home Depot and asking them. They can give you all kinds of ideas. I went and asked for something that would bloom all summer and come back next year so I don't always have to keep replanting. They were wonderful with their answers.