Or perennials for that matter. I have a lot of real estate that is going to be open when the bulb foliage has withered away.Last year I planted zinnias and touch me nots and a periwinkle or two. Touch me nots needed more shade and I didn't like the look. What works for you?

Always! I planted bulbs around my daylilies but in the front yard I still needed some other plants as filler once the bulbs died back. I always plant pansies or violets in the Spring. Last year I grew Chinese houses (Collinsia) to cover the dying foliage. This year I'm trying baby blue eyes and campanula. When the hot summer weather hits I pull the Spring plants up and plant snapdragons, marigolds, zinnias and petunias in their place.

Elena......You pull your bulbs out? Why?

I use daylilies, iris, peony, small Shrubs .
I like shrubs that flower and have some leaf color after bloom
Burning Bush Emerald Gaiety
Weigela (all of them)
Goldflame Spirea

I go for the low maintenance garden route. I start with structure and that is my shrubs throw some Sweet Allysum seeds. and some

Elena I haven't thought about petunias. I had them years ago and the middle would thin out as the plant grew. I'm all about groundcover so I may try them again. I've also heard that certain clematis will make a blooming groundcover too. Snapdragons are a good idea also.

Cinta the shrubs you mentioned are small? I've never had peonies, I thought I was too far south for them. I've already gotten my sweet allysum seeds!

Weigela (all of them) a lot of them are 3' x 4' I only have one that I had to clip. I love the colors.

I clip these in the Spring if they look a little bigger than I want them.
Burning Bush Emerald Gaiety
Goldflame Spirea

There are a lot of zone 8 peonies. They are beautiful and fragrant.

Yes I picked up my Allysum seeds I found some blue ones I am going to mix with the white, I also picked up some other blue flowering seeds. Cosmos and Zinnias I always plant near the peony because when they bloom close to them it looks like my peonies are blooming all summer. They even have what they call zinnia peony.

Check out Martha Stewart peony suggestions.
http://www.marthastewart.com/2...

My bulbs are clumped between lots of other perennials. As the bulb foliage starts to flop and yellow the other perennials fill in and obscure them. I have some self seeded annuals like poppies and larkspur that share space with bulbs too.

The only thing to be careful about is using annuals that need a lot of water- bulbs prefer to be somewhat dry during summer dormancy.

Cinta if I get hooked on peonies, I'm pointing my finger at you for enabling. (no not the middle finger )There's a lot of advertisements on Martha's website so I will write the zone 8 suggestions down and look them up. I do recognize some of the names.

Neal any kind of annual down here is going to have to be watered every 3-4 days during the summer. It's a fact of life, bulbs or no bulbs. I will say that my daffs did fine, but I'm kind of anxiously looking for lily foliage. I can't overwater crinum!

Daffs are tough, they take it just fine. And if it's dry enough that you have to water, the plants are using up the water.

Kabby I am sorry. I left the site up and was surfing and when I went back to close the site down there was a thousand ads on the page I thought it was because I had it up to long. I will not go back there again.

Okay you can blame me. I am blaming everyone on this forum. I said before we are like little drug pushers on the corner say "Want some candy little girl".

Your lilies should be fine. I have them in the garden with my bulbs and have not had any problems.

@Cinta I've been looking at the Goldflame spirea and then a dwarf weigela called Minuet. Tomorrow may be "peony" day if I have time to look at them. I have to break down and go to town for errands.

I have a pretty Rainbow Sensation Weigela, its variegated leaves are green, white, pink and the blooms are pink and it blooms for two months and I get a rebloom late season. It is planted by the mudroom door and the flowers are fragrant. I love that bush.

Found a small dwarf weigela called My Monet. I've got a place between a banana shrub and a tea olive but I think this one is too small. Rainbow Sensation is a knockout. Long flowering and fragrant.

I think Rainbow is just a little bigger replacement of Monet. It came out after Monet and I have not seen it promoted like Rainbow. You know how they do the new and improved version and quietly take the original off the market.

Re: companions for bulb plantings.
Many Alpines, and Rock Garden plants do not like to be watered,
so they work with bulb plantings. Most need good drainage.

Caroline, I love using Alpines like that. Woolly thyme is awesome- it has silvery gray foliage that is a pretty companion and hugs the ground tightly. I really like it overplanted with autumn crocus and tiny spring bulbs.

Neal I have 2 small areas of wooly thyme planted between mini daylilies. There's nothing to not like about it!
I have really wanted to push the season and sow some seeds but I know it's too early. I have reseeded zinnias coming up, I just hope a late frost doesn't get them.
@Cinta I bought a Sarah Bernhardt peony at HD. It's planted and ready to go, I'm kinda excited about it!

You are going to like it. Now if you find some of those big peony flowering Zinnas and throw the seeds real close to the bush. When they bloom all summer and grow up into the peony bush and you will have a beautiful blooming peony bush all summer . The flowers look like they are growing from the bush.

I have had people ask me what kind of peonies are blooming in August.