You might want to add Blue Flax....Linum perenne lewisii
If you think you are closer to a zone 5 try Lavender....lavendula angustifolia.
Also consider Golden Marguerite, any of the perennial Sunflowers (Helianthus sp.), Knautia macedonica, Rose Campion, German Catchfly, Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Coreopsis lanceolata, Thyme (creeping or standard), some Penstemons, Liatris, Alyssum 'Basket of Gold', Feverfew 'Flore Pleno', some species of Columbine.

I would think Dogwoods would require more water holding capacity than what you might get with sand?

Happy gardening,

Vera

In the front yard, I've got a garden bed I call the "Xeric garden" along the south side and southwest corner of the parcel. The soil is well-drained and sandy loam, there is a sidewalk along the front of this garden, and it is flanked by 2 large maples (1 silver, 1 sugar) that like to hog the moisture. It is a dry bed and I try to grow plants that are drought tolerant here so it will require minimal watering.

I do add some mulch and organic matter to the bed, so that some moisture is conserved, but nevertheless during a dry spell the perennials have a hard time competing with the maples.

Here's what's doing okay in such conditions -

Daylilies
Iris
Asclepias tuberosa
Asclepias syriaca
Baptisia
Liatris aspera
A couple goldenrods
Nepeta racemosa and N. cataria
Coreopsis verticillata
Miscanthus 'Gracillimus' and purpurascens
Panicum 'Shenandoah'
Little bluestem
Sporobolis heterolepis
Lupines
Sedum

There is a Forsythia, Purple sand cherry, and some Lilacs that are doing pretty well.

I also have a Kousa dogwood, but it would probably prefer to be farther away from the maples.

I've always thought that Amsonia strongly prefers heavy soils.

Some plants that have done well for me in dry situations:
They aren't very formal, but rugosa roses have a strong, sweet scent, beautiful foliage, and large red hips. They only bloom once, but I like them quite a bit. Flowers are single or double in shades of pink, magenta and white. They sucker some and have wicked thorns, but will grow in beach sand.

Penstemon pinifolius is a relatively short plant with typical tubular penstemon flowers in early summer in shades of red, orange, and yellow and fine needle-like foliage.

If you typically have good snow cover, it is worth trying Caryopteris which I have found works for me, rather to my surprise: small tidy shrub, late summer violet-blue flowers, and either silver or gold foliage. In the coldest areas it works more like a perennial, dying back to the ground each year. 'Arthur Simmonds' has trialled as the hardiest selection, though I haven't grown it. (available at Lazy S's Nursery via mail order.) I have 'Sunshine Blue' with gold foliage which experiences some dieback but comes back every year and either 'First Choice' or 'Dark Knight' which has survived just fine for several seasons. This does better than lavender for me which survives, but takes too long to recover to look good most seasons. I do replant lavender (small inexpensive plants) most years and it grows well as an annual since the insects and humming birds like it.

The only western Agastache that has survived at least one winter for me has been A. rupestris. It is a short-lived perennial for me, lasting at most 4 or 5 years, but I really like the silvery foliage and August salmon and smoky lavender blooms, so I replace it when it hasn't survived a winter. You may find that some of the blue Agastaches work for you, but I haven't grown them since they have a reputation for self-seeding.

I have had Weigela grow well on a completely unwatered slope, so it should be fine. However, the Cornus kousa that is in an unwatered dry spot doesn't look nearly as nice as the one in a more average setting, and the serviceberry that I planted in a dry spot died the second season, despite my hauling water to it all of its first season.

Lonicera sempervirens 'Major Wheeler' is a long-blooming, bright red selection of a native vine that does fine without supplemental water in a well-drained bed. I have only had mine a couple of years, but I really like it. It should do fine being trimmed to its support, an iron trellis of 3/8" rod, if I decide it needs it.

Daffodils should be fine if you are looking for spring bulbs.

Plants that others have mentioned that have also done well for me in well-drained situations include bearded iris, flax, rose campion (though it self-seeds ferociously unless deadheaded), coreopsis (both lanceolata and verticillata), daylily, Baptisia, Liatris, Sedum, Semperivirens, Amsonia hubrichtii, Nepeta/catmint, Alyssum, and columbine.

nhbabs,

Your rugosa blooms once? Do you deadhead any hips and/or fertilize? Curious about it's conditions because I didn't know of any rugosa's that bloom once. Mine is double pink and blooms mid spring/late summer (some years early fall). There are a few short periods of no blooms though. I religiously clip off hips until late summer.

Anyway, I second the rugosa suggestion. You can also make jelly/tea from the hips and I think petals/buds can be used as well.

I would also vote for lupine, especially Lupinus perennis, which is the native type critical to the Karma Blue butterfly. I don't know if the butterfly is in Wisconsin, but they are beautiful flowers and do great in dry sandy sun.

Martha

DocMom, is Lupinus perennis typically found alongside other perennials at local nurseries or is it more likely to be found in the native WI plant section?

Deleting duplicate post I hope

This post was edited by dominoswrath on Tue, Jun 18, 13 at 17:21

nhbabs,

Of the three caryopteris you have, which is your favorite? I've been eyeing them up in the Bluestone catalog for years...Dark Knight sounds appealing.

These are all great suggestions. Thanks for all the feedback everyone.

rugosas are not happy in an alkaline soil so I think ph needs to be considered. Hardiness, with sandy soil, can be surprisingly less restrictive - there are many alpine plants such as saxifrages, sedums, campanulas, which are caught out by winter wet rather than cold...and with a sandy free-draining soil, you can get away with a few risks. Regarding roses though, do please look at the pimpinellifolias, many of which make neat hummocky shapes, have interesting hips, good healthy fern-like foliage and beautiful flowers. Limonium (there are various) has been a ggod genus, along with some of the eryngiums. Knautia invariably gets clobbered by mildew for me. I don't much like stachys....but it can be a sterling plant in sandy soil. Artemisia (but not lactiflora), especially Powis Castle and stelleriana do well and would be hardy enough.
I ought to say, I am sort of assuming you have a reasonable amount of sun. If so, then lavender angustifolia, esp.Hidcote, is also good, as would verbascum, Russian Sage....and the sages such as salviaXsylvestris, S.verticllata. Dianthus and Thyme...oh yeah, santolina (and this is great if you are into any sort of topiary or hedging).
Sandy shade is a bit trickier - Euphorbias, wood aster (A.divaricatus), phlox douglasii. Vinca, pachysandra...ooh yes, a favourite of mine, Waldsteinia ternata.

Sorry for the mish-mash of common names and probably misspelt botannicals, just waffling (But I do garden on sand....and stones)

Dominoswrath,
The native Lupinus perennis is usually found through native plant nurseries. I've grown them from seed traded here and purchased from online sources. They wintersow very reliably, but won't bloom until the second season. Once they bloom, you'll have volunteers every spring that you can simply leave in place, or move around and give to friends. I love that it is a very ornamental and early bloomer, and native.

Unfortunately, I moved to a shady yard and the Lupines I moved didn't get enough sun and were attacked by an incredible aphid colony. They didn't touch anything but the Lupines. I may try to grow them one more time. I have sunny sand right up by the road. I just worry a bit about visibility for neighbors pulling out of their driveways.

Good luck with your sand. It sounds like you have done your home work and will do well. I would also encourage you to mulch heavily in fall with leaves--shredded if possible. That will improve the soil and cut down on weeds.

Martha

I somehow overlooked this post. I currently have very sandy soil. There seems to be a good amount of silt/loam mixed in, but it still drains like a sieve and seems to dry out even the day after heavy rains. Keep in mind that I do water with a hose whenever I think of it and have time, but so far I have had great luck with the following:

Oriental-Trumpet (OT) hybrid lilies--these are exquisite and much more hardy and robust than oriental lilies, although the look is much the same. I planted these bulbs deep, some even with 10-12 inches of soil covering the tops of the bulbs, to help provide good ballast in my sandy soil. Second year stems on many of these are over 6 feet tall and are very thick and sturdy. LOVE them! The Longiflorum-Oriental (LO) lilies are also amazing.

Lilium regale--another exquisitely beautiful lily that thrives in well-drained soil. Also planted these deep. Second year stems are also huge and tall but they are never quite as sturdy as the OTs so may lean a bit in sun or require staking in more shade. But the fragrance and classic beauty are so worth it!

Alliums--all types. Even the giant globe types have returned and doubled in their second year with taller and larger bloom heads than the year before (!).

Echinops
Eryngium
Perovskia
Penstemon 'Dark Towers'
Asters
Callirhoe involucrata
Geranium sanguineum
Sedums

Dominoswrath - I really like 'Sunshine Blue' best of the Caryopteris I grow. The gold foliage contrasts well with other plants liking sharp drainage which tend to have silver, bluish, or green foliage, and the blue flowers look lovely against the gold foliage. It tends to be wider than tall in my garden (about 2-3' wide and about 1 1/2' tall.) My 'Dark Knight' is narrower with silvery foliage and the branches are finer and not as stiff as 'SB'. Both are nice plants, though I prefer 'SB' in my garden.