I'm loving Echinacea "Tomato Soup." It's beautiful. Other red Echies are "Firebird" and "Hot Lava."

Lobelia cardinalis is beautiful.

Gaillardia "Goblin" is nice but it is red with yellow tips on the petals.

These suggestions are all "vibrant reds", not just shadings of red:

- Monarda 'Jacob Cline' (one of my all-time favorites!)
- Here's a second vote for Lobelia cardinalis, with several varieties to chose
from, including one with green/gold leaves ('Golden Touch')
- Phlox paniculata 'Starfire'
- Persicaria amplexicaulis (Firetail). . .a real knock-out and seldom seen!
- Dianthus barbatus 'Heart Attack' (Sweet William)
- Lychnis chalcedonica (Maltese Cross)
- Lychnis coronaria 'Gardener's World'
- Aquilegia 'Ruby Port' (Columbine)
- Primula 'Miller's Crimson'

Then, when you include "shades" of red, there's Knautia macedonica, a dozen or so varieities of Hemerocallis (daylilies), certain hollyhocks, Centranthus ruber, several Chrysanthemums, a few peonies, dozens of shrubs with
red flowers and/or red berries (plus all the "red twig" dogwoods!). . .

And how could I have forgotten the REDDEST of all: Oriental poppies!

Finally, you CAN have red salvia - but in your Zone 5, it will of necessity be a tender perennial (replace it each year like an annual). . .check out the link below and you'll see what I mean. A little tip: Salvia elegans (Pineapple Sage) is readily available almost anywhere, and is almost always located in the herb section, not with the perennials. . .

Carl

Here is a link that might be useful: Lazy SS Farm

Yes, a neighbor grew red monarda, don't know the variety, then pulled it all out and never saw it again, had a beautiful patch of it, wish I'd asked exactly what it was.

My white monarda is mildewed, plus monardas like soil on the damp side, spread very fast, easy to pull, and attracts bees, hummingbirds and butterflies. Mine just started blooming within this past week, and I don't know how long it will bloom, don't think the rest of the summer.

It doesn't look that damp in this spot down the alley where I saw it growing in large drifts, photo not the sharpest.

{{gwi:255405}}

My gardens are also reds, oranges and yellows (minus the purple) and here are some reds I'm growing:

Gaillardia 'Burgundy'
Achillea 'Walter Funke'
Achillea 'Paprika'
Dianthus 'Ideal Select Red' (It's supposed to be an annual, but some of mine are on their 3rd year in zone 5)
Geum 'Blazing Sunset'
Lychnis chalcedonia (Maltese cross)
Lychnis 'Vesuvius'
Penstemon pinifolius
Silene regia
Ipomopsis rubra (Standing Cypress) - this one is listed as only hardy to zone 6, but I'm hoping I get lucky
Poppies - both annual and perennial versions in red

As far as red annuals go, there are plenty of annual red salvias, marigold 'Scarlet Starlet', nasturtiums, petunias, verbena, and zinnias.

Bonnie

How about lilies? There are some very red Asiatics. Daylilies, Sweet William, and phlox. These are all reds in my garden.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:255402}}

I second the suggestion of Red Bee Balm and Pink Campion. Lots of Folks cringe at the thought of pink, orange and red in the same bed, but I personally LOVE my crazy combination.

Here is a link that might be useful:

I have a garden with many "hot colours" in it, and one of the reddest plants I grow is Crocosmia 'Lucifer'. It really gives "zip" to a summer border.

Here is a link that might be useful: crocosmia 'Lucifer'

Some red perennials

Heuchera sanguinea
Maltese Cross
Monarda
Red Valerian
Some phlox cultivars
Hardy mums
Penstemon

Oh, forgot to say, red flowering lupines. One of my favorite perennials. Some cultivars you may consider are "morello cherry", "gallery red", and "my castle".

Lots of great suggestion here. I would add Bishop of Llandaff dahlias. They have dark purple foliage (gorgeous alone) and the blooms are rich blue red with a deep yellow eye. They are not great big and tall, so mix into borders extremely well. They're worth the trouble of digging each fall.