I'm slowly working on transforming my flower beds to beautiful things, rather than the hodge-podge of poorly-placed bushes that the last people put in. I like a natural look...not quite as "cluttered" as a cottage garden looks, but I like plants that are mostly maintenance-free and look well without shaping, etc. ie: I like bulbs scattered rather than in rows, I like flower beds that look like they sort of grew up there, and I like perennials.

So now that you know all that...I'd like two somethings to plant in my little northeast flower bed. It gets sun almost all day, except for when the sun is low enough for the house and porch to shade it. Here's a picture of my hyacinths when they were blooming...I put some grape hyacinths in two patches on the outsides of the big hyacinths. So I need something for in the middle, and something for along the front...something that will draw attention away from the dying foliage that's there now.

Is there anything that grows maybe 12-24" tall (not too wide) that might look nice in-between those hyacinths? Or another bulb that works well mixed with hyacinths? Everything I've thought of so far would outgrow the hyacinths before they bloom and hide them.

I'd also love something low...maybe 4-6" tall that stays green and pretty all summer that would work well for the front edges of the bed. That would place them in front of the grape hyacinths, so when their foliage is dying, there would be something pretty growing up in front of them. If this low something happens to bloom, that would be even better. I've actually considered impatients for here, but if there's a perennial that would grow about the same, I'd prefer that.

Does anyone have any ideas for me? (BTW, I'm in Central OH, zone 5.)