By late summer, a plant really needs to stand out. My garden becomes a jungle of green by August 1, owing in part to the fact that most of the flowers on my blooming plants have faded away for the season. I make sure there are interesting things to look at, some of them because they're... well..., big.
I've given Cannas a second chance, especially the ones with the really cool leaves. This year, I'm growing Canna 'Durban' (AKA 'Phasion), a variety with leaves will steal the thunder from others around it.
If you like hummingbirds, you'll like Salvia Rockin 'Blue Suede Shoes'. This 3-4' beauty won't be available in nurseries until next year, but it's worth the wait. Even in a bit of shade, this one is a prolific bloomer, it's light blue flowers with dark blue calyxes a beacon to hummingbirds and humans.
I'm glad I put plants with "big" potential in my garden, otherwise, it would be pretty boring. Other plants I'm counting on to carry me through the summer include a plant I've been trying to get my hands on for the past two years. I finally found it. Senecio 'Angel Wings', which apparently just introduced two years ago. The plant purportedly works well indoors, which would be great, as it goes so well with anything in bloom during the Christmas holidays.
Although Senecio 'Angel Wings' isn't the biggest plant in the garden, I've elevated it by planting it in one of those galvanized flower buckets that I'd decorated with beaded trim. I have other plants in this type of pot throughout the garden. Silver is one of those colors that seem to glow at sunset, so it is one of the last things I see before the sun goes down.