Make your garden as easy as possible to maintain and help save some water by looking into drought tolerant plants for your zone. Many of them will also be native to the area. In Chicago, zone 5, look for these full sun prairie style staples:
- ornamental grasses
- coneflower
- salvia
- yarrow
- butterfly weed
- threadleaf coreopsis
- globe thistle
- sunflower
- lavender
- russian sage
- stone crop sedum
- cat mint
- goldenrod
- thyme
- rudbeckia