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"Yards" should be eliminated!!! Every house should be surrounded by a garden. Landscape police should be highly-paid and esteemed careers. They would ring doorbells on a regular basis, supplying 'green pages' which would be updated annually, collecting fines for breaking laws like shearing shrubs instead of pruning, allowing overgrowth, neglect, general abuse, and not following rules and standards set by an elected branch (no pun intended) of government. Organics, botany, and environmental studies should be required subjects throughout elementary ed. Garden 'help' (manual labor) should be a federal government job, then I wouldn't mind a tax increase. Oh, and composting, like recycling, should be a law. Seriously, folks, I wish I had listened to all the old people when I started gardening - they told me not to plant English Ivy, Boston Ivy, and Paniculata Clematis. All three are killing me from pulling, and now I'm old (and no one listens to me, either). Visual balance, texture, and subtlety are my passion, with 99% of the garden perennials - can't tolerate much color, so it's predominantly hosta - so far, 42 different varieties. I hope I live long enough to have all 1,000. Some, planted when we moved into a newly-built home 18 years ago, are six feet wide! People from the East have stopped to ask me about them. They tell me hosta is deer salad there. I'd crack up! Annual (wax) begonia with burgundy leaf & white flower, as well as a few BLUE annuals and perennials are everywhere as accents. The only other annual is white geranium (pelargonia). At night, the low garden lights pop all the white. The blues are few - difficult to find perenials. I'm looking for the HIMALAYAN BLUE POPPY, tho' not sure if it will grow in Zone 5. I'm 52 - a son is studying Horticulture because he grew up in a garden! I can't wait until he comes home to help....my husband plays golf. What a waste of time! If anyone actually reads this and cares, I'll send photos. Luv, Westy350.