I have a Campsis x tagliabuana 'Madame Galen' (a cross)trumpet vine that is vigorous but not invasive in my zone 5 garden. Mine was planted in 2004. I have mine growing in quite a bit of shade and use it to hide some ugly brick. It gives a nice solid green backdrop that I like. I stretch mine out sideways in two directions and it grows about 20-25 feet at most. Mine does not bloom, perhaps originally because of the part shade. However, I read on Dave's that it does not bloom (or is very slow to bloom) for many people, supposedly because it may have been started from immature stock. As my trumpet vine grew older I began cutting it back each year in early spring to 3-5 feet and letting it regrow, which it does quickly. This keeps it exactly where I want it - on what I want and since it climbs by itself there is almost no work for me at all after its yearly haircut. It does not send up runners across the way or anything like that, and can't spread its seed or anything because it has no flowers! I tried a Campsis radicans Flamenco and it died out in a couple of years. I think it may have been too wet, or so slow to show itself that I planted something else into it. Some other vines I use that you might be interested in are honeysuckles, the very nice Lonicera sempervirens 'Blanche Sandman' has lots of scarlet blooms and is very well-behaved. Mine was planted in 2005. I did have another one with flame in the name, Goldflame, Pink Lemonade ?? something like that, anyway that one mildewed badly for me, something I hardly ever get in this garden, but this one probably got shaded out too much by some enlarging shrubbery making it weak. I eventually removed it. It had the typical narrow tubular blooms that were a pretty pink color. However, neither of these two vines get really long like a trumpet vine or a sweet autumn clematis do. My two sweet autumns both get well over 20 feet, but unlike in the south, I have never had a single seedingl off of mine. The SACs gets cut back to 3-5 feet from the woody base and regrow covering most of a 60 foot stretch of fence. In addition, I also have a Halls (japonica) honeysuckle which is considered by most everyone to be invasive. I love the thing and planted it long before I knew it was supposed to be a problem, well over 10 years ago. It is some work for me, but not outlandish by any means. It blooms very well and has a wonderful scent. It may be a true invasive getting into wild places and such, but I have not been able to bring myself to remove it, especially since it is available for sale everywhere around here. With the Hall's honeysuckle I limit (cut out) the number of main stalks coming out of the ground each spring, make sure everything goes up the structure including later emerging growth, as it does try to root if pieces or stems are left on the ground, then let it waterfall down, being careful again not to let it touch the ground. I also cut out some of the undergrowth if it gets too bushy in midseason after its main growth period is over. It blooms for over a month in mid-spring through early summer. It mostly blooms on old wood, which is why I restrict the number of stems rather that cutting it all back in spring, I do get some repeat bloom later in the season. Every three years or so I cut it back hard and let it regrow - maybe 15 foot max with cutbacks, somewhat longer without them. I can't really recommend this one, if it is invasive to the environment, but it is very manageable in my climate in my conditions with reasonable pruning.

if you want pix of cones.. find a 'birder' .. a person who has a camera made for taking pix of small birds at distance and height .. i do not have the knowledge to take said pic against a sunlight blue sky.. i bet a filter was involved.. as well as a ginormous telescopic lens ... pix from my friend carol wolf ... seriously.. i have no clue how she got such clarity.. while standing on the ground.. and snapping a shot 10 feet above her head [2 of the pix] ... lets just write it off to having a real camera.. and experience ... and of course.. talent took me 2 days to find them in the Picea folder.. whats that all about ... lol ... these are not the pix i referred to previously.. again.. those are for another day ... its too early.. and my pupils are vibrating from coffee.. to tell if they are duplicates .. or double shots.. to insure a clean pic ... ken

I ordered 2 batches of 12 and got 29 cuttings! Not a bad deal at all. I did the first batch, from Aloha tropicals with eggs. The first batch from Derrick with no eggs. This last batch(from Derrick) did rootone, miracle grow organic 1:1 perlite and watered w/ dynapro. They are now on the side porch where they get no rain but afternoon sun. So far all of the ones from Aloha and the first batch from Derrick are doing great, no real difference, about the same number have claws, the same number leaves are already growing. Our humidity was lower for a couple of days, nights only in upper 70`s/low 80s and mid-80`s days. Back to hot and humid now though. Tally HO!

I live in Northern IL - Kane County. we have over an AC and the lot is split between full sun and full shade. Due to water issues in the area, we have to choose plants that are drought torrent to survive in our yard! Balloon Flowers have done very well in both shade and full sun. At fist, I wasn't that happy with them as the flowers don't last for a long time, nor do the spread quickly. The GOOD NEWS is this yr. they did very, very well with our sever drought conditions............. I have several that seeded down and were in a location I didn't want them so I really didn't water them and they survived!!! Black -eyed Susan same as above! However, they will wilt down if they don't receive some form of water occasionally. The good news is once you see them start to wilt, give them a little water and they will come roaring back! They will also seed down for you! Another favorate is Purple Cone Flowers, and they come in White, Yellow, RED, and Pink. They have a very nice decorative flower head. And if you deadhead them, they will continue to flower all summer with Little to no maintenance. Just added the Red one's this yr and I love them!!!!! A few other to consider are; Jacob's Ladder, Lavender,Speedwell, Yarrow (long lasting but get tall and gangly, but the bee's and butterfly love it) Best of wishes with your garden! - AL