Yes, I like to leave the old stems of the sedum up, as you did, so I know where the plants are. I also think they help 'catch' leaves and snow. Now that you can see them well, removing the old stems will make the plants look fresh and 'clean' although the new growth would be unaffected either way. If you accidentally pull a chunk with roots & new stem, just bury it back to the level it was or slightly deeper. Unless it completely goes bone dry, it won't mind, probably won't even stutter. #5 - hope somebody else can help. My only guess is squill and I don't think that's right, leaves are too broad, too many buds on the stems. Looks like they'll be extremely pretty, whatever they are!

Hi Suiv, My pictures (on Photobucket, no less!) go hinky like that sometimes, too, and it just proves what superior growers we are when we grow 'em sideways. Your first is an Echeveria, and further growth will reveal its name, but I think others might ID it for you. #2 is Crassula ovata - it looks like the leaves are largish, so it might be a cultivar (cultivated variety). #3 is also Crassula ovata, but this one's the cultivar 'Gollum'. I love the TJ's - the only place I can get 0% or 2% FAGE yogurt (clearly the best Greek yogurt).

Thank you both. Pomonaflower - I thought that last one looked like something hummingbirds would like so I put in the name you gave me and of course they do. Good to know it has a long bloom period. I think I'll add it to my wish list. I think I offered to send you some plants. Are you still wanting flowers for your new yard or am I thinking of someone else? Marian - I can try posting those first two photos in the Name That Plant forum. I didn't know if it was something common or unusual so I thought I'd try posting here first. Do you remember if they figured out what they were? That fourth one is a surprise. I expected it to be some kind of fern. I thought that last one looked like a may apple but the yellow spots threw me. Maybe it's just starting to die or something. Every time I stopped to take a picture, the rest of my bunch was 50 yards ahead of me and I had to hurry to catch up which wouldn't be so bad but the path was rocky and I didn't want to be carried out on stretcher. lol I'm sure if I'd had time to wander around, there would've been a lot more mystery plants to me.

The plant I worked on today is F retusa, a VERY close relative of F microcarpa, your plant. They like the same cultural conditions, share the same growth habits, and would be difficult to tell apart if not for your gensing fig's unique (to the genus) root structure. It might have been sold as a bonsai or a pre-bonsai at some point, but the owner had no knowledge of how to tend to it, so just allowed it to grow - hard to say. The tree I worked was a leftover from a workshop our club had. It was a tree no one wanted. I've had it about 10 years and have altered it significantly through chops (cutting most of the trunk off, then training a branch upward as a new leader). It was only last year that I decided to train it as 2 trees. Eventually, the larger tree on the right will hover over the smaller tree in a mother/daughter arrangement. I'll repot it next summer into it's first bonsai pot where I can start refining it. Like yours, it's a strong (genetically vigorous) tree, which is why I removed a lot of leaves and cut the remaining leaves in half to slow it down. Limiting its ability to make food by reducing foliage volume limits internode length (the distance between leaves) and leaf size, both of which are desirable for bonsai. Good luck with your repotting and the recovery. Let me know if there is anything you think I can help with. I've spent time in Montana, the Bridger Range, Gravelly Range, Big Timber, and the Shields River Bottom, and loved every minute of it. What a beautiful State. One of my clearest memories was being on the ground while bow hunting elk, and ending up within 5 ft of a 42" plus Shiras bull moose in full rut who was raking the fresh blowdown I was using for cover. That was a scary moment, but still a fond memory of time spent in the mountains & foothills of your lovely state, which also has a way of making you feel humble while traversing its mountainous parts. Sorry to have wandered so far from the OT. Al