That's really something that you've planted SO many trees, Pam! I know you'll enjoy watching them all grow. I think by far the best book for a butterfly beginner would be The Life Cycles of Butterflies by Judy Burris and Wayne Richards. They're brother and sister, and Judy posts on the Butterfly Forum occasionally. The book explains the basics of butterflies, gives examples of their host plants and some of their favorite nectar plants in the authors' area (Kentucky) and has some of the best pictures of eggs and caterpillars out there. Her book includes just about all the butterflies you'll find in the coastal Virginia area. I'm sure its available at Amazon.com, and you might find it at a local book store. I've been weeding and pruning my garden today - hopefully, I'll get it finished soon! Sherry

Asian pears--so much easier than apples. Hosui is great but you'll need another asian variety too for better fruit set. Don't put them side by side or you'll spend too much time thinning. Brown turkey figs are hardy enough for your climate. Takes a while before you get enough to sell though. The oriental persimmon ichi ki kei jiro is everything you ask for. Check it out. I grow all of these and never have to spray. I always thought we were in zone 7 but when I typed my zip code into a zone calculator I came up 6-b

John It depends on the type you have, the one that everyone says has the best flavor is the Tarocco, but they are not as red as the other cultivars. Mine have a flavor that is a mix of orange and raspberry (even when they are solid orange in color).

Hi Teeka, I read your OP about the problem with your Serbian Spruce. I also read the advice that the other posters gave. I would pretty much ignore that. What I would do is return the tree and get a refund. Has anyone here ever noticed how if something is repeated again & again there will be someone who believes it? Like DT and his "birther" nonsense. There is one poster here who is fond of linking that ̶W̶a̶s̶i̶l̶l̶a Puyallup site. That infatuation reminds me of Dr Sheldon Cooper and Batman LOL. Only one small problem, the so-called researcher's grad students, colleagues and provost want to give her the ole "heave ho". It seems that they have some expectation that research on the university level should be peer reviewed, what nerve! Besides that, who links an obscure, extension site on an international forum? Myopic much? In my case I rarely if ever respond to a PNW or West Coast post, I don't have anything to contribute. When I read heavy soil is preferred to keep the rootball intact I am simply baffled. Around here the tree's root system keeps the ball intact. Here is a typical field grower in Maryland.The soil is sandy loam. It is no coincidence that our Delmarva has such a concentration of growers with their light, stone-free soil. It drains quickly so the equipment can go back to the field the next day after a rain, unlike clay. I will never forget a trip with the SNA to Hawkersmith Nursery in TN, the soil was just like the seashore. Like the OP I am in zone 7, in my case NE Maryland. It has been stifling here and the forcast for tomorrow is 95°, school districts lacking ac have been closed for two days. And what am I gonna be doing tomorrow? Along with several other vendors, selling plants @ Green Spring Gardens in Annandale. I promise you NOONE is recommending plants be barerooted, no way - no how. If a commodity is defective the liability is not on the consumer. If I buy jeans and the zipper is defective I take them back. Why would trees be any different. This goofy notion that the consumer should "correct" a defect in the product only rewards the seller and perpetuates the problem.