Amos, your D. marginata should do fine. It's really not in bad condition, and for 5.00, you got a great deal! First, check for insects..Especially Spider Mites and Mealy. Look for fine webbing or white cottony masses. Trim brown tips like Bunnygurl suggested, but leave a little, about 1/8" of brown on each leaf. D marginata soil needs to dry between waterings. The pot looks large, so depending on its soil, it may take time to dry.. Test soil. The pot MUST have drainage. After it's all potted in, trimmed, if possible, place in the shower. Let water run over leaves. You'll have one happy plant. After it's settled, give it a dose of house plant/foliage fertilizer. Good luck, Toni

Thank you, Jaynine, but it must be something else. I checked the hibiscus on the web and it doesn't look like my plant at all. The plant I have has one leader stem and no side branches(laterals?). The leaves just come out of the stem and the leaves are big: 8-10". They also are glossy, even when they're young. The stem is sturdy, but not woody. It looked like young papaya tree, but the leaves, I think, are different and papaya usually forms bark-like skin on a stem, I think.

It looks quite like a Yucca...with an adorable little store behind it.

Thanks for the help. I'll keep a watch on the basil - see how it grows. I didn't notice any discernible difference in taste when I tasted it. It may work nice when I want a basil garnish. I think squirejohn is right with fleabane. When I googled it, I also see it grows in purple - and I noticed some purple ones blooming this morning. It's kinda pretty down by the pond, but I don't want it all over my gardens. I'll do some heavy weeding down there. I also think my non-hollyhock is the Ligularia The Rocket. That would explain why the one in the shade is doing a lot better than the one in the sun. I'll move the sunny one into my shade garden and see how it performs. nhbabs - that fine gardening link you provided is awesome. My shade garden is down by our stream, in an area that is pretty damp (and has been known to flood). I've bookmarked that page, which should help me add some variety down there. The only things thriving there so far are the dicentra and LOV. Uvularia perfoliata doesn't look right. I'm not sure why the foliage turned brown. I'll keep an eye on the blossom. I'm trying real hard this year not to pull anything out of the gardens until I know what it is. I'm trying hard to think about things as wild flowers, not weeds. Breathe deep and observe the foliage.