There's another weed/wildflower in my garden that's really pretty in some of its permutations. I've been calling it a "wild geranium" because the leaves sort of look like geranium leaves. I finally found it on the net and it's actually mallow. Several types, to be specific. The prettiest are the "tree mallow" or "hollyhock mallow," which grow to several feet tall (if tops aren't pinched off) and have relatively large, brightly colored (pink, purple, or 'striped') blossoms. Then there is the "common mallow," which has much smaller, white or pale pink flowers and usually spreads out over the ground. Pretty sure these are hardy annuals, not perennials, and it's pretty easy to pull up the unwanted young plants in the spring when the ground is moist. I have a friend whose back yard was abundant with the large, colorful varieties, and I found it easy to harvest the seeds. Mallow is also a widely used medicinal plant/herb. Here are some pics: http://www.nerc.ac.uk/publications/latestpressrelease/2005-42puffins.asp http://www.santabarbarahikes.com/flowers/index.php?action=show_item&id=257&search= http://www.cwss-scm.ca/Weeds/images/Mal2-common-mallow.JPG http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://212.84.179.117/i/Mallow.jpg&imgrefurl=http://212.84.179.117/list.htm&h=300&w=189&sz=17&hl=en&start=11&tbnid=Qhhpso2ryidvJM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=73&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmallow%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D http://212.84.179.117/i/Musk-mallow.jpg http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://aco.ca/acorns/_images/perennial_gardens/Wild-Mallow-Blooms-July-thr.jpg&imgrefurl=http://aco.ca/perennial_gardens.html&h=335&w=350&sz=46&hl=en&start=64&tbnid=bSmecGCNXHPMpM:&tbnh=115&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmallow%26start%3D54%26ndsp%3D18%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN http://www.nerc.ac.uk/publications/latestpressrelease/2005-42puffins.asp http://thebegavalley.com/uploads/tx_steverplantgallery/Malva_parviflora_04_small-flowered%20mallow.jpg http://www.easywildflowers.com/quality/cal.di1.jpg http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.naturedirect2u.com/Medicinal%2520herbs/mallowpic4.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.naturedirect2u.com/Medicinal%2520herbs/mallowherb.htm&h=387&w=368&sz=42&hl=en&start=137&tbnid=8iP2FaB60KZ36M:&tbnh=123&tbnw=117&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmallow%26start%3D126%26ndsp%3D18%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.garten.cz/images_enc/00058/00058C1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.garten.cz/encyklopedie.php%3Flng%3Den%26encid%3D58&h=200&w=150&sz=13&hl=en&start=234&tbnid=9y9Rq8Mivh7YuM:&tbnh=104&tbnw=78&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmallow%26start%3D220%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN

Don't be so quick to give up.The Ornamec will not kill your coneflower (echinacea purpurea ?)and is a heck of a lot cheaper then r/up .You have a few problems here .Don't assume killing all and starting over will solve all your problems.Heavy clay soil can be a challenge for you and the wild flowers. I personaly love playing in dirt ,so I'd dig in a lot of composted organic matter and turn that hard,heavy-clay soil into well-drained soil. You do know that grass(depending on type) in a wild flower patch looks very pleasing and natural,and would do more to attract birds then flowers alone.Perhaps you could start your flower seeds indoors in peat pots now,cut your grass very low at the end of April-mid june and plant.Nothing pleasurable comes with-out a little hard work.

Hi Bill, Open garden this weekend eh?? It would be quite the drive from Ontario but, I wish I could make it! Do you do this every year? I met you at the NARGS eastern winter weekend in January AND I have also heard much about your lovely garden. Have a great day! A.

1) I think you need some matching mounding shapes on the opposite corner by that cone shaped conifer. 2) I have had plain old-fashioned annabelle hydrangeas growing in such a space. Michael Dirr, the shrub guru, claims he's seen them growing in very dark dry shade, so I tried it in a bad spot. Their form was open-ish rather than dense and full, flowers were sparse, but they were cheap and green & filled up the hole very nicely with a different texture. They add a bit of loose height to a naturalistic grouping of hosta, ferns, variegated Solomon's Seal, a carex for linear shape, all over a base of plain green sedum. The carex and sedum stay green all winter for me, with the hydrangea flower heads persisting above. My planting is very informal...a sheared yew and one of the larger hosta, or a mass of a medium-sized one, would give a more tailored look if that is your preference. Pachysandra or epimedium would also offer a tailored evergreen groundcover, even if originally in just a single patch in your white gravel while you wait for them to grow enough to spread further. Oh, and you could put a bright vase shaped hosta in your urn beside your door, if you want to repeat that shape and integrate the urn. But do trouble to shop a proper nursery to choose from the 100's of varieties of hosta. The hosta board here would be able to suggest a vendor in your area who has a display garden, and there are excellent online hosta specialists who mail order very fine plants, but I strongly recommend against buying hosta from the big boxes, though I think they're fine for simplest hydrangeas or ordinary yews. Hosta have some disease issues being spread by cheapo irreputable vendors, and you want strong plants that haven't been prematurely forced into weak growth.