Tried several of these over the years - Southern Charm, chaixii Album, phoeniceum - hoping they might do well in this damp climate since bird-sown common mullein (thapsis) thrives. Planted together on a slope for drainage in sun till mid-afternoon, each gave a half-hearted showing, as did their scant volunteer seedlings, and petered out after a few years. Ah, well, nice try, no go. Weeding around in a mixed perennial bed in another area this Spring, noticed a vaguely familiar seedling & left it for later ID, watching it grow quickly & lushly. Once it began to bloom, finally recognized it as verbascum. Which one - a mix from the former site, wildling, sown by a bird? This mystery's shot up to 30x20" & thrown a dozen spikes whose flowers are clear pale apricot yellow with lavender bosses. Gives the effect of a multiple clump rather than a loner. Could it be chaixii, nigrum or blattaria? Whatever its identity, most welcome, and obviously happy in this overly rainy site & season. Rich clay-based loam where it stands, kept moist for the roses & companions. Somehow had the idea they preferred leaner & drier soil - maybe that's where I went wrong in the past? Delighted at the serendipity & hoping it will stick around & reproduce. Found a Southern Charm at the rear of the pot ghetto. (How many years has that been hiding there?) Given a larger pot & rich soil, it's now ready to bloom. High interest in the charms of this tribe peaking again... Swoon for wowser Blue Lagoon - thanks for putting it on my radar! Not turning up in stock on mailorder sites, know of any? May have to make the local nursery rounds in search of this beauty. (Better yet, call around, since my seasonal resistance is weakening, what with the denizens of the pot ward imploring me to find earth homes for them & not let newcomers jump the line.) Lucky ones with Blue Lagoon, do tell how they do for you!

Carol,I don't really feed them. He is on one of my bird feeders,at night. (They are nocturnal) We have the french doors open,and I hear the crash when he lands on the feeder,so I know he is there! Sometimes he can't get into the feeder,because of the slope of the roof,and he slips off,but they can glide,so he just come right back up. This is a deck,about twenty feet from the ground. When he can get to the feeder,he just eats,until he gets enough,then just leaps off into space,and glides to a nearby tree! I keep saying he,but it could be a female,too! They come back every year,usually during the summer. Phil

Hello Again, Thank you so much for the information I looked at them all long and hard. The mink really caught my attention, So I searched some more pictures of the mink and came upon one with the similar fur texture which I assume now it must have gotten wet by something " maybe from fighting with my cat??" I have also taken into some thought that maybe someones pet ferret got loose. At least I would rather say loose vs set loose considering large owls are all around here... I really wish I could have gotten a picture to compare with you all... I have been taking my camera out with me at night when I take my pup out or check on my cat... But this creature hasn't returned, which leads me to think ether my cat won dominance or this creature was what the large black caught a few nights ago... But none the less here is a picture of the fur texture on this mink that matched. Thanks again for all the help. Here is a link that might be useful:

Following up with a few more details.. Counter edge is Eased 1.5 inch thick. Quartz thickness was 2cm. Fabricators built up the edge to 1.5 inches with mitred corners. The mitre cut hides the seam totally. In CA this is a standard process. 2cm Ceasarstone will not properly cover the 5/8 inch plywood rough top the cabinet maker installs. I almost went with an ogee edge since the house and kitchen is traditional style. But I thought it might be too busy for shaker. The eased edge works well with shaker style. I chose ogee for the bath vanity where the cabinets and crown are more detailed. It fits perfectly in the bath. Or if you have a center island ogee is a nice choice on the island with eased edge on the perimeter. Alot of people opt for that... The floor color is Natural Timber glazed chestnut. I used a dark brown grout but should have gone 1 darker to espresso or possibly black. The grout lines wound up lighter than the tile even though it looked like a good match before install. I went with 1/16th on the spacing, however the box recommends no closer than 1/8th. 1/8th grout lines are wide and the floor will look less like hardwood but I'm not sure if ignoring the directions will compromise my floor in any way down the road. I had the installer avoid "stair step" install method and tried to achieve random length install to mimic hardwood. Essentially when he got to a wall and had to cut a piece I had him start on the other side with the cut piece to achieve a random look. It worked for the most part but this process is tricky. It is better to be there the entire time they are installing so you can make the decisions. I much prefer real wood. The white oak with dark stain pictured all over houzz are the most beautiful kitchen floors but with a 3 yr old it doesn't seem practical, I think it would have gotten destroyed. The wood plank tile is a nice alternative and the cleanup is very easy. Alot of people have actually mistaken it for solid wood. The finish is a matte. Every crumb shows but I'm assuming this is the case with any dark brown floor. One of the keys is finding the tile that is 48 in long, this is the same size a lot of solid wood planks come in. The tile that is 24 in long leaves too many grout lines all over the floor and compromises the wood look. The long plank tiles create some issues with install though, it is wise to have someone who has installed these before. The 24 inch pieces are easier to install. This post was edited by LondonGray on Mon, Jun 16, 14 at 13:25