Sorry didn't chance to get back here. I go through so many forums on GW that I have to make the "rounds". LOL! John - we have alot of crapes in the landscape here in the Philly/Delaware County area. These are no longer die-backs in city locations (meaning they don't die back to the roots and they sprout their new leaves from the canopy) and are seen more and more in the landscape at 10 - 15ft tall and getting bigger every year. People are even planting them in their front yards away from the house. There are all sorts here - particularly ones like the popular and hardy "Natchez", "Sioux", "Tonto", etc. I think what has helped is that the lowest temps here haven't gotten below 0° F since 1994. I have a "Victor" crape which is a dwarf and it literally hasn't grown to more than 3ft in its 14" container. It's starting to bloom now itself. The figs were very slow to sprout due to the very cool spring but I am looking at expanding the selection. I bought my sister and brother-in-law a Celeste last summer for in-ground, had them plant it at the SW corner of their house, it made it through the winter with protection and is growing pretty well in the heat. Haven't been by there to see what's happening with it but as long as it is establishing itself (it was a 4ft baby), that's fine with me. As for amount of sun - Since I am up about 150ft or so in the sky with nothing to block the sun like trees or buildings (other than the hills about 5 miles to the NE of me, although I'm on a hill myself about 400ft above sea level), in summer, I get sun from sunrise at ~5:50am until about 11 am (or later for those plants that have branches hanging over the rail that can catch a couple more hours of "rays" before the sun goes up over and behind the building). I have seen sun on an extended branch of my tropical hibiscus until almost 1pm. And since I am on the end on the western side of the building, I can get about 3 - 4 hours more of afternoon sun over on the western corner of the balcony as it sets (from about 4pm until sunset ~8:30pm or so). Thus I try to put some of the real sun lovers over on the western end of the balcony so they can get sun in the front and later, sun from the side and rear during summer. Only thing is that it is windy over on that side. Good luck with the camera! I hope to eventually get a pic of my opuntia humifusa in bloom next year. It's growing quite a few pads now. I've overwintered it outside the past 2 winters in a clay pot (my only plant in a clay pot) and it shrivels down during winter and plumps back up each spring. I think that it needs more sun earlier in the season to get the bloom triggered though... something I have to think about with respect to where to place it. Cady - I've had a number of evergreens over the years - mostly different pierises as it's one of my favorites. I actually have a minature one out there right now that is new and it's sortof lost in the shade of other stuff. My honeysuckles are semi-evergreen but what usually gets things out there are the dessicating winds in late winter. Even with some of the protection schemes, it has been difficult finding a good spot to put evergreens where they're not in an eventual wind tunnel. But I'll keep experimenting! I have a heuchera this year and those are supposed to be evergreen so I'll see how that goes. You mention willows and I have a pussy willow (Salix discolor) out there that has been forming its catkins for next year.

Here's a list of red crapes. Some may be redder than others, but all are pretty reddish. If you want to use the list to pick one for your landscape, be sure to confirm the provided info. Cultivar (TM Name)/ Height / Form / Mildew Resistance Arapaho / 20'+ / upright / high Centennial Spirit / 8'-12' / upright / good Cherokee / 8'-10' / globose / good Cheyenne / 8'-12' / rounded / high Christiana / 8'-10' / upright / fair Coral Sport / 8'-10' / upright / fair Gamad I (Cherry Dazzle) / 3'-5' / small dwarf / high Mandi / 6'-12' / dwarf / fair Moned (Chica Red) / 2'-5' / small dwarf / fair Moners (Petite Embers) / 5' / upright dwarf / fair Monimp (Petite Red Imp) / 4'-5' / upright dwarf / fair Okmulgee / 3'-6' / dwarf upright / fair Red Filli / 1.5'-2' / dwarf spreading / fair? Rubra Compacta / 6'-8' / compact / ? Tonto / 6'-12' / compact globose / high Victor / 3'-5' / upright dwarf / good Watermelon Red / 20'-25' / upright / fair Weeping Alamo Fire / 2'-3' / weeping, miniature / fair Wit II (Dynamite) / 20'-25' / upright / good Whit IV (Red Rocket) / 20'+ / upright / high Whit V (Tightwad Red) / 2'-4' / dwarf / high Whit VII (Siren Red) / 10'-12' / upright / high Whit IX (Double Feature) / 6'-8' / compact globose / high

Donna, I don't mind how you choose to spell it (it won't offend me even if you want to spell it with a "u", LOL), but it can be beneficial to spell it correctly, and it can help others in future reference situations if the spelling is correct. Almost all professional articles and good reliable information (like the info you are looking for now) uses the correct spelling, so it's much easier to find good info if you spell it correctly. And, while using the Latin name is a fine idea, it won't necessarily get you all the articles and info you may seek. Unfortunately, not everyone uses the scientific name. Of the 166,00 articles Google pulls up for "crape myrtle", many of them are from experts and academics in the field, arboreta and botanical gardens, etc. The vast majority of the 149,000 articles Google pulls up for "crepe myrtle" are from amateurs and are generally less reliable. Here are some ways you can confirm that spelling crape myrtle with an "a" is more correct: There is a "Crape Myrtle Society of America" but there is no such thing as a "Crepe Myrtle Society of America" "Crape myrtle is the overwhelming choice both in botanical sources and in other dictionary sources." - Michael Agnes, executive editor of Webster's New World Dictionary "The first reference to crape...came in 1685. Crepe first showed up in 1797." - Agnes "The common name of this plant is crape myrtle not crepe myrtle." - Floridata The National Arboretum, as well as almost all arboretums, uses "crape myrtle" not "crepe myrtle" ------------------------------------------------------ Here are more varieties you might check: Cheyenne (just a little larger than you asked for) Cherokee (just a little larger than you asked for) Chica Red (probably too pink, but often described as red) Tonto (somewhat towards pink, just a little larger than you asked for)

I grew up in Omaha and always admired my Mother's Peonies. I live in Los Angeles now (zones 9 to 10B) and wanted to take my chances at growing Sarah Bernhardt Peonies. I know Los Angeles is not this plants zone but I'd like to take my chances by applying some special care techniques. I recently mail ordered three bare root Sarah Bernhardt Peonies. They arrived and look extremely healthy based on the shoots. I immediately planted them in the ground in a special bed in my front yard I am dedicating to these Peonies and have been watching the shoots get larger each day. The specific bed location faces east and receives direct unobstructed sunlight from about 7am through about 1-2pm as the sun moves around the house from east to south. I am wondering if it would not have been better for me to have planted my bare roots into individual containers rather than directly in the ground so that I could move them about as needed as the late Spring and Summer heat gets started. I really want to succeed at growing this beatiful flower. I was thinking in containers I could still keep them in the dedicated bed but have the ability to move them around as needed. Right now Los Angeles temperatures are in the 60's to mid 70's with lows in the upper 40's to 50's but that will be changing to upper 70's to 80's by May and June and then by August 80's to 90's and in September we hit some 100's degree days. If your recommendation is to plant in containers now, how large a container for each should I select. I read that they do not like to be disturbed once established and this particular Peonie reaches a size of about 36 inches wide and 36 inches tall. I am guesstimating that each container should be about 30" to 36". What I am planning on doing during the winter months is to apply ice all around the top to help with the cold this plant needs. During the winter months Los Angeles gets consistent lows for about 5 months of the year of 30's and 40's which probably isn't good enough, hence the reasoning for the ice. Is there any advice someone can give me for succeeding at growing my Mother's favorite flower? Its such a beautiful flower and it would be very special for me to enjoy something that brought my Mother such happiness.