I was thinking the same thing this spring. I have bulbs and spring plants, but the display I have in my mind, evidently needs a whole lot more...lol. I love daffodils and I still have a few more places I can add more. And I really have enjoyed the Chionodoxa in the lawn out my kitchen window, but I tried 25 as an experiment and that is just a tease. This fall, I'd like to add a couple of 100. I did buy Euphorbia to accompany the bulbs, but it died over the winter. Pulmonaria, Veronicas, Heucheras are all out there early, but not enough of the Heucheras. Now I'm trying to figure out some other companions that will add to the bulb display.

A few years ago, I was determined to have more dicentra and have been picking up a few every year at a local plant sale for $4. each. Last year, I added five new ones and they are small and will take another 2 years to get to the size I like, but I still need MORE!! Right now, Lunaria is blooming with white dicentra and I just love it, I just need more white dicentra.

The first epimediums I planted was in 1996 and I decided a couple of years after that to add more every year and I'm still doing that. Two or three plants a year. I forgot how many I bought last year. I see five new plants I forgot I had and they are really making exactly the effect I wanted, which makes me very happy. I just have to wait for them to get larger. Some are large enough to divide and as soon as they finish blooming, I'm planning on dividing them to increase and still planning on buying more.

I have always wanted a ton of pansies in the spring, but it's just too expensive to buy new every year. I've tried buying them in the fall, starting them from seed with the winter sowing methods, but I still can't find a reliable, cost effective, not too much work method to provide a lot of pansies blooming in spring. It's too late for this year, but in the Fall, I'll try to figure that one out again.

Oh, natives is another direction I'm putting more focus on. I've been adding natives all along, but this year I'm particularly noticing some of them are doing so well, I want to add a lot more. Tiarella cordifolia has come back reliably since planting and in a very dry, bed with a lot of tree roots, it seems to have spread nicely. Arctostaphylus has also spread better than other groundcovers I've tried, so that is on the list.

Okay, I'll stop now. lol

I'm doing some kind of major renovating/moving stuff around this year. There are a lot of plants to move.

Note to self: I don't have to move or save all those daylilies. I've grown to kind of dislike them anyway - the blooms aren't worth the crappy foliage later on - so digging and composting them is OK. I need a change. There are a million other better choices.

Kevin

Oh, I am on automatic now - cannot possibly stop to think or plan - just trudging through the growing list of daily chores until it reaches a peak at around the middle of June....when I can finally kick back and reassess. Too much contemplation just makes me feel overwhelmed - it is literally, one day at a time in survival mode.

-PM, forgot about the Lunaria! I grew a 'Rosemary Verney' (sp?) for the first time last year from seed and it is in its full glory now. I'm lovin' it! It's not as big as I had hoped, but maybe it is in the wrong spot. I'm going to grow a ton more, as well as a variegated one, to have here and there around the yard. Your so lucky to find so many neat-0 epis! Not sure why more nurseries around here don't carry them :-(

Another surprising early bloomer that is cool...'Red Russian' Kale! The yellow flowers and purple foliage is neat with tulips and that Lunaria!

-Kevin, so nice to meet another not-so-keen-about-daylilies gardener! ;-D

-Campanula, I get where you are coming from. For some reason list making is very soothing to me. Second best thing is being able to cross something off a list. LOL. Bizarre, I know.
CMK

Christi, I just looked up a photo of that 'Rosemary Verey' and it looks like it has reddish purple stems, that's different. I have some of the variegated, but they've reverted in my garden to green. I see one left that is variegated from seed that dropped two years ago. I don't actually do anything for the Lunaria except let it go to seed and blow where ever it wants.

As for epimediums, I've ordered half of mine from the specialty nursery by Daryl Probst who collected them in China and bred them.

I've grown red russian kale in the vegetable garden, but have none this year. Interesting that it blooms with the lunaria and bulbs. Of course, that it is edible is a plus~

I'm also not a daylily fan. I only have one in my garden, 'Hyperion' and I've kept it because it is fragrant.

Here is a link that might be useful: Epimedium website

prairiemoon - Yes, 'Hyperion' is one I'm keeping. It really is still one of the best yellows.

Kevin

Note to self.....find that note to self.
Skibby

Ha,ha, skibby, all too true for me. I have notes scattered about my desk and in piles of papers here and there. Lately I've started a to do list on my computer but don't remember to check it.

throw out seeds for poppies in november. lots to do in the fall in prep for spring that i never do!! divide stuff, etc, etc. thanks for the reminder that i need to do some notes to self!!

-PM2, thanks for the Epi link. Can you buy on that site??

Actually, that RV Lunaria has purplish foliage too! Quite stunning as a matter of fact:
{{gwi:211198}}
CMK

CMK, I didn't realize it had dark foliage too, it is very attractive! Thanks for the photo of it.

On that epimedium link I posted, at the top of the page, it has a link to Darrell Probst for more info. If you click on it you will see an email pop up addressed to Karen Perkins, Garden Vision Epimediums. I know that is a little confusing, but they were once married and then divorced and he now does coreopsis breeding and she kept the epimedium business. If you email her, you can either order off that page, or she will send you a catalog.

They have some expensive plants, but also some very reasonable prices. Have no idea about the shipping to the West Coast though. They are in New England. I just ordered herbs from Oregon and the shipping was $13. Brother. I don't do that often, I hate to pay shipping too.

Good luck!