I think scotch thistle was brought over here by the ornamental trade. I spend several days a year grubbing it out of the front 5 acres. I spent a lot of money getting rid of Quinoa akbea that was strangling a bunch of trees in some land that I shared with my sisters in Pennsylvania and we all lived far away. It was way into the canopies of trees and had a 3 acre spread and branches were breaking, trees dying. One thing to think about in comparing Europe to the US is the amount of wild land that isn't gardened and this land can be invaded. I live close to a 3000 acre park, and a couple 8000 acre ranches. No one is out their weeding. Invasives are a problem. They blow in from the suburbs. They get brought in in hay bales. That is how I got Johnson grass. Birds bring vine berries.Yellow star malta thistle has taken over 15 million acres in California and it causes horses to get a neurological condition that keeps them from swallowing so they chew and chew and die of starvation. IyT is in the cattle guard and on my list to poison. One can drive through States and states of Kudzo and then one enters the Mile a minute hanging forests of west virginia,virginia and Kentucky and then the Appalachians full of multiflora rose and Jappanese knotweed. It is sad to see the landscape in distress. I have an fragrant mimosa in my yard. It is a native and it Makes A LOT of seed but there's a bug that lives and bores into almost every seed and lays an egg or something in each one. I would not advise taking it to England without a good population of that bug. It is hard to pull out with a wicked deep root and spreads by its root too. It is in balance here, and I love its fragrance, but I can see that if that bug wasn't here, it would be a bugger. The thing about invasive lists is they are the plants that are already out of the gate. The ones that are just gathering steam have not been addressed. It gets so confusing because a plant van be a real problem in one place and not be a problem 20 miles away.Globalization with its ease of shipping plant material and the stepped up pace of plant introduction of these last decades is going to bite us in the @ss.

FWIW, we have always gotten our best blooms in the Fall flush. Around mid-to-late October. And just at present, the Teas are blooming around Plumerias, which is sort of neat. Jeri

Rosefolly, Ashmead's Kernel is one of my absolute favorites! If I were to grow only one apple tree, it would probably be it. Well, maybe Esopus Spitzenburg too... Of those you mention, Empire apples can often be found in grocery stores here, indeed probably because it's from NY state. I have never heard of Cinnamon Spice either. It's difficult to resist apples with such names. This year one of the highlights was when we saw for the first time Black Gilliflower, nicknamed 'Sheep Nose' (a very old variety from Connecticut, 1700s). We were twisting our heads and looking at all angles to see if any looked like it, and lo' and behold quite a few had the shape of a sheep's head from profile view. It gave me a chuckle. I picked a couple but haven't yet tried them, they still need to ripen a bit. Chris, I've looked up your two apples and they do indeed look similar, but both must be very delicious. Ha, just this morning I made applesauce! The best advice I got about making it, and incidentally it's from the good people at this orchard, is to mix several different varieties, tart and sweet. And I also love how the kitchen then smells, ... autumn is here. gdinieontario, I'm glad about you found Akane and many thanks for mentioning this orchard. It looks like a nice place to visit when in Ontario. Summers, I also like looking at online recipes. They have the advantage of readers' comments, truly tried & tested. And valuable especially when more than one person make similar suggestions for altering the recipe. Perma, I'll mention this book to the orchard owner because, as a family-owned farm with more than 300 varieties, they are not entirely organic but do try to reduce chemicals and use integrated pest management. Thank you.

Thank you for taking the time and thought to list them Kristine, I knew it would be hard. Your list will likely grow after you try out your new additions. I'm digging like a gopher to extend my East flower bed a few more yards . I've held out a long time not buying Munstead Wood. There was only one left at a nearby nursery ; when I changed my mind and turned back to get it, a young couple carried it to the checkout. Bolero was only 17 dollars at Walmart last Summer , I think I must have been paying off a big Vet bill at the time . It seems like when I deny myself new roses too long, the dam finally bursts and I go hog wild buying a few regrets. Last year I went vegetable seed crazy which turned out far more expensive than any of my rose purchases , substitutions don't work.