Well Jack, you are wrong, again! I did not "do a search for 'are there any vegetables that critters will not eat' when you already knew the answer was no". You see, after I finished reading all of these wonderful and informative comments, I did further research and LEARNED (because I am still capable of admitting I don't know everything) that deer/critters in one area will eat some things while deer/critters in other areas eat other things and that most vegetables will ultimately be subject to deer/critter consumption. But you have to admit you have a way of going off topic.

shade is near impossible to define in words .. your shade is.. well.. your shade ... so you are simply left with..as you call it.. sticking blobs in there and seeing what happens ... lack of full sun affects vigor.. so things to not grow to expectation or specs ... so you simply stick blobs in there and seeing what happens ... and for sure.. the deeper the shade.. the sparser.. leggier ... more open they will be.. but who cares... they are just blobs ... shade will kill nothing ... so you.. are you with me yet? ....simply stick blobs in there and seeing what happens ... however.. the large trees creating the shade will kill things... so you.. wait for it ...simply stick blobs in there and seeing what happens ... but you are solely responsible for proper watering for at least two years... to get them established ... now since your whole premise is BLOBs... i have no clue why you would plant all of one kind of blob ... crikey man.. diversify your blobs ... do one of each of the named above.. and figure out which blob works best ... and you become the resident blob expert in shade ... and the award for the most usage of blob in one post goes to ... ME!@!!!! never amend a hole.. ever .. but especially under large mature trees.. in digging the hole ..... you will be cutting roots.. and guess where it will put new feeder roots.. into your new amended soil .. and that is also why you will want to stay with native soil ... and water deeply and infrequently ... so as to not encourage the super tree to choke out the little tree ... there is a reason why the understory is usually barren... and in filling it.. you better take this into account ... blob... blob.. blob ... lol .... ken ps: lack of sun will also effect yellow tissue ... the plants will probably remain green.. instead of properly coloring up.. so i wouldnt go for anything wildly variegated .... but.. you never know.. just throw a variegated blob in.. and see what happens ...

OK, finally, I remembered! the notes and instructions are Carol's (Readinglady). Old Fashioned Pear Preserves from Carol (Readinglady) Yu can also make Pear Preserves if you want chunks of pear suspended in syrup. By weight use equal amounts of pears and sugar. You also need the juice and seeds of one lemon. I wouldn't go over about 4 pounds of fruit because it takes too long to cook larger amounts. This takes several days, but it's mainly waiting and the results are wonderful. Here's what you do: Day 1: Peel, core and cut firm-ripe pears into chunks or slices. Leave pieces large enough to retain character in preserves. Place pears in acidified water (Fruit Fresh or Ascorbic Acid). Rinse and drain pears. Place in large bowl and add sugar equal in weight to pears. Add juice of lemon and place pips (seeds) in small bag. It's messy but I also add any of the pulp that was reamed out. Add to bowl. Stir gently to distribute syrup and refrigerate overnight. Throughout evening stir occasionally to distribute sugar. (I usually don't do this more than once.) Day 2: Place macerated pears and sugar syrup with lemon seeds in bag in large pan. Bring to a boil and cook about 10 minutes, skimming foam. Reduce temperature and continue to cook (about 20 minutes) until pears are translucent and candied. Turn off heat and leave pears and syrup overnight. (This can be room temperature.) Cover pan with a cloth, not a lid (to prevent condensation). Day 3: Using a slotted spoon lift pears from syrup and place in a strainer. Collect any additional syrup in a bowl beneath the strainer. (I drained syrup left in pan into a bowl and washed the pan because the syrup was crystallized along the rim then I put the syrup back.) Bring syrup to a boil and cook to gel point stirring frequently. (Depending on how thick you want the syrup, this can be anywhere from 218-222°.) You can also use the frozen plate test. The advantage is you get to thicken the syrup just the way you like without cooking the delicate pears to the point of disintegration. Return the pears to syrup and boil 1 minute to reheat them. Pull off heat and let sit for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. (This allows fruit to equalize with the syrup so it doesn't float to the top of the jar.) Place preserves in sterilized jars and BWB 5 minutes or clean, hot jars and BWB 10 minutes. This recipe is my favorite jam recipe, ever, one of those "OMG, how did I miss out on this" preserves. It's one of the few preserves I make that I don't share, it's ALL MINE!!! Happy Canning. Annie

If I wanted to move AND split my hostas, I imagine the directions would be the same. But, do I pull roots away or cut the bulb? Do I spread and mound the roots or pack them down or? ALSO, I have hostas (planted before I bought house) that are in full sun (9:00AM to 1:00 PM). I went to buy more to fill in some surrounding areas and they all say "shade" - what do I do? One more question - anyone know of a great place to buy them that are not super expensive? Thanks. Jan in Atlanta, GA.