I'm not quite in your zone but I do have to watch out for higher temps and, especially, wild fluctuations. So I'll take a stab at some advice. It can be hard to keep containers watered once you open them up (after true leaves form and the plants begin to really grow). For that reason I think it is EXTRA important to make sure your containers are deep enough and hold sufficient "soil". It will be almost impossible to keep shallow containers from drying out as temperatures go up. Also, it helps to keep your containers in a shadier location. They will turn into vegetable steamers in direct southern sun. I like 2 and 3 liter bottles because they are deep. The more "dirt" the longer it takes to dry out. For timing about when to plant out... Do you have frost in zone 9? If so, keep track of the normal "date of last frost". A lot of varieties can take some frost but others (tender annuals) can't. Hold off on any that you are not pretty sure can take the cold. I have had little success with direct sowing, probably because it is so hard to keep the soil evenly moist for germination. THAT is the main problem that wintersowing solves for me. And small children aren't the only predators who can attack your garden. Birds eat seeds. Rain washes them into places you hadn't planned to plant. Rabbits and other varmints eat baby plants. It is really nice to give the little ones a chance to grow a bit before exposing them to the big world. As for your poor soil...me too. Mine is almost pure sand. I would strongly advise you to take some time to amend your beds before the plants go in. While your little sprouts are growing, work in compost, chopped fall leaves, whatever organic stuff you can find and afford to add to your flowerbeds. It would probably be best to get your soil analyzed. Your county extension office can do this for very little money. That will tell you specifically what your garden lacks and you will probably save the cost in avoiding unnecessary fertilizers, etc. It will NEVER be easier to improve your soil than BEFORE you plant. And decent soil will make a lot of the difference between success and failure.

I have purchased from just about everywhere in order to feed my addiction....lol. When I first started out I gave no consideration to anything but a pretty face and ordered whatever from wherever. Now that I have hundreds of daylilies I've kept note of which ones are my best and worst performers and where I got them from. With the exception of Blue Ridge (whose plants were huge when I received them and still the biggest and most vigorous)...bigger isn't necessarily better when it comes to daylily fans. Most of the ones from southern growers were huge and have dwindled down not only in size but vigor. Northern grown plants came smaller in size but have bulked up. Of course there are always exceptions and I have some that came from the south or California and are great plants.....but the majority from warmer climates just aren't the stars in my garden. I don't have to worry about rust here (zone 4) but hardiness is the biggest concern and which ones will bloom the most in my shortened season. If they barely survive my winters I end up losing fans or the entire plant and those that struggle end up composted. I used to mail-order exclusively but now I visit local daylily farms (New England in general) and see what does well and base my purchases on performance and vigor mostly. Celeste

There is no hosta that would tolerate the sun in Texas for even two hours in the summer. That being said, I have just the common variety in my front flowerbed under teh porch overhang and they are fine. I hand pick a slug or two, but I've not had any serious problems. This might be because they are contained in a bed, and not near any leaf litter or anything, I don't know. If you want to bring some of your beloved hostas-the more hardy of them will likely be fine in the shade. Look online to see what they are rated as far as zone goes. If you use the moisture control beads in the pot, they may be easier to care for as potted plant specimens, if you don't mind fussing a bit. I don't fuss over mine a bit. I need to lift one or two that are dwindling because they've sunken too deep, but other than making sure I turn the soaker hose on for at least an hour once a week in the summer, I don't do anything for them save a bit of compost. They sell heuchera here..but you must almost create a microclimate for it. If you want to baby it, and don't mind failing just in case it happens, I don't see a problem with trying one or two in an appropriate spot to see what happens. We have a lot of pretty foliage plants, both annual and perennial down here. Some coleus are rated for sun, and those are beautiful. If you like grasses at all, those are good. What you will find in the nurseries here is that most of them stock a lot that while it may say Zone 9...it may not necessarily grow in this part of Zone 9. If you can, take a new friend that would know to the store with you, or at least look on davesgarden to see if it's reported as being grown here or near here in similar conditions (or you can just ask here....there are a ton of knowlegable people growing everything under the sun).

It is still dormant. Watch putting her in the direct sun real fast. We had that hot week and then this cool one. Do you have a sunny window to put her in. It is going to take awhile till you see much change. Once she is use to the sun she will love it out there. Most say to plant them with about 2" all the way around from the caudex to the pot. A lot of people here like about 4 to 6" of pot below. I use a bonsai pot so as to keep a smaller tree. It would grow in this pot for a very long time. But it likes tight roots. Since our nights can be cool bring it in when it is below 50. We are suppose to be warming up. Remember you can have a micro climate in your area so you will have to judge that the soil is draining and damp. not soggy. When your up against the hills the temps, humidity and breezes can very. I grew up in Niles. so I know the various weather the bay gets. Just keep a look out for caudex that gives or branches that get odd spots on them. I am guessing your tree is about 4 months old. But I may be wrong. With all the great heat you will be having soon. The roots will build them selves up and start pushing out leaves. My young ones do it slowly. I have even seen some throw a bloom before our Oct weather turns cold. Give it as much light as you can when in the house. But don't let the window glass burn the skin. Be patient with it. It grows at it's own rate. When it is older you can learn to shape and graft on it if you want.