Rhodyman, Hello, this is my first time posting in this section of Garden web. You web site is very nice! I am very new to azaleas and Rhododendrons. I have a few azaleas in my yard now, that were planted by previous owners. I have a question which I hope you, or anyone with a understanding of these plants could help me with. I am in the process of finishing digging my pond approx. 13X21 ft, with a extension/leg of 8ft x 9ft. There will be approx 2-3ft water fall on the berm area. After much thinking about the planting style I want, I have decided to go with a Japanese garden flavor. From reading in the books I have purchased, azaleas are used a great deal in these gardens. I am a bit intimadated in planting these plants because of the picky planting conditions (I have basically clay soil, with maybe a 3-4" of topsoil). On your website under "Japanese Rhododendrons" one of the examples you give is for R. indicum (indica azalea) as one of the oldest used azaleas. So...... do you think that is the best azalea to use for my Japanese style garden? Or should I have other varities? I like that the Indica azalea is a evergreen shrub, I hate looking outside in our Virginia winters and not seeing any "green". So basically I am thinking of using azaleas, rhododendrons, and Japanese Holly as a basis for my garden, does anyone have any thoughts on this or suggestions? Also, on your site you have a large list of suggested books on these plants, what do you suggest as a best book or 2 books to buy for a newbie to azaleas? Let me try to post a few pictures of my pond area. This first pic shows the "enlargement and new "leg" of pond. This last pic is a photo of before I had enlarged my pond. Any help is appreciated.

My caryopteris are all leafing out. They are all at least five years old. They are very exposed to the wind. I'm sorry you lost yours. I am very fond of mine but three is all I have room for. I've got Dark Knight, Worchester Gold and one whose cultivar escapes me at the moment. I'll have to look for those Daphnes. My DH is very sensitive to smells but Daphne smells good to him. Many other flowers don't even if I think they are wonderful. I certainly am aware that plants perform differently in different locations. Hebes are fairly new to me so I had nowhere else to start but with the tags since I don't have internet capability unless I am home. Gotta get one of those phones with a browser so I can Google plants from the nursery. I planted the Hebe of questionable hardiness against a south facing wood fence so maybe that will help.

(I'm not wanting to do much amending, just plop it in and let it go) ==>>> see link below on planting in clay .... then look at the section on proper watering ... do not rely on your opinion that its always wet.. to just go popping it in and walking away .. you might also do a perk test ... to see how bad your clay might be... drainage is the issue with clay ... and once you understand how it drains.. you can water properly ... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=garden+perk+test&t=ffcm&ia=web not many things that grow to 5 feet... will magically stop at 5 feet ... so be careful with size .... how deep is the bed... out from the foundation??? ... try to find things and plant them far enough away .. so that you will have a 2 or 3 foot empty space between the house and the plant.. for house maintenance ... this MI boy doesnt feel qualified to offer suggestions on specific plants ... but i would further suggest... that you will get the best suggestions ... if you give us a pic of the front of the house ... and perhaps give us a big city name ... as GA is rather large.. north to south .... good luck .. ken https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub

The lilacs are just starting at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. I haven't been to see them, but my husband has. In a few days I will go to see them also. I suppose if I really wanted to see lilacs I would have to arrange a trip to Rochester, NY where they still may have some of the ones that Leonie Bell and Helen Van Pelt Wilson wrote about years ago in their book, The Fragrant Year. I always think of Leonie Bell's drawing of individual lilac blooms: Bell and Wilson recommended various early lilacs for fragrance, among them 'Claude Bernard' (now unobtainable and even then rare), 'Turgot' and 'Charles Nodine'. None of them appear to be in commerce nowadays and were rare even then. They can get quite huge. Of the classic French ones hybridized by Lemoine, they had this to say: And then the species, of which I have the fern-leaved S. laciniata (now sometimes called Syringa proto laciniata [afghanica]), which I bought based on their enticing (somewhat hyperbolic?) description. Mine is not as fragrant as promised, but it is beautiful, small growing, and doesn't get mildew in summer. They describe it as having a sweet fragrance like wisteria or daphne -- whatever. I have moved mine twice because it got too big. I don't know if it will bloom this year. Last year frost got the buds, both of mine and of the specimen at BBG.. This year we shall see. All the words on this page are about laciniata; (S. pubescens was discussed on the previous page). Finally, I have one of an early lilac at BBG from two days ago. Sorry it is kind of blurry, but I'm glad he took it since it shows the manner of growth.