Our winters are drier than coastal Californian winters. We normally get our rains spread out throughout the year with heavier fall and May/june rains. It can rain any time or not at all. Mostly it is zone 9. The lowest it got last year was was 26 degrees. We are also very warm with an occasional sharp swing down for three days. Our normal lows are in the 40's in December and January with a occasion arctic blast that could take us down to 19 but hasn't for several years. I am still experiencing lows in the 60's. Our rainfall can vary from 34" to 11" per year. When it is really cold it is very dry. I have studied Daves Garden , Arid lands and San Marcus growers hardiness estimates and that is why I am taking a chance. I live in the uplands of the area and drainage is almost too much. Many plants live on my land that do not reside downhill. It is also colder downhill. I have many Zone 9 plants living unprotected. I have a gorge that starts on my property that drains off the cold and deposits it 4 miles away in a friends backyard. She can be 24 degrees and I will be above freezing still. She is at 700' above sea level and I am at 1400'. I guess it is all about micro climates. I am still figuring this one out. I hear about the popularity of Aloes in Californian landscaping and Texas seems similar in some respects but lags far behind in testing these plants out. I am only now figuring out how Californian winters and summers differ from mine and trying to make judgements about plants that would or would not work here.. I have some friends in and around California and this year I have been following their weather on Weatherunderground and comparing highs and lows with me. Yes, I am obsessive. I do have freeze cloths. They do work wonders. I guess I am one to take chances.

Hi everyone, Over the years I blended a few recipes for our tacos. First for those who fear the chipotle, don't worry, it's just in the chipotle tomatillo salsa. So you can substitute your own salsa Originally we just made onion and chard tacos which like the salsa came from everyday Mexican by Rick bayless. But one day we were over at my SILs house and she served a black bean sweet potato taco with a cabbage slaw. All very good, but missing my husbands favorite cheese topping and a little of the smoky heat of the salsa we like as she used a classic rojas sauced mixed with a cashew cream to flavor the potato mixture. I've included a link to her taco inspiration at the bottom. Anyway the next time we made our tacos we ended up adding roasted spiced sweet potatoes and continue to do so to this day.. Rick bayless's Carmelized onion and Swiss chard taco 2 bunches of Swiss chard, thick lower stems removed ( although if I'm not making soup in the future I will add the stems to the tacos and just add the stems first cook for about 5 minutes before I add the ribbons ) 1 1/2 tbl. oil, lard or bacon drippings ( adjust for your own dietary concerns, my vegan sil just cooks everything in a homemade veggie broth no oil) 1 1/2 large onions. thinly sliced 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 tsp. red pepper flakes (add more or less depending on how spicy you like it) 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth (water works too) Salt 16-20 warm corn tortillas 1 cup (4 ounces) Queso Fresco or other fresh cheese such as feta or goat cheese Smoky Chipotle Salsa for serving (recipe below) Slice the chard into 1/2-inch ribbons. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion then cook until golden brown. To the onions add the red pepper flakes and garlic. Stir for about 20 seconds until you are hit with the aroma of the garlic then immediately add the broth or water, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the greens. Adjust the heat to medium-low then cover the skillet. Cook until the greens are almost tender. For Swiss chard this will be about 5 -7 minutes. ( in a pinch we've subbed beet greens and kale) Uncover the pan, adjust the heat to medium-high then cook until the juices have reduced significantly and merely glaze the greens. Taste and add salt if you think it needs it. Serve with the corn tortillas, crumbled fresh cheese and Chipotle salsa. Sweet potato addition: before starting greens : 2 large orange sweet potatoes or yams, cubed about 1" Juice from a lime (1/2 to 1 whole lime depending on your flavor preferences) Spices to taste: cumin, smoked paprika, chili powder 1/2 tbsp oil Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Put sheet pan in oven while it preheats. Meanwhile in a bowl place the cubes of sweet potato, 1/2 tbsp of oil, dash of smoked paprika, dash of cumin, dash of chili powder and pinch of chili flakes, and lime juice. Toss together until all of the potato chunks are coated. Place on the preheated rack and return to oven. Bake until softened through and toasted brown. about 40 minutes. I usually flip the potatoes at 15 and 30 minutes to ensure even cooking. Remove from the oven and let stand when cooked through. Salsa: 3 garlic cloves, peeled 4 medium tomatillos, husked, rinsed and cut in half 2 canned chipotle chilies Place a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. If it is not a non-stick, Rick Bayless recommends placing a layer of aluminum foil on the bottom. Place the garlic and tomatillos (cut side down) in the skillet. After about 3-4 minutes the tomatillos should be well browned. Turn everything over and brown on the other side. After another 3-4 minutes the tomatillos should be completely soft. Place the garlic and tomatillos into a blender or food processor, along with the chilies and 1/4 cup water. Blend to a coarse puree. Taste and adjust for salt if you like. We don't particularly care for cilantro in our house but I'm sure others would prefer some in this salsa. Pour into a dish and let cool before serving. We tend to keep toppings very plain on these in just the salsa and a light dusting of really good quality cheese but top however you'd like. Also a delicious sweet potato taco( SIL inspiration) can be found here: http://thursdaynightsmackdown.com/2008/03/16/tacogate-2006-sweet-potato-red-chard/ This post was edited by NashvilleBuild42 on Tue, Feb 18, 14 at 2:41

Do you own own the creek and sidewalk on your side of the creek? If not who has control of the creek and sidewalk? Do you have a homeowners association who have control over these features? Start with that then we can talk details. ALoha

Great photos. We can identify some if you would like us to try. I see what I think is Francee and two I think are u. albomarginata. Others might be able to name others. If you want us to try that, start a new post with ID or NOID in the subject line. Give us a big photo of your hosta and only put two per post. (It gets confusing when there are more than two varieties in a post.) I, too, have had good luck with Hallson's. I also like Land of the Giants and Green Mountain. I've always heard great things about Naylor Creek. Here's a link to a thread we did a couple of years ago, entitled "where to buy hosta". Pay attention to the places that are recommended by more than two people. http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1963531/where-to-buy-hosta?n=51 bk