Mentioning this because of your location in NoVA. Years ago DeBaggio's herb farm had artichoke varieties and a whole protocol for growing them. My memory is vague but I seem to recall (late 1990s) one of the owners saying they sold starter plants in late February, before the nursery had properly opened for the season, but generally after the risk of extreme cold. It seems the point was to get them flowering before hot weather because that will reduce the quality of the buds. It was so long ago I had this call I can't remember if it was before or after they moved to Centreville...in fact one of the first things I called them for. (asking whether they had artichokes) Around that time frame though, I never actually visited the Arlington location but I know I called it a couple times. In fact, now that I think about it I think the reason I _didn't_ visit was they told me I was too late to get them that year. Maybe it was something like you had to sign up in late February, you got them in late March before the nursery opened, etc. etc. So, you might contact them to see what they are advising these days. The cardoon can definitely survive milder winters in the DC area, I've had a few in my gardens, but not the more severe ones. I think it's considered a bit hardier though. This post was edited by davidrt28 on Thu, Nov 13, 14 at 11:26

I have a couple of Henry Mitchell books and they are wonderful. His rule of not to bring home a new plant if he's left a bunch of work to do in the garden is a good one (I need to find the exact quote). I still have yet to follow it, but I know I'd be less stressed if I did. 'Roses in the Southern Garden' by Mike Shoup is my idea of a perfect rose book, if only it were four times longer or in multiple volumes. Though it's only a list book, describing varieties, each variety has 2 or 3 pictures along with it. In addition to some closeups, tons of long views of the roses in gardens. Every photograph in that book tells a story. I'm not even in the south and probably a third of the roses wouldn't be hardy here, but the book still has a lot of inspiration I can use. It's easy to forget that Landscaping itself is an art when you look at some of the seemingly uninspired assortment of shrub landscapes. That seems so boring to a worshiper of the queen of flowers. But landscaping is about using the principles of design like balance, unity, emphasis- aren't those artistic terms? It's helpful to have a plan before we dig up the next patch of lawn, and to think about the why and how it will interact with the garden as a whole. Some people are naturals at designing their gardens, but I am not. I grab this plant and that because it's oh so pretty and then have to try and figure out where to put it. Learning to see- something that's talked about on the Landscape forum, is a process for me. Here are some regional books that have helped me... 'Cutting Edge Gardening in the Intermountain West' by Marcia Tatroe (my absolute favorite) 'The Undaunted Garden' by Lauren Springer 'Passionate Gardening' by Lauren Springer and Rob Proctor 'Xeriscape Handbook' by Gayle Weinstein (This was the one recommended in the class I took because of the sections on assessing the site and making a plan) 'Landscaping on the New Frontier-Waterwise design for the Intermountain West ' by Susan Meyer and others (excellent illustrations and how to draw a plan info- definite native bent) Vettin- the above list might not help you specifically, but I thought I might include it for others who may be reading. You might find some regional books too. Winter seems very long round these parts and there's plenty of time for reading. Nuggets of Inspiration can be had from many books. No book has to be treated like a bible- well except maybe The Bible. : )

My artichoke and leek seedlings are doing well under lights. I only will plant a max of 10 artichoke plants, but I have over 20. Anyone in N. VA that wants to trade for some of my artichokes; send me an email.

Fawn Brodie's "psychological analysis" of Jefferson is not admired by some historians and several have written blistering rebuttals, such as Clifford Egan's article "How Not to Write a Biography: A Critical Look at Brodie's Jefferson in the the Social Science Journal 14, No. 2, and Virginius Dabney in The Jefferson Scandals: A Rebuttal. I enjoyed Annette Gordon-Reed's Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: An American Controversy because she lays out the evidence but refrains from making an all-out judgment. With the recent DNA-testing results proving that Sally's descendants are related to Jefferson's acknowledged descendants, it might seem the case is settled, but it's not. It's long been suspected that John Wayles, Jefferson's father-in-law, fathered Sally Hemings with his slave Betty -- making her the half-sister of Martha Wayles, Jefferson's wife -- thus the DNA could be indicating that relationship. Actually, there's a double possibility of the DNA evidence: along with the Wayles side, one or the other of Jefferson's nephews, the Carr brothers (his sister's sons), could be a candidate to have fathered Sally's children. Of course, there's the possibility it was Jefferson himself, but there's not irrefutable proof so we're back to square one. Barbara Chase-Riboud's fictional account, Sally Hemings, makes the conclusion that Jefferson indeed had a long-term affair with Sally -- as did the film Jefferson in Paris, and it's all very interesting but readers/viewers who accept the conclusions as fact really should read the nonfiction criticisms, synoptically if possible.