have you considered adding various cacti that you can grow indoors during the winter when they "rest"? i did this when living in ohio and simply placed them in a position that gives them ample light during their "resting period". never lost a cactus plant and i still do the same since moving to south carolina and have yet to lose a plant. have a few to trade if you are interested. jeff

Tom, The very spikey one was sold as O. engelmanii, and it has large pads when compared to humifusa. The other one has even larger pads, but fewer spikes. It was labeled simlply as Opuntia species. I haven't been able to identify it yet. This year (right now in fact) it has several fairly large ripe fruits. The O. humifusa does get all shriveled and even a purplish color in coldest weather, but come next spring it bounces back and grows like a weed. I've had that one for over 40 years, but when I had the yard relandscaped, large mats of it got trashed. I did manage to save a few clumps, and they spread quickly. It was not unusual to have 500+ blooms on the original clump, as it was over 10' in diameter. The soil under the stones is average, and I didn't amend it. There is weed cloth under the stones. I didn't amend because I formed slight mounds for drainage, and also the front of the house is in blazing sun all year and also has full air circulation so it dries out well. Most of the plants you see are in the third year, but the ice plants are about 10 years old and were replanted when that area was constructed. The Yucca is about 15 years old.

Hi Travis; Usually?...only spring and early summer. But there might be the oddball flower or two. Now succulents are a different matter. My sedums are all in bloom or bud right now. Some semps are finished and some are just starting. And the hardy iceplants have a long season too. Orostachys will be in bloom in the late summer/early fall. Let me know what varieties you have by email and I'll see if I can fill in some blanks. Dave Milwaukee

The coldest temperatures are usually around the end of December through January, with a few scattered cold days (just barely below freezing) in February and March. I've seen the temperature drop to 22 degrees, but not every year. Usually, about 28 degrees is the coldest, and it doesn't stay under freezing for very long, only a couple hours. I do have some cacti, succulents, spider plants, prickly fern (and a few other plants) outside all year, but they don't tolerate full sun, so I have them hidden, where they get very little sun, or no sun. The prickly fern, however, does tolerate full sun, no sun, partial sun, very hot weather (even up to 118 degrees F!), and the very cold, even the lowest temperatures down to 22 degrees. I lost some beautiful jades and spider plants from heavy ice on the leaves (winter of 06-07), and about eight years earlier, so I've brought all my jades inside, and some other succulents along with some cacti. They are doing very well inside! Although, I don't expect that they will flower with no sun ... - Riding 4 Life http://vj4him.blogspot.com/