I think that planting 3-5 of the same lily fairly close together, then interspersing other plants with different foliage looks best with lilies. Usually "lily beds" that have only lilies in them look pretty funny, because of their admittedly freakish foliage/stems. But how many flower can compete with the beauty of a lily bloom? With all the hundreds of varieties and hybrids, they can suit just about any need - and they are just so darn dependable! They can usually manage to be planted fairly close to other plants, as long as there is still some breathing room so they don't get disease. Just don't forget where your bulbs are and spear them accidentally!

Hi Chris, Its a poly Rubbermaid tank that's darkish grey. Would it work to put clear plastic over it until it warms up?? Or would that cook it? No fish, but tadpoles. Would the heat hurt them? color=green> I was really wondering if it was metal. Since it is "plastic" and gray I'd say it is probably "drawing" a little extra heat on sunny days. (Now that you described it I have seen these in our local Tractor Supply store.) I've noticed this year in my area it has been more cloudy than in previous years. I think that factors into the mix, too. I'd hesitate to cover it with plastic now. It would probably heat up......possibly TOO MUCH for the tadpoles. And I'd hate to see you lose the tadpoles/frogs. Now the waterlilies would take the extra heat. :-) I have fish in both my ponds so I wouldn't cover them with plastic either. My two ponds are above ground. I built treated lumber frames, covered them with treated plywood (inside) and then dropped liners in each one. The smaller pond is 4' x 6' and has been going for 6 years. I bought a pond kit on clearance at Walmart for $35. My larger pond I built last May. It is 6' x 11'. I'll include a link to my Facebook page if you want to see pictures of last year's ponds. I haven't had time to take pictures yet this year. I had Green Smoke last year. I wasn't real impressed with it, as far as color. I have Dauben this year, and it reminds me of Green Smoke.color=green> I first saw Green Smoke at Longwood Gardens in PA. I love the coloring on the first two days. LOL! After that the petal tips "throw" the colors for me. That purple/deep raspberry on the tips just doesn't work with the rest of the flower. But I do love it. I've grown it two years in a row. I've seen Dauben at Lilypons and it is a little to pale blue for my taste. But it is a blooming fool! I do intend to grow it one year. This year I also have Panama Pacific again and its doing well. I also have a Fire Opal from Menards. I've had good luck with their water lilies, but this year I was a sucker. I should have known that there aren't any hardy purple lilies, but the picture on the container was purple, and they wrote that the color was Purple. Well, its light pink that turns to white the second day. Oh well, nothing ventured, nothing gained.color=green> I've grown Panama Pacific. Probably two years ago. Lovely color!!! Of the hardy waterlilies I have Attraction, Sulphurea, and Pink Grapefruit. LOVE the Pink Grapefruit. It blooms and blooms. Attraction (red) is not really a deep enough red, but it grows vigorously and quickly helps provide coverage in the spring. Haven't see Fire Opal. Sorry it wasn't purple enough for you. So many of the catalogs "lie" about the colors. GRRR! What do the McClane and St. Louis Gold look like? Where did you get them? color=green> McClane is a deep blue/lavender. The flowers are HUGE. The foliage is nicely striped and splotched. These stand up pretty high, too. St. Louis Gold is a deep yellow. And I've not had a tropical that flowered this much! The plant is a little less vigorous with foliage, but it just pumps out the flowers. I'm about a hour from Lilypons in PA. I either drive up or order online from them each year. Wonderful water gardening company. They also have a location in Texas, too, if I remember correctly. Do you overwinter your tropicals. If so, how? I've tried a couple times, but it hasn't worked. I was thinking of digging a deep hole with the post-hole digger and just keeping them down in there.color=green> I've tried without much luck. I have had the tropical set seeds, which I saved, and then raised from seed the following two years. Seeds were from a blue (un-named) waterlily that I had purchased at Springdale Water Gardens in VA. The seeds produced flowers in shades of blue, pink, and lavender. I think the first year I had about 15 that I grew from seed. I had 20 gallon tubs sitting EVERYWHERE that year. LOL! Lilypons and Springdale offer a "heated" pot that the catalog blurbs say will keep the tropicals warm enough to overwinter IN the pond. But I think only through zone 6 or 7. It sells for around $50. My problem is I wouldn't want to grow the same tropicals every year.......well, other than Green Smoke. I got my tropicals from William Tricker.color=green> I've seen their online catalog and they have an excellent selection. I'm tempted to try them one year. Lilypons is so good at getting stuff to me quickly that I just use them most of the time. I placed an order on Wednesday morning earlier this year. I had the order at my front door on Thursday! I'm spoiled! My leaves on the Juno and Red Flare are huge. I wonder if the leaves get larger, as an attempt to get more sun. I'm thinking I should find more sun for it. If it wasn't blossoming 'cause its not warm enough, you'd think it wouldn't put out so many leaves either. It looks very healthy. I have a volunteer butterfly bush that grew up in the rocks around my lotus bog. Its shading the lotus too much, but its so hard getting rid of the bush, since it attracts such beautiful butterflies. Ooohhhh....so many plants.......so little sun! haha Thanks for your help.color=green> I lost my lotus this year. I'm going to try to raise another one from seed next year. I've had good luck growing my own. I have a friend in Malaysia who sends me lotus seeds occasionally. I've grown a white and a double pink from seeds she sent me. Good Luck, Chris Here is a link that might be useful: Facebook Account....Click on Photos to see pond pics

They are that old daffodil dating back to the colonial era in American gardens and seen at old house sites and along the roadside throughout the Southeast--like the snowdrops, aka snowflakes, jonquils (Campernelles), and Roman hyacinths, cherished by generations of gardeners. The Lent lilies came over with the European colonists and have been grown in the Old World for centuries. The are the "host" of daffodils in that famous Wordsworth poem. Yes, "golden bell," or forsythia, can easily be forced for indoor arrangements this time of the year. Just snip an odd-number of branches and put them inside the house in a vase. A cut-glass, crystal vase would be pretty with a forced arrangement of forsythia. Add a little "breath-of-spring," (_Lonicera fragrantissima_), wintersweet (_Chimonanthus praecox_) and/or Japanese Flowering Apricot (_Prunus mume_) for fragrance. A few camellias would be a nice touch.

Very pretty, looks like you and your Mom have something going there! Do you happen to know what the orange plant poking through the fence is? And that orangy red rose on the fence (last photo) is just gorgeous. I would like to know about that rose, too. The lilies too are scrumptious!