I've been ws for 7+ years and generally start my perennial seeds anytime after winter solstice though mostly in late January/February. Annuals get sown in late March/early April. Most everything sprouts by midMay. I probably should have covered the jugs during some of those daily rains. With the changing weather patterns I will consider it a lesson learned and hope that we don't have another such spring for many years. Some of the jugs were "second chance" jugs, seeds that didn't sprout last year and given a second sowing to see if they might another time. Perhaps those seeds would not have sprouted this year anyway. A few of the old reliables sprouted, alcea, aquilegia, dianthus, papaver, penstemon, platycodyn. Annuals: antirrhinum, cleome, gomphrena, mirabalis, nasturtium, nicotiana, portulaca, salvia, and zinnia.

Julie- I have had Purple Coneflowers around the garden for years. They do seed in the oddest places sometimes but its not a big deal to pull them up move them if its not what I want. I don't dead head as first they attract butterflies with the flowers and then as soon as the Purple Coneflowers set seed, the Goldfinches come and eat on them. The garden here is very much for attracting backyard songbirds, butterflies, hummingbirds and bees. In fact right in back of the daylily plateu in the backyard is another smaller shelf in which I plant sunflowers. Each end of that little tier has a butterfly bush and then sunflowers in the middle going along in a row. I started the sunflowers there last year after I had those garden beds made as I figgured I needed to do something there but it worked out so well that its been picked as the plant sunflowers here spot forever. The goldfinches sure do love to come and eat the sunflowers,even before the seeds are fully ripe. In the picture of GRACE LIKE RAIN that I had above the daisey like things are cosmos and the yellow buds and closed flowers are 4 O'Clocks. They might look funny as the flowers open late in the day and this picture was taken too early for them to be open.

Absolutely LOVE your Arbor. It will be even prettier with bloom all over it from the Clematis. Coneflowers are one of my fave flowers too. I've got every color and style they've come out with....I think....LOL. Thank you for sharing your beautiful pictures Natanya. Nancy

OK, left to right, back row: Paul's Glory, Spartacus, Guardian Angel and Fortunei Aureomarginata. Left to right, next row farther away from fence: Sentimental Journey (what you can see of it, which isn't much), Abiqua Drinking Gourd, Then we have three small, variegated hostas; the one touching leaves with Spartacus is 'Miss Tokyo'. The other two small ones are 'Crusade' and 'Fair Maiden'. The yellow-centered hosta that is growing into f.maiden is 'St Paul'. See that round river stone? Then you can't miss the last two; the little blue variegated at the stone's 6 o'clock (that is Deja Blu) and the solid blue hosta at the stones 3 o'clock is a hybrid of 'Big Mama' that a friend gave to me a few years ago. Hope that took account of all of the hostas in the pic. Happy spring, everyone!!! : )