Well I guess some designs are only pleasing to the designer! This garden is just 2 houses down from my own garden, and delights me every time I pass by. If one takes the time to compare the narrower parking(or hell strip) section with the garden adjacent the house; there is quite a bit more detailed variety played off massed foliage color of the other. This garden is still very young, only a year old in these shots. Some of the plants that Woody didn't like in particular, including the pinkish foliage tipped Eucalyptus 'Moon Lagoon' are simply stunning as it goes through its various color changes, and will eventually get 8 feet tall. The taller feathery foliage of the Grevillea 'Moonlight' with its large creamy white flowers over half the year are also an unusual species that will eventually get the size of a small tree. The long view of this garden from up the street is especially colorful as all the color gets foreshortened and also catches both the early morning and late afternoon light. As the shrubs grow in they will more effectively soften the view of all the multiple utility meters that serve the entire courtyard of houses at the alley beyond this home. I'll admit to a fondness for acid yellow flowers and chartreuse/acid yellow foliage as a seasonal effect; but I enjoy plants such as the hardy across much of the USA Sedum rupestre 'Angelina' exactly because it does revert from softer chartreuse to acid yellow in summer with the change of seasons, always cooled down by the blue foliage of the Senecio. Here is a link that might be useful: Alternate views

Here is a list to check out. There aren't too many clematis with light lavender, but these all are nodding or bell-shaped at least part of their life and are in the mid to light blue/lavender/purple shades. Remember that photos of this color range are notoriously inaccurate, so read descriptions and look at a bunch of photos, not just one, to get an idea of color. Also, colors may vary according to sun exposure and growing conditions a bit. Most (though not all) of these are carried by Brushwood, Silver Star Vinery, Joy Creek, or Hummingbird Farm. My apologies that I didn't notice you were Canadian before I created this list. Hopefully you can find some of them available to you and at least one will fill your needs. Clematis STAR RIVER 'Zostarri' Clematis TWINKLE 'Zotwi' Clematis BLUE RIVER 'Zoblueriver' Clematis I AM LADY J 'Zoiamlj' Clematis 'Buckland Pixie' Clematis 'Little Bas' Clematis viticella 'Hagelby Blue' Clematis 'Carol Lim' Clematis viticella 'Hanna' Clematis 'Pagoda' Clematis 'Yugiri' Clematis 'Yugao' Clematis 'Doctor Mary' Clematis 'Kahori no Kimi' Clematis 'Amelia' Clematis 'Murasaki no ue' Clematis 'Emilia Plater' Clematis 'Fairydust' Clematis 'Hakuree' Clematis 'Chatsworth' Clematis 'Eriostemon' Clematis 'Palette' Clematis 'Luxuriant Blue Clematis 'Utsusemi' Clematis addisonii Clematis crispa

Wow. Some great stuff here. Visiting an arboretum in winter is a great idea. The National Arboretum is a few miles away. That will be a great starting point. I've seen pix of Cryptomeria japonica 'Elegans' on eBay. But the ones posted here look much more real. That could be a very nice addition here. But it looks like it gets pretty big and grows pretty fast. I found that Iseli has a Cryptomeria Japonica 'Elegans Nana' that is dwarf and globe shaped. That might be a good smaller variety. And I have a local nursery in Boyds, MD, Susanna Farms, that buys a lot from them. So I will ask them about getting some in spring. Iseli has a bunch of other varieties of Cryptomeria Japonica that are smaller. Great suggestion. Platycladus orientalis Morgan looks like a great one, too - though bronze rather than purple. The pix I saw look also like they're fairly small. Chamaecyparis thyoides 'Red Star' seems to have mixed blessings. Found a thread on it from 2007 where people didn't care for it because it tends to splay... Juniperus communis 'Kalebab' looks nice. My only concern is that sometime my wife may decide it is dying (no matter what I say) and cut it down while I'm at work. Juniperus horizontalis 'Mother lode' looks good. Gold and blue-grey during the summer, and gold/bronze/purple in the winter. Calluna vulgaris 'Wickwar Flame' and 'Firefly'? I never thought of heather as an evergreen. But if it is, I guess I'll have to start giving more of them a second look. Finally, the Chamaecyparis thyoides 'Heather Bun' look like they're worth a look. Thanks all for the suggestions. Up until now, I've been kind of limited to trying to find Picea Abies 'Rubra Spicata'.

I did pansies last fall and they rewarded me by coming back in force this spring to decorate the feet of the daffodils and hyacinths. I usually don't do fall plantings since the summer annuals are still kicking and I'm so busy. I'm kinda glad I did this last year though since the show is so lovely this spring. Last spring I had snapdragons planted early in boxes and they put on a show into June, then I inter planted them with begonias thinking they would die back only to have them hang in pretty doggedly until fall when they put on a second show when the begonias were giving up at first frost. They kept going until the first truly harsh weather finally showed up and that was December. I think I'll plant them again this year. Any annual that puts on an encore is a good deal in my book!