Carol, Did you use the 'contact us' link at the bottom of the page? ...or an email addy? I know emails have not been very reliable for some time now. Maybe try the contact us link again, 'and' do a suggestion. I'd support your 'Suggestion'. I really enjoy lurking here, though I seldom am ever able to provide any help. You kind folks have helped me quite a few times. Thanks again! Sue

Thanks folks! I can't believe how much the rain the last couple of days has helped everything along in the garden. Jroot - I'm having fun piddling around trying to layer and root a bunch of new things for a fall swap...hope you're up for another. I like being able to put faces to names that pop up in the various forums from our spring swaps. By the way, something - (maybe earwigs?) ate the tops off my daliah's - tops looked like black nibs so I cut back abit and see some branching - will they flower on these branching shoots (I'm a rookie at growing these and didn't appreciate the nibbling that took place by whatever critter - because the tops were fairly tall, it's not likely to be rabbits or voles because they would need to be pretty big to reach the top and there are tasty tidbit plants closer to the ground for any bottom rodent to feed on that's why I was thinking earwig) - I am impressed at the size these daliah's have gotten to. Just praying I end up with flowers dispite the early nibbling of tops that happened. Muttsfan - I was actually cutting back the Nelly's tonight - must have picked off 100 flowers from the two stately ones that grow up the circular pillars at the ends of the porch, but still plenty more blooms with lots of life left in them. The two Niobe's are done flowering on the bottom portions but the tops are still full of ready to open buds. I'm treating a few of my group 2's as half & half's (pruning one side as a group 3 - hard pruned in spring, while leaving the other side as a light group 2 prune) - John Paul is my experiment - time will tell if this ends up totally confusing the plant or me. I'm busy layering everything in sight, including the clematis - like I need any more, but I figure by the time last years layerings are transplanted into bigger pots, I'll be itching for some more 1st year liners to baby for the remainder of this summer. Eliza Ann & Tiffy - please get your camera's ready and post your clematis photo's - I would love to see yours. Peatpod - ever since DH surprised me with jewellery for our anniversary, my shopping expeditions have been limited - that darn alarm signal from my new Martha Stewart Ankle bracelet keeps attracting way too attention if I venture too close to any plant nursery. But apparently you are still on a loose rope and from what I've read in the threads at GW, you've been on the loose shopping and buying up central ontarios stock of new plants. Have you found enough space in your neighbourhood to get everything planted? I have finally started unloading a bunch of plants that I had to plop onto a pile of top soil in the back yard because I couldn't figure out where the heck to put them all...I'm going to limit myself to one fall swap because going to 3 GTA & area ones ends up with me bringing home way too much stuff. Composter you supplied was full within days of arrival from leaves and grass clippings - should be ready to be turned by now as it was good and hot the last time I checked. Cheers all!

Thats dedication Ed! So nice to see the lengths people go to in order to have what would not normally be grown in their areas! When looking at propagation techniques for palm trees I found a bunch of videos on youtube produced by a canadian on the pacific coast. This guy and in his town there are all kinds of palm trees! Apparently there is a microclimate there. Too cool. That red was my MIL so i can't check it, but will the next time I visit. I don't think it had red stems but could be wrong........going from a poor memory. Merkity, Cherie is beautiful. Does anyone know why the leaves "cup" up like this? One of my newest plants does this and I haven't noticed any other plants doing this, but the leaves on this plant are very much unlike my other plants. Darren

Celeste - I didn't remove the first bloom either - lol. It was one of the Westbourne Good Old Days, but darn! - didn't make note at the time which one it was. It had 3 blooms in all. And this season, when everything started blooming, most of the first blooms weren't all that nice. It seemed like the plant would have a "dress rehearsal" before deciding how it was going to look, and then one morning...BOOM! Heather - all the Westbourne tets were good size - 6+ inches. Height varied but averaged at least 30". That one with the wonderful eye was the tallest of them - sorry, don't have specs at moment, but over 30 inches. I thought you'd like that odd purple Wandering Werribee - lol. Alex