Seems a little silly to respond to a 4 year old thread but I couldn't resist. I saw a Mystic Illusion last summer at a very pricy nursery in a display, no idea what it was, brand new gardener. After I made the nice young man track one down for me I took it home and spent the next 6 weeks killing it. So this year I learned a ton about dahlias, searched everywhere and finally found two plants, put them in a big half barrel and they have been doing GREAT all summer. They did stop blooming during the hottest part of the season but have totally bounced back, I think there are 10 blooms on them right now (Oct 1). I am going to try storing the tubers this year, wish me luck (and get some of these yourself, they are amazing!)

I don't know what kind my sans is, just an old friend. I've had it for about 18 years and once it made the most incredible-smelling little white flowers. Strangely, that was the winter it spent in a bedroom with dark green mini blinds that I never opened. The leaves get about 20" tall. I will try SP indoors this winter, I get so "plant lonely" and really could fill up the windows with baskets. That's incredible - a 10-yr. old coleus! Was it kept inside all year? I must try this, too, just never take it outside so it doesn't have the shock of changing locations. About putting coleus in water, after a year or so, the roots will fill the bottle so much that they get very unhappy. I usually just do them over the winter & put back outside, usually in a pot, when it's warm enough. I usually remove most of the leaves before putting cuttings in water because they just die anyway before the roots can form. Should also mention pothos and heart-leaf philodendron in this thread. Not as showy, but as reliable as the sun and sturdy as steel. Either will grow (or at least not die) anywhere in the house, are very accepting of strange watering practices, bad dirt, never get pests, extremely easy to propagate, can go years between repottings, and do not make a mess with constantly dropped leaves.

Well, it was a swap, and lots of people brought very nice plants. Everything from dead-common like Stella DÂOro daylilies, to what I thought were more unusual things like pulmonaria and true geraniums. Since I donÂt have grasses thatÂs one of the things I was looking for. Do you mean that really good grasses donÂt get given away? (Or really aggressive grasses expand so much that people have to give some away to keep their stand within bounds ?) : ) IÂll have to see if I can find a picture of a large stand of this and see what I may be getting myself into. Do you think both grasses are the same, even the one that is more white? Donn, when you describe sinking the pot "buried in the ground with just an inch exposed" do you mean leave the rim of the put sticking up out of the ground one inch?

I am in zone 4/5 in the interior of B.C. We have hot summers and cold winters. We are 500 ft. above sea level so somewhere in between you and Pieter on the coast. It is generally in the 80's and 90's all summer with little rain. I am able to water as much as I need to becasuse we are on a well that never seems to run out. I've been gradully moving plants into more and more sun because of the need for more room and also to encourage those not doing well to actually grow. Over all I've been surprised and pleased that most plants grow well in the sun or at least hold their own until late in the season. The best in my experience are: Abiqua Recluse - an amazing gold that glows and catches the eye from across the garden. Paradigam - I also have a Pauls Glory in the sun but Paradigam holds up better. Inniswood- does just as well as Paradigam but the two are distinctive enough that I would always want both. Touch of Class and June - both look perfect and still have some blue color showing. Old Glory - the color is very light but no sun damage after 3 years in the hot afternoon sun. Carolina Blue - still blue Guacamole - grows well but color is muted Holy Mole - I moved it into more shade since it didn't seem to look as well as the others did Stained Glass - really beautiful but mine is in a bit less afternoon sun than the others Carolina Sunshine - just noticed the margin is turning orange, wonderful! Sunpower family: I agree that Sunpower in lots of direct sun does get crispy about now. Some of it's sports like Abba Dabba Do, Paradise Power, Zippity Do Dah, Atlantis etc. hold up much better in sun. A last yellow that I'm growing to love more and more is Aspen Gold. It's a slow grower but the round, pebbled leaves are really distinctive. The key for me is water. When we are having a really hot spell I leave the water on for days at a time. (drip system). That is for the ones in afternoon/evening sun at the height of summer. I have also grown some hostas in pots on a west facing balcony. The sun blasts them from about one or two o'clock until it sets at ten. It's like being in an oven. What worked the best was placing them in a dish of water to see them through the day. I made sure they were always sitting in water over the summer. A Patriot there looked perfect all summer while one in the ground with mid day sun but late afternoon shade looked ratty by fall. Good luck.