Hi, What kind of plants are you looking for? Jeanne

Lori, Thanks for the info. I did some research to see how close these places are to me. It is nice to have options. amelanchier, last weekend I was traveling to central PA, I checked out your link, there are several places I'd like to visit, but the only one that was on the way is no longer open. :( Oh well, I am a lot closer now to Bowman's Hill than I used to be. I went to a place I used to frequent and bought 15 bare root trees. I'd better finish planting them before I buy anything else. David

Thanks, Toronado. I may or may not. I haven't decided. I really wanted a Crape Myrtle tree but that's apparently not going to happen. I've already prepared the areas around the house for the plants and Shrubs I've ordered. There really isn't anywhere I could put a Crape Myrtle shrub. I do have one spot appx. twelve feet long by six feet wide that is currently occupied by what looks to me to be a Weeping White Mulberry tree. Some idiot planted this weeping tree three feet from the garage foundation and two feet away from a sidewalk. The tree roots cracked and heaved the sidewalk last year but haven't yet affected the garage foundation. The top of the tree is brushing against the roof, which is nine feet above ground level. I'm going to remove the sidewalk, the small concrete patio and the weeping tree next year. I'm going to have a friend bring his trackhoe onto the property and dig down deep enough with the bucket to remove the weeping tree with the hopes of saving it and replanting it elsewhere. I'm fairly certain that he can remove it in such a manner that the majority of the root structure will remain intact. You can see the weeping tree in the photo included with this post. This is the south side of the house. All the other shrubs and trees you see in the photo were removed last year and the beds are bare. This photo was taken in the late afternoon and as you can see that particular area, the east side of the garage, does not get afternoon sun. It gets about four hours of morning sun. For this reason I don't think Crape Myrtles would do very well there as they wouldn't get enough sun. It's my understanding that Crape Myrtle shrubbery also needs to be planted farther away from structures. I suppose for this area I'll have to plant some shade loving shrubbery. I would want shrubbery that either flowers, has berries or has colorful leaves, leaves that either do or do not change with the seasons. Although I know that it would probably make a landscape architect cringe, I don't particularly care for needle leaf shrubbery, for contrast reasons or otherwise, although I have some on the north side of the house that will remain. The area you see that is still getting afternoon sun is where the Azaleas will be planted. This bed for the Azaleas doesn't get full sun all day, as you may think by looking at the photo. As the sun tracks over the house this area gets about six hours of morning/early afternoon sunlight and about four hours of sunlight that is broken up by some fairly large Oak trees on my property and the property of the neighbor to the east of me, trees that you can't see in this photo. I suppose this is called dappled sunlight. I would appreciate any suggestions for what would do well in this afternoon shaded area, the area from the weeping tree to the garage man door. I have no intention of building a deck in the future so that doesn't enter into the equation. As I mentioned, the small concrete patio will be removed.

You can certainly try but do not expect great results. The few thriving MI giant sequoias benefit from a very specific microclimate along the shore of Lake Michigan that keeps them warmer in winter and cooler in summer but even then, they are at the extreme lower end of their hardiness range. The oldest of these trees is only 74 years old, a mere 'baby' in terms of the lifespan of these trees, which is typically measured in centuries.