Hi Connie, I have a sale in Spring and that's when I dig up mine just as they are breaking through. They do really well. I am afraid if you dig it when it is so tall, it will be a great shock to the plant and it may just wilt down for you. Mary

Saw this list of plants on the Neponset River Watershed Association website: http://www.neponset.org/raingarden.htm I have half of these plants in my garden here in chilly Montreal, so they will do well in yours in Massachusetts. Never heard of this concept until I saw your Post and now I know exactly what to do with a spot that I have run off. Thanks! Osumunda regalis "Royal fern" Adiantum pedatum "Maidenhair fern" Lobelia cardinalis "Cardinal flower" Tiarella cordifolia "Foam flower" Dicentra eximia "Bleeding heart" Polygonatum falcatum "Solomon's seal" Asclepias tuberosa "Butterfly weed" Aquilegia canadensis "Columbine" Pannicum Virginiana "Heavy metal switch grass" Matteuccia Struthioptieris "Ostrich fern"

My understanding was that D. luxuriant was a hybrid of D. eximia (East coast) and D. formosa (west coast). In my experience it seems to be sterile. I've always thought people are better off picking the species native to their coast as both are spectacular without any modification at all. Also regarding previous messages above about Lycopodiums, I've noticed that in many ways these species are given a blanket "hands off" from most native plant enthusiasts and relatively hard to find in the nursery trade. I've even heard that some states have put blanket prohibitions against selling them. Just as views on growing native orchids are finally changing, I do wonder if there could be a similar revolution here. There are so many lovely Lycopodium and it shouldn't be hard for someone to do the garden science to figure out how to responsibly propagate and grow them. Unfortunately, I suspect that anyone who tries will catch the same amount of criticism that the first people who debunked the whole "all orchids need a special mychorihza" myth.

"Invasive" means a plant that's introduced and crowds out natives. So a native, by definition, can't be invasive. That being said, some natives do grow more enthusiastically than others, and in particular circumstances certain plants will crowd out others. Plants are always in competition with each other for light, space, nutrients, water. There's a lot going on that you can't see. Your site may be better adapted to the Solomon's seal than to the jacks because of something in the soil. And vines, in particular, are always prolific because they can't fruit until they get full sun. Sometimes it helps to try to see it from the plant's point of view! There's nothing wrong with moving things around--maybe you need to divide the Solomon's seal (next spring), or maybe you need to try the trilliums in different spots. And I too grow Virginia creeper and need to cut it back throughout the growing season or it would overpower some of my perennials.